Catalystrix Ventures | Early-Stage Technology Investment

About Us

Building Tomorrow's Market Leaders

Our investment philosophy is built on deep sector expertise, operational excellence, and a commitment to long-term value creation through strategic partnership with exceptional entrepreneurs.

Our Foundation

Catalystrix Ventures was founded in 2011 with a clear mission: to identify and support exceptional entrepreneurs building transformative technology companies. Over the past fourteen years, we have evolved into one of the premier early-stage venture capital firms, with a proven track record of identifying market opportunities and supporting companies through their critical growth phases.

Our firm operates as a Registered Investment Adviser, maintaining the highest standards of fiduciary responsibility and regulatory compliance. We are active members of the Illinois Venture Capital Association (IVCA2) and the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA), participating actively in industry initiatives and maintaining strong relationships across the venture capital ecosystem.

Strategic Focus

Based in Kilmarnock, United Kingdom, Catalystrix Ventures brings a unique transatlantic perspective to technology investing. Our geographic positioning enables us to identify opportunities across European and North American markets, providing our portfolio companies with access to global markets and strategic partnerships. This international perspective has been instrumental in our ability to support companies in their expansion strategies and market development initiatives.

Our investment focus spans multiple technology sectors, with particular expertise in Software-as-a-Service (SaaS), marketplace businesses, and tech-enabled services. We have developed deep domain knowledge across vertical markets including financial technology, educational technology, healthcare technology, and business productivity software. This sector expertise enables us to provide strategic guidance and operational support that extends far beyond capital investment.

Value Creation Philosophy

The firm's investment philosophy is rooted in identifying companies with sustainable competitive advantages and exceptional growth potential. We focus on businesses that demonstrate strong unit economics, clear paths to scalability, and defensible market positions. Our systematic approach to due diligence and investment evaluation has enabled us to maintain consistent performance across multiple market cycles and economic environments.

Catalystrix Ventures operates with a patient capital approach, supporting companies through multiple funding rounds and providing ongoing strategic guidance throughout their growth journey. Our team's operational experience enables us to provide hands-on support across all aspects of company building, from product development and market strategy to talent acquisition and strategic partnerships.

Key Metrics

Assets Under Management $391.81M

Available Dry Powder $114.95M

Total Portfolio Companies 185

Active Portfolio 54

Successful Exits 70

Active Board Seats 34

Median Round Size $4.48M

Median Valuation $16.02M

Investments (TTM) 6

Performance Score 52.5

Co-Investment Partners 236

Number of Funds 5

Philosophy

Deep Conviction & Strategic Patience

Central to our philosophy is the conviction that technology continues to create new market opportunities and disrupt established industries. We focus on companies that leverage technology to solve complex problems, improve operational efficiency, and create new value propositions for customers. This thesis-driven approach enables us to identify emerging trends and invest in companies positioned to benefit from structural market shifts.

Core Investment Principles

Our investment decisions are guided by five core principles that have remained consistent throughout our fourteen-year history:

Product-Market Fit Excellence: We invest in companies that have demonstrated clear evidence of product-market fit through customer traction, revenue growth, and positive unit economics. This focus on proven demand reduces execution risk and increases the probability of successful scaling.

Exceptional Management Teams: We partner with entrepreneurs who demonstrate exceptional leadership capabilities, deep domain expertise, and the ability to execute complex business strategies. Our evaluation process includes comprehensive reference checks and assessment of the team's track record of value creation.

Scalable Business Models: We focus on companies with business models that can achieve significant scale with relatively modest incremental investment. This includes subscription software businesses, marketplace platforms, and network effect businesses that benefit from increasing returns to scale.

Defensible Competitive Positions: We seek companies that can establish and maintain sustainable competitive advantages through technology innovation, network effects, proprietary data, or strong customer relationships. These defensive characteristics are essential for long-term value creation and market leadership.

Large Market Opportunities: We invest in companies addressing large and growing market opportunities with the potential to build businesses worth hundreds of millions or billions of dollars. This focus on market size ensures that successful companies can achieve the scale necessary to generate meaningful returns.

Value Creation Framework

Beyond capital investment, we employ a comprehensive value creation framework designed to accelerate portfolio company growth and maximize long-term value creation:

Strategic Planning and Execution: We work closely with management teams to develop comprehensive strategic plans that address market positioning, competitive strategy, product development, and growth initiatives. Our operational experience enables us to provide practical guidance on strategy execution and performance measurement.

Operational Excellence: We support portfolio companies in building scalable operational processes across all functional areas including sales and marketing, product development, customer success, and financial management. This operational focus helps companies avoid common scaling challenges and maintain growth momentum.

Talent Acquisition and Development: We leverage our network and expertise to help portfolio companies recruit exceptional talent across all functional areas. Our relationships with executive search firms, industry leaders, and experienced operators enable us to support critical hiring decisions and organizational development.

Strategic Partnerships and Business Development: We actively facilitate strategic partnerships, customer introductions, and business development opportunities that can accelerate portfolio company growth. Our network of industry relationships provides unique access to potential customers, partners, and strategic acquirers.

Risk Management and Portfolio Construction

Our approach to risk management emphasizes portfolio diversification across sectors, stages, and geographies while maintaining focus on our core areas of expertise. We typically invest in 15-20 companies per fund, enabling us to provide meaningful support to each portfolio company while maintaining appropriate diversification.

We employ a systematic approach to due diligence that includes comprehensive market analysis, competitive assessment, technical evaluation, financial modeling, and reference checks. This rigorous process helps us identify potential risks and make informed investment decisions based on thorough analysis of each opportunity.

Long-term Partnership Approach

We view our relationships with entrepreneurs as long-term partnerships that extend beyond individual transactions. Our patient capital approach and multi-fund structure enable us to support companies through multiple growth phases and market cycles. This long-term perspective aligns our interests with those of entrepreneurs and creates value through sustained partnership and strategic guidance.

Team

Proven Operators & Strategic Advisors

Our investment team combines decades of venture capital experience with operational expertise across multiple technology sectors, providing comprehensive support to portfolio companies throughout their growth journey.

Ira Weiss

Founder & Managing Partner

Investments

Funds

Board Seats

Ira founded Catalystrix Ventures in 2011 with a vision to create a premier early-stage venture capital firm focused on transformative technology investments. With over two decades of experience in venture capital and technology investing, Ira has led investments across enterprise software, financial technology, and marketplace businesses, developing deep expertise in identifying and supporting high-growth technology companies.

Prior to founding Catalystrix Ventures, Ira held senior investment roles at leading venture capital firms where he focused on early-stage technology investments and portfolio company development. His operational background includes executive positions at technology companies where he gained firsthand experience in scaling businesses and navigating complex growth challenges.

Throughout his career, Ira has participated in over 38 investment transactions across five funds, maintaining active board positions and serving as a strategic advisor to numerous portfolio companies.

Gregory Barnes

Managing Partner

Investments

Funds

Board Seats

Gregory Barnes brings extensive experience in business productivity software and educational technology investments to Catalystrix Ventures. As Managing Partner, he leads our enterprise software and EdTech investment activities, with particular focus on B2B SaaS companies that demonstrate strong product-market fit and scalable business models.

Gregory's operational background includes senior leadership roles at enterprise software companies where he led product development, go-to-market strategy, and strategic partnership initiatives. This operational experience provides valuable insights for portfolio companies navigating critical growth phases and scaling challenges.

Recent notable investments led by Gregory include Zengines' $9 million Series A round, Diffit's early-stage investment, and Formaloo's growth financing. His focus on companies with strong technical foundations and clear paths to scalability has resulted in successful value creation across his portfolio.

Guy Turner

Partner

Investments

Funds

Board Seats

Guy Turner specializes in financial software, logistics technology, and marketplace businesses, bringing deep expertise in FinTech and supply chain optimization to Catalystrix Ventures. With 28 investments across five funds, Guy has established himself as a leading investor in companies that leverage technology to transform traditional industries.

Guy maintains active board positions across six portfolio companies including FinOpsly, InvestNext, Market Wagon, and Kognitive Networks. His board participation focuses on strategic planning, business development, and operational optimization, leveraging his extensive experience in scaling technology businesses.

Recent investments led by Guy include FinOpsly's $1.92 million seed round, InvestNext's Series A financing, and memQ's seed investment. His focus on companies with strong technical capabilities and clear market opportunities has resulted in successful value creation and portfolio company growth.

Alisa Vass

Chief Financial Officer & Partner

CFO

Leadership

Finance

Expertise

Alisa Vass leads financial operations, fund management, and investor relations for Catalystrix Ventures as Chief Financial Officer and Partner. With extensive experience in venture capital finance and portfolio management, Alisa oversees all aspects of fund administration, limited partner relations, and portfolio company financial planning and analysis.

In her role as CFO, Alisa manages relationships with our limited partner base, coordinates fund administration activities, and oversees regulatory compliance and reporting requirements. Her financial expertise includes fund accounting, performance measurement, and investor reporting across our five-fund portfolio.

Alisa works closely with portfolio companies on financial planning and analysis, providing guidance on key performance metrics, financial modeling, and strategic planning processes. Her operational expertise includes cash flow management, budgeting and forecasting, and preparation for financing activities.

Allison Lechnir

Partner

Investments

Funds

Board Seats

Allison Lechnir focuses on educational services and training technology investments at Catalystrix Ventures, with particular expertise in B2C education platforms and workforce development solutions. Her background in educational technology and human resources provides strategic insights for companies developing solutions for learning and professional development.

Her current board position includes Trainwell, where she provides strategic guidance on product development, customer acquisition, and market expansion strategies. Allison's involvement focuses on helping educational technology companies build sustainable business models and achieve strong customer retention and engagement metrics.

Allison actively supports portfolio companies in product development and market expansion strategies, leveraging her deep understanding of educational markets and customer behavior. Her expertise includes curriculum development, learning assessment, and educational content delivery systems.

Tim Kopp

Senior Advisor

Investments

Funds

Board Seats

Tim Kopp serves as Senior Advisor to Catalystrix Ventures with extensive experience across multiple technology sectors and investment stages. With 55 investments across three funds, Tim brings deep network relationships and strategic expertise that provide valuable guidance for portfolio companies navigating complex market dynamics and scaling challenges.

Tim maintains active board positions and board observer roles across multiple portfolio companies including Malomo, where he provides strategic guidance on business development, customer acquisition, and operational scaling. His involvement focuses on helping companies develop and execute comprehensive growth strategies.

His expertise spans multiple technology sectors including business productivity software, e-commerce platforms, and marketplace businesses. Tim's cross-sector experience enables him to identify strategic opportunities and provide valuable insights on market trends and competitive dynamics.

Portfolio

Building Tomorrow's Market Leaders

Our portfolio represents a carefully curated collection of innovative technology companies across multiple sectors, stages, and geographies, demonstrating our commitment to supporting exceptional entrepreneurs building transformative businesses.

HData

Series A

Business/Productivity Software • Birmingham, AL

$12.37M

Investment

Apr 2025

Date

HData is a leading data analytics platform that transforms how businesses leverage data for strategic decision-making. The company's innovative approach to data visualization and business intelligence has positioned it as a leader in the enterprise software market, providing comprehensive solutions for data management, analysis, and reporting across Fortune 500 enterprises and mid-market companies.

Slip Robotics

Series B

Logistics Technology • Norcross, GA

$28.00M

Investment

Dec 2024

Date

Slip Robotics is a revolutionary logistics automation platform that uses advanced robotics and artificial intelligence to optimize warehouse operations and supply chain efficiency. The company's technology platform includes autonomous mobile robots, warehouse management software, and AI-powered optimization algorithms that enable significant improvements in operational efficiency and cost reduction.

Zengines

Early Stage

Business/Productivity Software • Bedford, MA

$9.00M

Investment

Nov 2024

Date

Zengines is a next-generation business process automation platform that helps enterprises streamline operations and improve productivity through intelligent workflow optimization and seamless system integration. The platform combines workflow automation, system integration, and business intelligence capabilities to provide comprehensive business process optimization solutions.

FinOpsly

Seed

Financial Technology • Cincinnati, OH

$1.92M

Investment

Oct 2024

Date

FinOpsly is a cloud financial operations platform that provides real-time cost optimization and resource management for growing technology companies. The platform enables businesses to maximize cloud efficiency and control expenses through intelligent cost management and optimization tools that help technology companies manage their cloud infrastructure costs.

InvestNext

Series A

Financial Technology • Detroit, MI

Board Seat

Guy Turner

Active

Status

InvestNext is a comprehensive investment management platform for real estate and alternative investments, providing investors with streamlined access to professional-grade investment opportunities and portfolio management tools. The company's technology includes investor portal software, deal management systems, and portfolio tracking tools.

Audit Sight

Growth

Financial Software • Atlanta, GA

Board Seat

Ira Weiss

Active

Status

Audit Sight is an advanced audit management and compliance software platform that helps enterprises streamline audit processes, ensure regulatory compliance, and improve financial transparency through automated workflows and intelligent reporting capabilities for internal audit, external audit, and regulatory compliance requirements.

Company	Exit Date	Exit Type	Exit Value	Acquirer
DemandJump	April 2025	Buyout/LBO	Undisclosed	Demand Science Group
AmpliFund	March 2025	Buyout/LBO	$85.00M	Euna Solutions
Upfront	January 2025	Acquisition	Undisclosed	Health Catalyst
ShipBob	April 2024	IPO	Public	Public Markets

Process

From Initial Meeting to Strategic Partnership

Our systematic investment process ensures thorough evaluation while maintaining speed and transparency throughout our comprehensive six-stage evaluation framework designed to identify exceptional investment opportunities.

Initial Screening & Qualification

We conduct an initial assessment of investment opportunities based on our core criteria: market size, product-market fit, team strength, and strategic differentiation. This typically involves a preliminary review of the business plan, financial projections, and competitive landscape analysis. Companies that align with our investment thesis and demonstrate strong fundamentals advance to the next stage. Our screening includes evaluation of market opportunity, business model scalability, management team capabilities, competitive differentiation, capital requirements, and alignment with our sector expertise.

Management Presentation & Deep Dive

The management team presents to our investment committee, providing detailed insights into the business model, growth strategy, competitive positioning, and financial projections. We conduct comprehensive due diligence including customer interviews, market analysis, technical evaluation, and financial modeling. This stage typically takes 2-3 weeks and involves multiple touchpoints with the leadership team, including detailed discussion of market opportunity, product development roadmap, go-to-market strategy, competitive landscape, and strategic growth initiatives.

Reference Checks & Technical Validation

We conduct thorough reference checks with customers, partners, industry experts, and former colleagues to validate the team's track record and market opportunity. Our technical team evaluates the product architecture, scalability, and competitive differentiation. This comprehensive validation includes conversations with current and former customers, strategic partners, industry experts, technical evaluation, competitive analysis, and assessment of regulatory compliance and intellectual property position.

Investment Committee Decision

Our investment committee makes the final investment decision based on comprehensive due diligence findings, strategic fit with our portfolio, and alignment with our investment thesis. We provide clear feedback and decision rationale to all entrepreneurs, regardless of outcome. The committee evaluation includes comprehensive review of all due diligence findings, market opportunity analysis, competitive assessment, management team evaluation, financial projections, portfolio fit, and resource requirements for successful partnership.

Term Sheet & Legal Documentation

We work expeditiously to agree on investment terms that align incentives and support long-term value creation. Our experienced legal team manages the documentation process efficiently, typically completing legal documentation within 2-3 weeks of term sheet execution. Term sheet negotiation includes valuation and ownership structure, liquidation preferences, board composition, protective provisions, employee equity planning, and information rights, all designed to protect stakeholders while enabling entrepreneur success.

Post-Investment Partnership

Following investment completion, we become active strategic partners, providing ongoing support through board participation, strategic planning, business development, talent acquisition, and follow-on funding coordination designed to accelerate growth and maximize long-term value creation. Our post-investment support includes strategic planning and execution, operational excellence programs, talent acquisition, strategic partnership development, customer introductions, follow-on funding support, and exit strategy planning throughout the growth journey.

Performance

Consistent Value Creation

Fund Performance Overview

Catalystrix Ventures operates five funds with a combined $391.81 million in assets under management. Our fund performance consistently ranks in the top quartile of venture capital funds in our peer group, which includes venture capital funds with similar vintage years, geographic focus, and investment strategies.

Our flagship fund family, Catalystrix Ventures Fund, includes four early-stage venture capital funds with a combined $287.50 million in committed capital. These funds have achieved a performance score of 52.5, placing them in the top quartile of comparable venture capital funds based on IRR performance metrics.

Portfolio Performance Metrics

Our portfolio performance demonstrates consistent value creation across multiple sectors and investment stages. With 185 total investments, 54 active portfolio companies, 70 successful exits, and 34 active board positions, we maintain a disciplined approach to portfolio construction and value creation.

Key performance indicators include a median round size of $4.48 million across all investment stages, median pre-money valuation of $16.02 million, exit success rate of 38% of total investments achieving successful exits, average holding period of 4.2 years from investment to exit, portfolio company survival rate of 67% active or successfully exited, and follow-on funding success rate of 78% of portfolio companies raising subsequent rounds.

Limited Partner Base

Catalystrix Ventures maintains relationships with eight institutional limited partners representing foundations, government agencies, fund of funds, and direct investment entities. Our largest limited partner commitments include Richard King Mellon Foundation ($265M total commitments), Illinois State Treasurer ($103M total commitments), Renaissance Venture Capital ($51M total commitments), and Cintrifuse Capital ($26M total commitments).

These institutional relationships provide a stable capital base and enable us to maintain consistent investment activity across market cycles. Our limited partners benefit from our disciplined investment approach and strong portfolio company performance, supporting our continued fund-raising activities and strategic growth initiatives.

Co-Investment Network

We maintain active co-investment relationships with 236 institutional investors, enabling us to provide comprehensive funding support to portfolio companies and leverage complementary expertise and networks. Our co-investment partners include leading venture capital firms, angel investor groups, and strategic investors across multiple geographic markets and technology sectors.

Contact

Partner With Us

We welcome opportunities to partner with exceptional entrepreneurs, co-investors, and industry leaders. Reach out to explore potential collaborations and investment opportunities.

Office Information

Address

5 Lammermuir Court
Kilmarnock KA1 3TP
United Kingdom

Investment Opportunities

alisa@catalystrix.ventures
+442073685700

General Inquiries

info@catalystrix.ventures

Limited Partner Relations

alisa@catalystrix.ventures

Partnership Opportunities

For Entrepreneurs

We actively seek partnerships with exceptional entrepreneurs building transformative technology companies in our focus sectors. Submit comprehensive business plans including market analysis, competitive positioning, financial projections, and management team information for initial evaluation and potential partnership discussions.

For Co-Investors

We collaborate with leading venture capital firms, angel investors, and strategic partners on co-investment opportunities. Our syndication approach enables comprehensive support for portfolio companies while leveraging complementary expertise and networks across multiple technology sectors and geographic markets.

Industry Associations

Active members of Illinois Venture Capital Association (IVCA2) and National Venture Capital Association (NVCA), participating in industry initiatives and maintaining strong relationships across the venture capital ecosystem.

Investment Submission Guidelines

Entrepreneurs seeking investment should submit comprehensive information for initial evaluation and consideration:

Executive summary (2-3 pages) outlining business opportunity and competitive advantages
Comprehensive business plan including market analysis and competitive assessment
Financial projections including revenue forecasts and unit economics analysis
Management team biographies and relevant experience documentation
Product demonstrations or detailed product descriptions and roadmap
Customer traction metrics and reference information with contact details
Competitive analysis and market positioning assessment
Capital requirements and detailed use of proceeds breakdown
Current capitalization table and prior funding history
Legal and regulatory compliance documentation

We typically respond to initial submissions within two weeks and provide clear feedback on our evaluation process and next steps. Companies that advance to detailed evaluation will be contacted for management presentations and comprehensive due diligence discussions with our investment team.