Nas' Venture Capital: Where Does He Invest?

Nasir Jones, better known by his stage name Nas, is a rapper and songwriter who has built a reputation as a prolific angel investor. Nas is the founding partner of QueensBridge Venture Partners, a venture capital firm that invests in startups across sectors like financial technology, healthcare, and music production. With a net worth of $70 million, Nas has invested in over 40 companies, including well-known names such as Lyft, Dropbox, Coinbase, and Robinhood. QueensBridge Venture Partners typically invests between $100,000 and $500,000 in a company, with a strong focus on the people behind the business and their motivation.

QueensBridge Venture Partners

QueensBridge has a particular interest in companies that create products designed to harness the power of technology to enhance productivity, efficiency, and connectivity. They seek to invest in companies that disrupt large markets by meeting the ever-evolving needs of consumers and businesses. The firm's partners have expertise in technology, financial markets, entertainment, and talent management, allowing them to identify business models and management teams that can transform large markets.

QueensBridge has invested in over 100 early-stage technology companies, with a focus on co-investment opportunities with leading venture capital funds and angel investors in Silicon Valley. The firm's general partners are industry veterans in consumer products and services, media and entertainment, and financial services. They have advised tech, media, and entertainment companies in raising capital, started multiple businesses, and have produced and recorded several number-one albums.

Nas's investment philosophy centres around people, with a focus on the management team. He seeks to invest in great people who inspire him and make him think differently. QueensBridge typically invests between $100,000 and $500,000 in a company and has done over 100 deals in the last six years. Some of their notable investments include Lyft, Dropbox, Coinbase, and LANDR.

Lyft

QueensBridge Venture Partners, a tech venture capital fund, was founded by Nasir "Nas" Jones, a rapper, in partnership with Anthony Saleh. Nas' interest in investing began when he first heard the word "investment" in school.

Nas is an early investor in Lyft, a ride-sharing service, through his firm QueensBridge Venture Partners. Lyft is one of the two big ridesharing companies in the United States, alongside Uber. In May 2015, activist Carl Icahn invested $100 million in Lyft, and the company has also received funding from a Japanese venture capital firm.

Nas' investment in Lyft is an example of his successful foray into the world of venture capitalism, leveraging his success in the music industry to become one of the tech world's most influential celebrity investors.

Coinbase

Nas, whose real name is Nasir Jones, founded QueensBridge Venture Partners in 2013. The firm typically invests between $100,000 and $500,000 in emerging companies. In 2013, QueensBridge participated in Coinbase's $25 million Series B funding round, joining other top-tier investors such as Andreesen Horowitz and Union Square Ventures. At the time, Coinbase was valued at around $143-$150 million, and shares were priced at about $1 each.

Nas' investment in Coinbase proved to be extremely lucrative. By the time Coinbase went public in 2021, the rapper's stake in the company was worth at least $40 million, and possibly as much as $200 million, depending on the original investment size. This windfall highlighted Nas' keen eye for investments and his success as a venture capitalist.

In addition to Coinbase, Nas and QueensBridge Venture Partners have made notable investments in other companies such as Dropbox, Lyft, Casper, FanDuel, Parachute, Ring, and Robinhood. Nas' net worth is estimated to be $70 million, and his success in the investment world has led some to consider him one of the greatest rappers-turned-investors.

Dropbox

Investment from Nas

Nas, the rapper turned investor, has invested in over 40 companies as a founding partner of QueensBridge Venture Partners. He was drawn to the world of investing and startups from a young age, and his investment in Mass Appeal in 2013 opened doors for him at some of New York City and Silicon Valley's largest investment companies. Through his connections with Andreessen Horowitz, Nas gained small stakes in several well-known companies, including Coinbase and Genius.

One of the companies that Nas has invested in through QueensBridge Venture Partners is Dropbox. Nas's VC firm typically invests between $100,000 and $500,000 in each company, and Dropbox is now valued at $10 billion. Nas's investment in Dropbox is part of his successful portfolio, which also includes Lyft, General Assembly, Robinhood, and Casper, among others.

In addition to receiving investment funding, Dropbox has also become an investor itself. Dropbox Ventures is a funding program that provides strategic partnerships and mentorship to early-stage AI startups. Dropbox Ventures is investing up to $50 million in startups that are building the next generation of AI-powered apps and tools, with the potential to transform how people work.

Casper Sleep Inc

In January 2014, the company raised $1.85 million in its first round of funding. The round was led by Lerer Ventures and Norwest Ventures and also included funding from Crosslink Partners, Vaizra Investments, and Correlation Ventures. On April 22, 2014, Casper officially launched, and in August of that year, it received an additional $13.1 million in Series A funding. Investors included New Enterprise Associates, Ron Conway’s SV Angel, Ashton Kutcher's firm, A-Grade Investments, fashion designer Steven Alan, Queensbridge Venture Partners, and the investment group of musical artist Nas.

In June 2015, Casper raised $55 million in Series B venture funding, and in June 2017, the company raised $170 million in Series C funding. In early 2019, Casper Sleep received a $100 million Series D funding round from existing investors Target, NEA, IVP, and Norwest Venture Partners, as well as new sponsors Dani Reiss of Canada Goose Holdings and Gordon Segal of Crate & Barrel. With this round of funding, the company was valued at $1.1 billion.

On February 6, 2020, Casper Sleep Inc went public at $12 per share, listing on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker CSPR. However, by March 31, 2020, its stock had dropped significantly, and in April 2020, Casper announced a reduction in its European operations and laid off 21% of its staff due to a poor IPO performance and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. In November 2021, Casper announced that it would be acquired by Durational Capital Management, a private equity firm, and the transaction was completed in January 2022.

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