Founders Fund is about to close another $3B fund

Founders Fund is on track to conclude fundraising of its third growth fund at the end of March, according to people close to the firm. The Peter Thiel-founded outfit is raising $3 billion, a source told TechCrunch and  Axios also reported.

The fund, which is intended primarily for additional investments in its successful late-stage portfolio companies, is expected to be significantly oversubscribed.

Founders Fund’s previous $3.4 billion growth fund closed in early 2022 and is fully invested in companies like Rippling, which raised $200 million in April. Founders Fund is also leading Anduril’s newest raise, on track to be an up to $2.5 billion round at a valuation of $28 billion, CNBC reported. Sources confirmed to TechCrunch that its share will be the largest check Founders Fund has ever written. It’s unclear whether the firm’s reported $1 billion investment in Anduril would be out of that 2022 $3.4 billion fund.

The firm will not be raising a ninth core fund for early-stage companies because it was essentially already raised three years ago. Founders Fund reportedly slashed the size of its eighth venture capital fund of about $1.8 billion in half in 2023, Axios reported. The remaining $900 million was pushed into the firm’s core ninth fund. 

That’s one reason why there’s so much excitement for this new growth fund. While most multi-stage venture firms are raising larger funds, or at least trying to maintain their peak ZIRP-era sizes, Founders Fund is limiting its fund sizes.

Investors have reason to want in. Founders Fund has an enviable portfolio of growth companies which not only includes Anduril and SpaceX but Stripe, OpenAI, and Figma.

Founders Fund declined to comment.