As funding and exits in the ad-tech sector has become harder to secure, two high-profile figures have joined forces to launch a venture capital fund with an aim to accelerate the next generation of digital advertising businesses.
Joe Zawadzki, chief executive of digital ad-buying technology firm MediaMath, and Eric Franchi, a co-founder and former executive at Undertone, will lead the ad-tech focused fund they have named MathCapital, alongside three other MediaMath executives.
MathCapital is hoping it can act as a shot in the arm for a once-buoyant sector where funding has dried up as many firms struggle to convince investors of their long-term potential within a digital advertising market dominated by Google and Facebook.
The fund’s initial fundraising target is $5 million, with a goal of eventually expanding to $25 million.
MathCapital plans to initially make investments in the $150,000 to $250,000 range, mostly focused on the seed stage, with some funds held in reserve to extend that to as much as $500,000 over the lifetime of certain investments.
