Defy Partners Management, LLC
Defy Partners – Early stage venture capital firm supporting authentic founders in building enduring companies. We help entrepreneurs defy expectations.
In the firm's own words, from its website.
5 additional investments, funds and LPs, 3 events, 2 verified contacts (1 general firm email, 1 firm phone)
Every relationship, signal and contact on this record, with the source on each.
Includes 3 days of DFX Intelligence. Then $199/month unless canceled.
Nothing material in the last 180 days.
People to know
View all people- Partner And Chief Financial Officer Of Defy Partners Management, LlcWhy: Partner: part of the investment decisionNo route on file yet
- Manager Of Defy Partners Management, LlcWhy: Named with investment responsibilityNo route on file yet
Relationship network
9 connected entities1 observed roundrounds 2020
From financing rounds and every investor named in them, Form ADV and Form D filings, the firm's funds and team, and disclosed LP commitments in the venture capital graph. A round's amount is the size of the round, not money that moved between two investors.
Some relationships on this record are counted rather than named here. They open with the full profile.
Click any name or line for the rounds and sources behind it. Line weight is rounds together; dashed lines are inferred.
- Company
- Capital provider
- Fund or vehicle
- Person
›How strength and recency are read
Co-investors are read from the rounds: three or more shared rounds is a strong observed relationship, two a repeat co-investor, one a single round. Funds and people are structural. Nothing is scored that a reader cannot check.
Darker lines were active in the last 24 months or are current; lighter lines are older or undated.
How am I connected?
Name your firm, a company or a person, and DFX finds the published routes to Defy Partners Management, LLC: a shared portfolio company or board, a prior employer, a co-investor, a shared LP or service provider. Every step is a filed or published record with its source; none is a guess about who knows whom.
See how you connect to Defy Partners Management, LLC
Includes 3 days of DFX Intelligence. Then $199/month unless canceled.
Investing
1 company on record, 0 new in 12 months
Investments on record
What these amounts mean“This investor” is the amount disclosed for this investor alone; it is unknown unless a source said it. The round size is the whole round.Acquired, Public, Exited and Active are what the firm’s own portfolio card says, read on the date shown when you hover the chip; they are not deal dates. A company with no chip is one whose card states no outcome: DFX does not assume it is active.| Company | Round | Role | Partner | Round size | This investor | Date | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Genemod Corp | Form D equity offering | unknown · board | Neil Francis Sequeira (strongly supported) | $1.0M form d sold | unknown | Aug 28, 2020 | Inference Form D |
Stated thesis versus observed behaviour
- Sectors
- not stated or not yet read
- Stages
- early
- Geography
- not stated
- Check size
- not stated; DFX does not estimate checks from round sizes
- Self-described
- venture capital
Team
3 current, 1 departed
Decision makers
- Purvi Chandrakant Shah · Partner And Chief Financial Officer Of Defy Partners Management, LlcWhy this person: Partner: part of the investment decision
- Neil Francis Sequeira · Manager Of Defy Partners Management, LlcWhy this person: Named with investment responsibility
Ranked by the role the firm or its filing states, a route on file and deals led. Every reason is read from the record, never inferred. Routes are published by the person or the firm (their bio, the team page or a filing) and are revealed on a plan; data bought from a provider is never shown, and a route printed at a firm the person has since left is held back.
Investment team
How the team is orderedPartners who lead rounds first (rounds led, then deals attributed, then seniority), then the rest of the investment team, then investor relations, finance and operations. A person named by two sources under two spellings is shown once.- Manager Of Defy Partners Management, Llc · 1 deal attributed
- Partner And Chief Financial Officer Of Defy Partners Management, Llc
2 departed (kept with end dates)
- Trae Vassallo · Co-Founder And Partner Of Defy Partners Management, Llc · Sep 1, 2016 to Mar 10, 2022 Inference
- Purvi Chandrakant Shah · Partner, Chief Financial Officer Of Defy Partners Management, Llc · Jul 1, 2017 to Mar 7, 2024 Inference
Contacts
1 general firm email, 1 firm phone on record, each with its source. Values open with the complete profile.
Funds and LPs
5 vehicles, 1 LPs disclosed
Funds and vehicles
What these amounts meanGAV is the gross asset value the adviser reported on Form ADV for the vehicle, never the fund’s committed size and never dry powder. Form D sold is the amount sold as of the latest filing, never a final close.| Vehicle | Type | Vintage | Lifecycle | Reported GAV | Owners | Form D sold | Latest Form D |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Defy Partners III, L.P. | Fund | 2022 adv first reported | Active deployment | $221M Mar 24, 2026 | 37 | $0 of $300M | Oct 22, 2021 |
| Defy Partners Goals I, L.P. | Fund | 2022 adv first reported | Active deployment | $55.7M Mar 24, 2026 | 20 | $0 of $100M | Oct 22, 2021 |
| Defy N, L.P. | Fund | 2021 form d first sale | Mature | $4.2M Mar 24, 2026 | 3 | $5.3M of $5.3M | Dec 28, 2021 |
Limited partners
- 2021-10-213 commitments to 3 funds · $48.0M disclosed
Known LPs and allocators
What these amounts and dates areEach commitment is counted once across the pension tape and the allocator graph. A commitment date prints only when the source printed one; otherwise the row carries the report date. A foundation’s 990-PF line is a holding at fair value, never a commitment. Rows without a fund on the venture graph are commitments to this manager.| Allocator | Type | Fund | Amount | Date | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles City Employees' Retirement System | MUNICIPAL RETIREMENT SYSTEM | Defy Partners III, L.P. | $20.0M committed | reported as of Dec 31, 2025 | Fact Pension disclosure |
| Los Angeles City Employees' Retirement System | MUNICIPAL RETIREMENT SYSTEM | Defy Partners II, L.P. | $18.0M committed | reported as of Dec 31, 2025 | Fact Pension disclosure |
| Los Angeles City Employees' Retirement System | MUNICIPAL RETIREMENT SYSTEM | Defy Partners I, L.P. | $10.0M committed | reported as of Dec 31, 2025 | Fact Pension disclosure |
Relationships across DFX
0 co-investors · on 2 other DFX graphs
Co-investors
Across DFX and the capital chainon 2 other DFX graphs · 6 capital paths ShowHide
- The same institution is held on Allocators, RIA and Wealth, matched by identifier. See which records
Defy Partners Management, LLC is the same institution as 2 records in Allocators and RIA and Wealth.
DFX found 2 relationships across 2 datasets
Which record it is in each graph, what it is called there, and how the two were matched.
Includes 3 days of DFX Intelligence. Then $199/month unless canceled.
Checking your plan…
Defy Partners Management, LLC sits on 6 traced paths of capital across the graphs.
DFX traced 6 paths of capital through this record
Every record on each path, what it committed or lent, and as of when.
Includes 3 days of DFX Intelligence. Then $199/month unless canceled.
Derived from allocator disclosures, BDC schedules and SEC filings; confidence is the weakest hop.
Checking your plan…
Evidence and history
8 dated events, 64 observations from 3 sources
Timeline
- Mar 7, 2024Purvi Chandrakant Shah (Partner, Chief Financial Officer Of Defy Partners Management, Llc) no longer on Schedule A of Defy Partners Management, LLC
- Mar 10, 2022Defy Partners III, L.P. first reported on Form ADV by Defy Partners Management, LLC (Venture Capital Fund), GAV $222,984,693
- Mar 10, 2022Defy Partners Goals I, L.P. first reported on Form ADV by Defy Partners Management, LLC (Venture Capital Fund), GAV $41,505,102
- Mar 10, 2022Defy N, L.P. first reported on Form ADV by Defy Partners Management, LLC (Venture Capital Fund), GAV $5,252,631
- Mar 10, 2022Trae Vassallo (Co-Founder And Partner Of Defy Partners Management, Llc) no longer on Schedule A of Defy Partners Management, LLC
Identity and regulatory footprint
Address, phone, Form ADV filing and ownersForm ADV filed Mar 24, 2026 · 5 private fundsShowHide
- Headquarters
- Woodside, CAadviserinfo.sec.gov
- Office address
- unknownadviserinfo.sec.gov
- Business phone
- unknownadviserinfo.sec.gov
- Website
- DEFY.VC
- SEC adviser type
- Exempt reporting adviseradviserinfo.sec.gov
- SEC exemption claimed
- Venture capital fund adviseradviserinfo.sec.govItem 2.B(1): advises solely venture capital funds
- Latest Form ADV
- Mar 24, 2026
- Private funds reported
- 5 (5 venture capital funds)adviserinfo.sec.gov
- Private fund gross assets, adviser total
- $1.2Badviserinfo.sec.govreported GAV of the funds, the adviser's own number; not fund size, not dry powder
Classification history
Classification history
Every classification this record has carried2 on recordShowHide
- Sep 23, 2026Institutional venture firm (confirmed, 95%)Venture manager, reported GAV $1.2B across 5 vehicles
- Sep 12, 2026Institutional venture firm (confirmed, 95%)Venture manager, reported GAV $412M across 5 vehicles
Evidence
Every observation behind this profile, with its source, date and class
| Fact | Value | Effective | Class | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Why admitted | VC exemption, VC funds reported | Mar 24, 2026 | Fact | Form ADV |
| SEC exemption claimed | Venture capital fund adviser | Mar 24, 2026 | Fact | Form ADV |
| SEC exemption claimed | Venture capital fund adviser | Mar 7, 2024 | Fact | Form ADV |
| SEC adviser type | Exempt reporting adviser | Mar 24, 2026 | Fact | Form ADV |
| SEC adviser type | Exempt reporting adviser | Mar 24, 2026 | Fact | Form ADV |
| SEC adviser type | Exempt reporting adviser | Mar 7, 2024 | Fact | Form ADV |
| First Form ADV filing | 2017-09-24 | Mar 24, 2026 | Fact | Form ADV |
| First Form ADV filing | 2017-09-24 | Mar 7, 2024 | Fact | Form ADV |
| Adv history loaded | adv-hist-1+panel:2026-09-30 | Oct 1, 2026 | Fact | Form ADV |
| Adv history loaded | adv-hist-1+panel:2026-09-29 | Sep 30, 2026 | Fact | Form ADV |
| Adv history loaded | adv-hist-1+panel:2026-09-25 | Sep 26, 2026 | Fact | Form ADV |
| Adv history loaded | adv-hist-1+panel:2026-09-23 | Sep 24, 2026 | Fact | Form ADV |
| Adv history loaded | adv-hist-1+panel:2026-09-21 | Sep 23, 2026 | Fact | Form ADV |
| Adv history loaded | adv-hist-1+panel:2026-09-22 | Sep 23, 2026 | Fact | Form ADV |
| Adv history loaded | adv-hist-1 | Sep 12, 2026 | Fact | Form ADV |
| Latest Form ADV filing | 2026-03-24 | Mar 24, 2026 | Fact | Form ADV |
| Latest Form ADV filing | 2026-03-24 | Mar 24, 2026 | Fact | Form ADV |
| Latest Form ADV filing | 2024-03-07 | Mar 7, 2024 | Fact | Form ADV |
| SEC status | ERA - Active | Mar 24, 2026 | Fact | Form ADV |
| SEC status effective | 2017-09-24 | Mar 24, 2026 | Fact | Form ADV |
| Venture share of reported funds | 1 | Mar 24, 2026 | Fact | Form ADV |
| Venture share of reported funds | 1 | Mar 7, 2024 | Fact | Form ADV |
| Business phone | Mar 24, 2026 | Fact | Form ADV | |
| Business phone | Mar 7, 2024 | Fact | Form ADV | |
| Contact page url | Sep 16, 2026 | Fact | ||
| Description | Sep 16, 2026 | Fact | ||
| Description | Sep 15, 2026 | Fact | ||
| Headquarters | Woodside, CA | Mar 24, 2026 | Fact | Form ADV |
| Headquarters | Woodside, CA | Mar 7, 2024 | Fact | Form ADV |
| Office address | Mar 24, 2026 | Fact | Form ADV | |
| Office address | Mar 7, 2024 | Fact | Form ADV | |
| Self-described type | Venture capital | Sep 16, 2026 | Fact | |
| Self-described type | Venture capital | Sep 15, 2026 | Fact | |
| Legal form | Limited Liability Company | Mar 24, 2026 | Fact | Form ADV |
| Legal form | Limited Liability Company | Mar 7, 2024 | Fact | Form ADV |
| Portfolio page | Sep 16, 2026 | Fact | ||
| Portfolio page | Sep 15, 2026 | Fact | ||
| Private funds reported | 5 | Mar 24, 2026 | Fact | Form ADV |
| Private funds reported | 5 | Mar 24, 2026 | Fact | Form ADV |
| Private funds reported | 5 | Mar 7, 2024 | Fact | Form ADV |
| Private fund gross assets (reported) | $1.2B | Mar 24, 2026 | Fact | Form ADV |
| Private fund gross assets (reported) | $1.2B | Mar 24, 2026 | Fact | Form ADV |
| Private fund gross assets (reported) | $412M | Mar 7, 2024 | Fact | Form ADV |
| Schedule a diff | sadiff-1 | Mar 24, 2026 | Fact | Form ADV |
| Stated stages | early “stage words on the home page” | Sep 16, 2026 | Fact | |
| Stated stages | early “stage words on the home page” | Sep 15, 2026 | Fact | |
| Team page | Sep 16, 2026 | Fact | ||
| Team page | Sep 15, 2026 | Fact | ||
| Venture funds reported | 5 | Mar 24, 2026 | Fact | Form ADV |
| Venture funds reported | 5 | Mar 24, 2026 | Fact | Form ADV |
| Venture funds reported | 5 | Mar 7, 2024 | Fact | Form ADV |
| Website | Mar 24, 2026 | Fact | Form ADV | |
| Website | Mar 7, 2024 | Fact | Form ADV | |
| Site title | Sep 16, 2026 | Fact | ||
| Site title | Sep 15, 2026 | Fact |
How this is scored
Scores, classification basis and filing advisersInstitutional venture firm, confirmedShowHide
Venture manager, reported GAV $1.2B across 5 vehicles
- importance
- gav: 0.63 · funds: 0.42 · people: 0.12 · investments: 0 · co investors: 0
- active deployment
- investments 12m: 0 · fund raising 18m: 0 · people joined 12m: 0 · vintage within 3y: 0 · latest investment at: not scored
- emerging manager
- fund count: 5 · reported gav: $1.2B · first adv filing: 2017-09-24 · years since first filing: 9
Fits, record history and connections
scored matches for this investor, every identity change, every edge
Record history
- Adviser's first ADV filing2017-09-24source on record
The ledger records every merge, rename and reclassification this record went through and the dated filings observed on it, so the identity on this page can be traced to the records it was built from. The ledger's own sentences name other records, so they show with the names.