Mercury CEO and co-founder Immad Akhund has formally stepped deeper into the world of startup investing with the launch of a new $26 million fund focused on backing early-stage companies. While this move marks the official start of his fund, Akhund is no newcomer to venture investing—he’s been one of the most prolific angel investors in tech since 2016.
Over the past eight years, Akhund has personally backed more than 350 startups, many of which have grown into influential players. His portfolio includes standout names like Airtable, Substack, Gecko Robotics, Linear, and Applied Intuition. With this new fund, he’s aiming to bring more structure, scale, and strategic support to the startup founders he believes in.
“Supporting entrepreneurs gives me energy, perspective, and deep satisfaction,” Akhund shared on X. He also emphasized that he’s still “100% focused on Mercury,” the fintech platform that has become a go-to business banking solution for startups worldwide.
Akhund has brought on longtime collaborator Yash Doshi as a partner in the fund. Doshi, an early investor in Mercury, has worked closely with Akhund on various deals and will help formalize the duo’s investment thesis moving forward.
A Founder-First Vision for Impactful Startups
The Immad Akhund fund will concentrate on early-stage founders with a strong product background and a track record of building things that matter. The team is particularly interested in companies addressing large markets—those valued at $10 billion or more—and solving meaningful problems that aim to “advance humanity.”
This aligns closely with Akhund’s long-standing product-led philosophy and his ties to Y Combinator, where he previously served as a part-time partner. His approach has always favored ambitious builders with a clear vision and the grit to execute.
The fund launch comes on the heels of a massive win for Mercury itself. In March, the company raised $300 million in a primary and secondary round that valued it at $3.5 billion, double its previous valuation from 2021. Top-tier firms like Sequoia, Coatue, CRV, Andreessen Horowitz, Spark Capital, and Marathon all backed the round.
With the new fund, Akhund is doubling down on the startup ecosystem—not just as an operator, but as a dedicated capital partner. And for early-stage founders who want an investor who understands what it means to build from scratch, he’s proving to be one of the most aligned allies in the industry.
