Institutional Venture Partners (IVP)

IVP's founder, Reid Dennis, is one of the pioneers of the venture capital industry. In 1952, six months after leaving Stanford University armed with his BSEE and MBA degrees, Reid invested $20,000, which was virtually all he had to his name, in privately-held Ampex Corporation in Redwood City. Fortunately for Reid, that first investment was very successful, and after Ampex went public, that $20,000 stake grew to over $1 million in market value during the next several years. In 1974, backed by a $5 million commitment from American Express (his former employer), Reid formed Institutional Venture Associates (IVA) and raised $19 million from six institutions. That was roughly half of all the capital raised in the United States that year by private venture capital partnerships. Over the life of IVA, the original $19 million grew to over $180 million. In 1980, Reid then formed Institutional Venture Partners (IVP) and the firm has grown into one of the most successful venture capital and growth equity firms in the industry.