RISING AMERICA LAUNCHES ITS THIRD FUND  

OVERVIEW

Rising America Fund III is the third fund of one of the highest-performing partnerships in the US, focused on companies that over-index to or are led by people of color or LGBTQ+. It is also one of the most active investors in the space, with twenty-seven (27) portfolio companies, from pre-seed to pre-IPO, across all sectors and geographies in the US.

Investing in the Innovative and scaling companies created by or for the African American, Latin, and LGBTQ+ Communities, Rising America is driving both outsized returns and meaningful change in an industry that has long overlooked diverse founders and markets.

A RISING AMERICA SUCCESS STORY

Isabel Rafferty’s launch and phenomenal growth of Canela Media is an unparalleled success story. While now seen as an obvious choice, when we met Isabel in late 2020 she had been turned down by120 other venture capital firms. Where we saw an immense opportunity in the growing demand for Spanish language media programming, others saw risk. Where we saw a highly experienced media executive with a huge vision, others saw a founder that didn’t match their pattern of a CEO.

With two Spanish-speaking Fund Founders and dozens of Latin American and Spanish-speaking limited partners, we recognized growth, opportunity and returns, where others saw an easy ‘no.’

Today, Canela is the fastest growing media company in the world, with over 76 million unique device users, over $110MM in revenue, and rapidly growing digital assets, live sports contracts, and data platforms.

Our investment is now valued at 40X our initial investment, and Isabel and Canela are just hitting their stride.  

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FUND PERFORMANCE

Portfolia Rising America Fund III continues the legacy of extraordinary returns and transformative impact. With its predecessor, Rising America Fund I, achieving a stunning gross TVPI of 3.20x and an IRR of 39.25%, and Rising America Fund II boasting a gross TVPI of 1.23x and an IRR of 13.29%, these results aren't just numbers—they are proof of a thesis that consistently delivers.

This success is not tied to a single outlier but reflects our ability to identify untapped talent, underrepresented founders, and overlooked markets, creating real, sustainable value. The returns are rooted in a clear vision: that innovation thrives when diverse leaders are activated in growing markets. These performance metrics speak to the power of investing in companies driving both exceptional financial results and meaningful impact.

Rising America Fund III is not just another fund; it’s a movement to deliver financial success while reshaping the venture capital landscape. As one of the first and most active funds focused on people of color driving both outsized returns and meaningful change in an industry that has long overlooked diverse founders and markets.

FUND PORTFOLIO

This remarkable success stems not from a single company but reflects the strength and execution of a well-founded thesis. The Rising America Fund III plans to continue supporting top early and growth-stage companies by investing in a sector and stage-agnostic manner, with a focus on companies led by BIPOC and LGBTQ+ founders or that over-index to these communities.

Company Highlights

INVESTMENT DETAILS

Investments by Industry

The Partners

Rising America Funds are the only venture capital funds to be founded and led by five African American and Hispanic/Latina women partners, all of whom are pioneers in the VC industry with an exceptional average of 16.4 years of investment experience. Their diverse expertise spans multiple industries, all stages of investment, and offering unique insights into underserved markets. 

The Lead Partners—Lorine Pendleton, Noramay Cadena, Juliana Garaizar, Daphne Dufresne, and Dr. Karen Kerr—are not just investors but also influential thought leaders, drawing from their networks to drive exceptional deal flow. They bring an expert skill-set including sourcing, diligence, deal negotiation, executive recruitment, & strategy. In Rising America Fund III, Partners Dr. Karen Kerr and Daphne Dufresne, with 30 and 25 years of experience respectively, will move to Senior Advisors.

INVESTING THESIS: AN ENORMOUS & UNDERSERVED MARKET, WITH GROWING BUYING POWER

The Portfolia Rising America III Fund is build on the successful investment model and thesis of the first two funds and continues to invest directly in early-stage and growth companies in the US for returns and market impact. Rising America invests in exceptional founders from underrepresented communities focused on rapidly growing markets, including people of color and LGBTQ+ entrepreneurs, as well as in companies with innovative products and services aimed at these markets. These founders, ecosystems, and markets—historically overlooked by traditional venture capital—have proven to be positioned for exceptional growth and profitability.

Latin, Hispanic and African American markets are among the fastest growing, with rapidly increasing buying power in the US, but are still dramatically underserved in products and services meeting their needs. This is especially pronounced in areas such as healthcare, financial products and services, media and entertainment, enterprise services, and beauty and consumer products. Especially pronounced is healthcare, where health inequity, even when controlling for income, results in greater cost, disease, suffering, and adverse outcomes in pregnancy and delivery.

COMMUNITY & PARTNERSHIPS

Rising America’s sophisticated community of limited partners is a key component to its success, as is its partnerships with research institutes, accelerators, and innovation organizations.

Rising America is highly networked with the venture capital community, and co-invests with the other top venture capital investment firms in the US.

• 2000+ limited partner/members who bring deal-flow, knowledge & expertise

• Relationships with National Science Foundation, National Institutes of Health, AARP, Springboard

• DEI with Toigo Fellowship, VC Include, Black Women Who Code, Grace Hopper Institute

Rising America I & II Investments

PORTFOLIA COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE

Portfolia provides the back office, structure and limited partner support so the world's top VCs can focus on investing, across 14 funds and 14 special purpose vehicle investments.

• Portfolia Partners: Its 46 partners across 14 funds lead the venture capital industry's best practice, and provide an expert investing network across industry.

• Portfolia Members: Portfolia's 2,000 limited partner executives, across 48 states and 20 countries, provide unparalleled knowledge, networks, and expertise.

• Portfolia Model: Portfolia’s proven model — activating the world’s best women venture capitalists in a special partnership to unleash the capital of sophisticated women and minority limited partners, to back the companies we want in the world for returns and impact — shows that exceptional returns can come from radically different models of investing.

• Portfolia Investing Experience: Portfolia is based on the knowledge that bringing sophisticated women to the investing table, as members in a transparent and educational investing experience, makes our investing better, our companies stronger and builds a emerging investing ecosystem for the future.