Former Sequoia Partner Matt Miller Raises $355M for New Fund With Sequoia’s Support

Matt Miller, formerly a partner at Sequoia, has successfully raised $355 million for his new venture capital firm, Evantic, which is backed by Sequoia, according to TechCrunch.

In December, Miller announced his decision to depart from Sequoia after twelve years, with the goal of establishing a fund aimed at “supporting the exceptional founders of Europe.”

While Evantic will primarily concentrate on Europe, sources suggest that the firm will also invest in the U.S., particularly focusing on B2B companies in the Series B and growth stages. The firm will be based in London, where Miller moved from California in 2021.

Before relocating to the U.K., Miller was instrumental in Sequoia’s growth into Europe and became part of its London office, collaborating with the first local hire, Luciana Lixandru, who is still a part of the team.

On Monday, Sequoia chose not to provide comments regarding Miller or his new venture. TechCrunch has also reached out to Miller for a direct statement.

Miller’s fundraising achievements have exceeded initial expectations. Initially, it was reported that he aimed to raise $300 million for his new firm. However, sources indicate a revised target of $400 million, with Sequoia participating as a limited partner. TechCrunch has contacted Sequoia for confirmation.

According to a U.S. regulatory filing, Miller’s new firm has secured $350 million from external sources; Evantic has additionally garnered $5 million in internal commitments and is working to close the remaining $45 million through founders and other startup ecosystem members, as reported by sources to TechCrunch.

Miller’s exit seems to stem largely from an unsuccessful attempt to influence portfolio company Klarna. Just before announcing his departure, he reportedly tried to oust former colleague Michael Moritz from the Klarna board. Shortly after, Sequoia withdrew its support for that move and assigned Miller’s board position to another partner.

At the same time, broader tensions within Sequoia were surfacing regarding partner Shaun Maguire, whose views have become divisive internally and among portfolio founders. In January, Wunderlist founder Christian Reber expressed his disagreement with Maguire about the German far-right party AfD. Furthermore, Miller and Lixandru distanced themselves from Maguire’s perspectives, which have incited further controversy.

Despite the Klarna incident, Miller seems to have preserved a positive relationship with Sequoia, as evidenced by the firm’s involvement as a limited partner in his new project. He also continues as a venture partner at Sequoia, remaining engaged with several boards.

Throughout his time at Sequoia, Miller collaborated closely with numerous companies, including Confluent, dbt Labs, Docker, Grafana, Graphcore, Hex, and Tessian. He also worked alongside Spencer Hemphill, a long-time Sequoia employee who left before Miller and is now reported to be Evantic’s CFO.

Although Evantic is officially a U.S.-based fund, it is joining the ranks of transatlantic venture firms like Index Ventures and Northzone, the latter of which has expressed that it is “doubling down on the transatlantic” approach. Its size is comparable to the $348 million investment by the Norrsken Foundation—founded by Klarna’s creator—in European startups utilizing “AI for good.”