- today
Nasir Qadree, the founder of Zeal Capital Partners, joined Forbes senior writer Jabari Young on The Enterprise Zone at the Nasdaq MarketSite. During the interview, Qadree discussed the firm’s new fund, which targets 25 early-stage technology companies. He also explains how Zeal is generating commercial returns despite the current challenges in the DEI landscape.
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LifestyleTranscript
00:00Leave it to Grandmom to share her words of wisdom.
00:03And for this individual, Grandmom's words certainly hit home.
00:06One of the messages she preached, building community.
00:08Introducing you to the investor who raised $82 million to continue to do just that.
00:13Closing the wealth and skills gap across America.
00:17You're in the Enterprise Zone at the NASDAQ.
00:24Hello everyone, this is Jabari Young, senior writer at Forbes,
00:27and I am joined by a special guest, brother's name is Nasir Qadri.
00:31He is the founding and managing partner of Washington, D.C., based Zeal Capital Partners.
00:36Now this is an early stage venture firm that recently raised $82 million,
00:41on top of a whole bunch of other money, we'll dive into that in a minute.
00:43And this inclusive investment vehicle is laser focused on backing diverse management teams
00:50and rethinking the blocks of wealth, building wealth.
00:53Did I hit that right now?
00:54Building blocks of wealth.
00:55Building blocks of wealth.
00:56All right, there you go.
00:57There you go.
00:58You should take my job.
00:59You should take my job.
01:00I love that.
01:00Now, Nasir, thank you so much for joining me at the NASDAQ, man.
01:02It's a pleasure to have you, yeah.
01:03Jabari, a pleasure to be with you.
01:05Yeah, thank you, man.
01:05And you're just right off the Amtrak, right, to come up here?
01:07Right off.
01:08Yeah.
01:085.55 a.m.
01:11Seller this morning.
01:12Man, that is great, man.
01:13All the way up here to see me, this is phenomenal.
01:15Only you.
01:16Yes, thank you, man.
01:17You're special.
01:17Ah, man, listen, I appreciate it.
01:19When you gotta get up at 5 o'clock in the morning, the bracket don't wanna do that,
01:21I really appreciate it, man.
01:22But listen, we're here at the NASDAQ, so you gotta give me a stock, right?
01:25What has worked well for Nasir Qadri and Zill Capital Partners?
01:29Or yourself, like, what is something that you bought, you wanna buy?
01:32Like, what has worked well for you?
01:33Give me a stock.
01:35You know, Jabari, I think less about stocks.
01:37I think it's more about, you know, building the right relationships
01:40that has gotten us to this point.
01:43We are living in a difficult market to fundraise.
01:47Yeah.
01:48Whether you are an entrepreneur or you're a fund manager like myself,
01:51and so when I think about what's got us here now five years,
01:56we've been in business for five years,
01:59it's been being intentional around relationships,
02:04leaning in and, you know, really continuing to stay disciplined
02:10in my investment focus throughout the years,
02:13now a little over a decade,
02:16and constantly, you know, really thinking about value proposition.
02:20Why are we here, right?
02:23There's thousands of other venture capital firms,
02:26but if you think about our value proposition relative to the entrepreneurs
02:31that are seeking investment capital, you know, why Zill?
02:35And so it's really being very focused on this idea that you highlighted,
02:41you know, looking at three categories, healthcare, financial technology,
02:47and the future of learning and work.
02:50And so these are three critical categories, $3 trillion categories
02:53that are laser focused on building, rethinking the building blocks of wealth
02:57from education pathways to workforce, to learning, health equity,
03:03and including financial services.
03:06I love that answer, but I'm still not going to let you get out of here
03:08without saying a stock.
03:09You've got to give me a stock.
03:10What has worked well for you?
03:11I think you can't never go wrong with tech.
03:14Tech.
03:15I'm going to always be long on tech.
03:18Anything tech or something specific, like Apple phones?
03:21I'm an Apple.
03:23All my devices are Apple, so I'm still long Apple.
03:26Yeah, likewise.
03:27If you just told me, I got my daughter a phone, so I'm all in on Apple, too.
03:30I don't have any Apple stock, though, so if you have any to share,
03:32you know, make sure you pass them up.
03:33I would love to have it.
03:34But, listen, as you just said, man, a lot is going on in 2025.
03:38Again, a lot going on in your sector, right, but also a lot going on in the world.
03:41But, you know, here we are.
03:42You need something to keep you motivated.
03:44So what has been Nacer's soundtrack to 2025?
03:47What's been keeping you motivated and positive?
03:49You know, I think building on top of COVID, we all found that thing.
03:54Yeah.
03:54Whether it was cooking, playing chess, for me, was collecting vinyls.
04:00That's right.
04:00I'm a huge...
04:00That's how you met your wife, right?
04:01You went up to her and said you like vinyl.
04:03That's right.
04:03That's right.
04:04And I was spinning, and she ended up spinning my world around.
04:07I guess we were both spinning.
04:09Yeah.
04:09But, I mean, spinning vinyl and collecting records, Jabari, has been therapeutic to me,
04:17especially when you live this duality of being an entrepreneur, being a husband, being
04:24a father, leaning in the community, and literally trying to rethink how we think about raising
04:34capital, how we think about acts of capital, and building on top of local assets around
04:40the country as well in terms of where we find these entrepreneurs.
04:42And so, you know, Songs to the Key of Life, to be even more specific to your question,
04:47is my favorite.
04:48Stevie Wonder.
04:49Stevie Wonder.
04:50It's my favorite vinyl.
04:51Nice.
04:51I play the whole track.
04:52Wow.
04:52I don't skip it.
04:53I have...somebody bought me an album player, vinyl, and I have Purple Rain and Miles Davis.
04:59You know, I haven't even opened it yet.
05:00But that was the last year's Father's Day gift.
05:02I feel so guilty.
05:03It's just collecting dust, right?
05:04I need to crack it over, though, because I'm hearing that.
05:06It's a great experience.
05:08Crack open the vinyl.
05:09Yeah.
05:09So you vouch for it, then?
05:10I vouch for it.
05:11I DJ on the side, too.
05:12You still do that?
05:13I still DJ on the side.
05:13How do you find the time to be running a VC firm and DJ on the side?
05:17You know, you and I was chatting earlier this morning around, you know, making the best case
05:21for whether you're traveling or you're, you know, thinking of things that could, you know,
05:30continue to motivate you.
05:32And I like to call it, remember why you started.
05:35Yeah.
05:35And for me, it's making sure that, you know, I'm, you know, I continue to be, I continue
05:48to lean in in those areas.
05:49And the other is running as well.
05:51And so, you know, you got to make time for it.
05:53That's right.
05:54You got to make time for it.
05:55Yeah.
05:55Well, you have a young son.
05:56If you walked into his class, what grade is he in?
05:59Rising fourth grader.
06:00Rising fourth grader.
06:01Perfect time.
06:01You walk into his fourth grade class.
06:04And, you know, all of his classmates are saying, well, what is it that you do, Mr. Nasir?
06:08What do you tell them?
06:09I loaned out money to people and they give it back to me?
06:11What do you tell them?
06:11You know, it's funny.
06:12A fourth grader, you know, even today, he says, you know, he, he, Nasir, he, he puts money
06:19into small companies so they can become big companies.
06:21Yeah.
06:22And in the grand scheme of things, that is, that is right.
06:24But I also want to teach, you know, the, the, the importance of how, if you think about the
06:33way we all perceive capitalism and some folk may not, you know, view capitalism in a positive
06:40light.
06:40Yeah.
06:41But I, but I believe in this duality that both can be true.
06:45You look at healthcare, you look at financial technology with the lens towards inclusion
06:49and wellness, look at the future of learning and work with the lens towards narrowing the
06:53skills gap between education, employment pathways.
06:56That is a, those are areas where we can disrupt systems that have not afforded low wealth patients,
07:03the under, underbanked consumer, the frontline worker or low income student.
07:09But at the same time, these are also two, two, three trillion dollar categories.
07:14And so I'm teaching my son and other mentees and young people who have an interest in becoming
07:22entrepreneurs or fund managers, that this idea of if you, there, there, there's a, there's
07:29a way to inject capital that has the ability to become category leaders, but also has the
07:35ability to provide access and opportunity for those who are often left out.
07:41Yeah.
07:41Well, let's dive more into that, man.
07:43Again, you just closed on an 82 million raise, right?
07:46You know, Zeo Fund 2, if I'm not mistaken.
07:48Zeo Fund 2.
07:49That's right.
07:49And investors include City Impact, M&T Bank, Mass Mutual, Spelman College,
07:54involvement, right, already joining Hampton University, who's an investor.
07:58And so what you want to do with this money, 25 early stage companies you're going to plan
08:03and invest in over a four year period, check sizes between 1 million and 2.3 million,
08:08with the option to serve as a board of directors right now.
08:11That's right.
08:11Zeo Fund 2 is amongst three funds that you have under Zeo Capital Partners.
08:15The other one being Barclays for Black Formation Investments, Zeo Fund 1, right?
08:20And then Zeo Fund 1, you've raised about $62 million, if I'm not mistaken.
08:24All that sound correct?
08:25$54 million.
08:26$54 million.
08:26Okay, so $54 million for Zeo Fund 1.
08:29That's right.
08:29And $82 for Zeo Fund 2.
08:30How much altogether have you raised total?
08:33$186 million.
08:34$186 million.
08:35And within five years.
08:36Great.
08:36In five years.
08:37Take me on the inside of Zeo Fund 2, man.
08:39You've gotten this money.
08:40What do you plan to do with it?
08:41What's the future looking like for you?
08:42So, it's important to us that we continue to double down on the categories we were investing
08:50in out of Fund 1, which is FinTech and the Future of Learning and Work.
08:55I wrote this John F. Kennedy moonshot three-pager when I was ideating Zeo all in 2019.
09:03And one of the areas that I wrote, I remember a couple paragraphs around,
09:06if we're truly going to democratize acts of capital and think about innovations that are
09:12turbocharging economic mobility, then we cannot discount health care.
09:16Now, my own personal track record over the past 10 years did not over-index in health care.
09:23And so, I knew when I started Zeo, I needed to focus on areas that I had the most exposure
09:29into, which was future of learning and work and financial technology.
09:33And then when it came to scale into a new category, I needed to focus on building a strategy,
09:42an investment mandate, building out the team of limited partners and advisors,
09:47and of course, increasing my investment team.
09:50And so, we did that with health equity being the third category for Zeo Fund 2.
09:57And so, as you mentioned, we'll focus on 25 deals.
10:03We'll not be afraid to step up and lead deals.
10:06I think that's important.
10:07When you're a category-specific mandate, it's important that we show to the market that we go deeper
10:13and then we have the ability to step up and lead deals.
10:17And that's important, particularly in this market where founders are looking for aligned investors,
10:25whether you're strategic aligned, mission aligned.
10:28And I think that the upside is that we have limited partners from financial institutions
10:36to insurance companies like Mass Mutual to university endowments like Hampton University,
10:42my alma mater, Spelman College, Southern New Hampshire University.
10:47These are also universities that make up the very fabric in terms of the type of students
10:53and workers that they support as well.
10:57And so, there's a lot of deal flow and pipeline across these areas.
11:05And we're seeing these innovations all across the country, not just coming from very few places.
11:10And that is key, which goes to your point earlier around inclusive investing,
11:14this five-prong market-back approach that allows us to widen our lens,
11:18yet keep alpha and mission-driven companies front and center.
11:22Yeah.
11:22I hear a lot of companies that say that, right?
11:25But why, why if I'm an entrepreneur and I have a great idea, am I going to give, you know,
11:31Zeal Capital Partners, why am I going to, you know, try to take money from you guys
11:34and give you a board of directors on my company as opposed to there's a couple of other firms,
11:39you know, down in Washington.
11:40You have, you know, Steve Chase's firm in Revolution, right?
11:42So, you have some competitors in your own area.
11:44Why am I not going to them?
11:45Why am I going to – what makes Zeal Partners so special?
11:48And I think the beauty of recognizing your peers in the space is that there's more capital out there
11:57for those entrepreneurs to include us all on their cap table.
12:01So, none of us, including the founder, can be successful if it's just us injecting capital into that founder.
12:07But what I've recognized, at least in my career, is that when you – when a founder thinks about building out their cap table,
12:16you want a diversified investment group who brings differentiated resources,
12:23whether it's connections or it's offering, you know, experience around product, experience around branding,
12:31of course, is talent management.
12:33And so, I think for us, we focus on three core areas.
12:38Helping companies think about their cash flow and financials.
12:41Thinking about how they scale from one market to – as they scale outside of their current market.
12:48Thinking about, obviously, upstream capital.
12:50I'm a big fan and it's important that we understand the importance of the capital continuum.
12:55And so, as founders grow, you know, Zeal, you know, we can't be there for, you know, in terms of, like, continuing to inject capital.
13:04We have to ensure that we have relationships up the capital stack, Series A, Series B, and beyond, pre-IPO.
13:10And so, when I think about an entrepreneur selecting Zeal as their preferred investment partner,
13:16for us, one, what we've seen in terms of, you know, their testimony has been, you know, Zeal knows this space well.
13:26They have a track record in supporting entrepreneurs in our categories.
13:32They understand other areas outside of capital, like they have strong product experience.
13:39They have operating experience.
13:41And then the other is access to upstream capital.
13:43And so, those are the three – once you become a Zeal portfolio company, those are the three core areas that we spend the most time on, founders.
13:51Two old companies that – one is not anymore, but one is still in your portfolio.
13:56Asusu, you know, was just with the brother, you know, Mr. Abbey, man.
14:00I'm a big fan of his.
14:01And then one that was sold in Canaries in Dallas, right?
14:04That's right.
14:05Two opposites.
14:05And one's still in, one's not.
14:07What happened with Canaries?
14:08I mean, that was a – you know, was sold.
14:10Did you guys make your money back?
14:11Did you make your investors happy?
14:12What happened with that transaction?
14:14And what's going on with Asusu?
14:16Well, one, I'm coming on Asusu.
14:17Asusu's doing well.
14:18Yeah.
14:18Asusu's doing well.
14:19They continue to rethink how we think about credit score and credit access expansion, one of our core subcategories within the financial technology space.
14:27I think when you reach that scale, you tend to, you know, as an investor, ask yourself the question, you know, do we – how are the founders doing as – these are – well, Mimo Abbey and Samir Goal have been exceptional.
14:43They have an incredible investor base and they also have a great executive coach as well.
14:55And so I think, you know, they're going to continue to become a market leader across the financial technology space and bullish on them.
15:03Over a billion valuation, if I'm not mistaken.
15:05Their last valuation was a billion dollars.
15:07Yes.
15:07Exactly.
15:09Proud, proud of those brothers.
15:10Yeah.
15:11When I think about the portfolio, you know, in venture, you always model out companies that won't achieve the level of success that you would like in terms of returning capital back to your limited partners.
15:26And, you know, as you think about – in my experience, particularly in Fund One, you know, there's – there have been a number of lessons learned around how companies manage their cash flow.
15:41And in many cases, it's less about the technology company.
15:44It's more about is the market – will the market continue to be ripe for that type of innovation to scale?
15:52And I think that's what we've seen in a number of our portfolio companies out of Zio Fund One.
15:57Yeah.
15:57Well, so funny, man.
15:58I was with some people.
16:00We have a mutual friends in the same circles.
16:03Okay.
16:03And I'm asking them.
16:04I said, well, listen, I got him coming up to the show.
16:05What would you ask him?
16:07And a variety of things that came through.
16:09And one of which was, you know, we were going through this impact investment era, right, where after George Floyd, everybody was, you know, throwing money at, you know, VCs and throwing money at entrepreneurs trying to fix the problem.
16:21But that impact era, one can make the argument, is over, right, as we see new ideologies coming from new administration, companies changing, all those things.
16:30And so the individual said, you know, how is Nasir going to navigate those commercial returns and kind of getting out of the impact investment phase?
16:40Because, listen, investors want their money back, right?
16:42That's right.
16:42I mean, the Xs are down.
16:44And if I'm not mistaken, it's very hard to raise money right now because family offices, endowments are rethinking if they want to touch the VC space because they're not getting their returns on investment.
16:54How are you navigating that impact investment era being kind of over and, you know, more commercial terms and people saying, hey, you promised us we want our money back.
17:04How are you navigating that?
17:05Jabari, I am reminded what keeps us in business.
17:08I've started this firm to be around the next 50 plus years.
17:12I started every pitch when meeting with limited partners and even founders.
17:20And in doing so, I often said, you know, these are $3 trillion sectors.
17:28And these are also sectors that will always be right for innovation but also have the ability to, again, disrupt systems across these three categories.
17:38And as I think about the climate that we're in, it's vital that we lead with portfolio companies.
17:47We have over 50 plus portfolio companies across the three accounts.
17:51And so the next era, the next five years, 10 plus years, I am solely, including our entire investment team at Zeal, are focusing on the stories, the impact of our portfolio companies.
18:06Number two is continuing to signal that these three categories from an investment perspective will always be right for innovation.
18:14I think when we lead with the ability, the fact that these sectors will always be investable sectors, that's investment acumen.
18:28That's not focusing on concessionary returns.
18:31And so, and then the fact that you have not only over 50 plus companies but also a track record prior to Zeal, I think that also continues to bolster why Zeal is the investor to continue to invest in these categories.
18:49Yeah.
18:49Are you facing any pushback?
18:51I mean, are, you know, people you're asking for money for, right, you raise $82 million, are they kind of giving you a little bit more of a hard way to go?
18:57Because, again, DEI is still under attack and, you know, one can look at, you know, your company, oh, it's black lead, DEI.
19:04And it's like, no, this is business, this is VC, I have my thesis.
19:08Are you facing any of that pushback or are you facing any secondary options or are people second guessing in the marketplace?
19:13Yeah, that's a great question.
19:14When I first decided to go back out to market to raise Zeal Fund 2, the first crop of investors was Zeal Fund 1 limited partners.
19:25It was very intentional and said, you know what, let's not go public yet.
19:29Let's give Zeal Fund 1 investors an opportunity to do their diligence, to review Zeal Fund 1 markups and let them and give them time.
19:46And so I'm proud that, you know, 80%, just about 80% of Zeal Fund 1 limited partners continued their investment.
19:54Now, when it came to new limited partners, that was the case, especially during this climate.
20:02But I never led with we're an impact investment firm because we don't call ourselves an impact investment firm.
20:08I never led to the fact that we solely invest in terms of the across the entire platform.
20:14Now, there is a segment, which we'll get there, of our platform that's focused on training the next generation of venture investors and the next generation of diverse tech companies.
20:25It is important for me, both internally and to our entrepreneurs, those that we partner with, and limited partners, that diversity will always be part of our DNA.
20:38It is, it is, it is, it is the, it is, it's how, it allows us to make the best informed investment decisions.
20:46Right.
20:47Well, you were, you focus on diverse teams, right?
20:48Absolutely.
20:49Your thing is diverse teams helps companies grow.
20:51And there's diversity of thought.
20:52And there's data that proves that if you are diverse management teams, you will outperform.
20:57And so I'm still betting on that data.
20:59But more importantly, I'm betting on my team.
21:01Yeah.
21:01I think the, the way I've compiled my team with strong domain experience, value aligned, operating experience, investment acumen, that is, those are the critical and most important pieces when building out an investment firm.
21:16And so I think that, that, I don't think that has gotten lost during the fundraising process, getting to Zeal Fund 2.
21:24Well, another individual said, you know, ask him, is he hard on himself?
21:27Because, you know, initially, I'm looking at the SEC finals, you intended to raise over $100 million and you walked away with 82.
21:33And, you know, the individual says 82 is the new 100 in this environment, right?
21:38And so are you a little hard on yourself because maybe you didn't get what you wanted, but, you know, you still got 82 million?
21:43I'm so competitive, Jabari.
21:45I've always been since I was young.
21:48I'd be lying to you.
21:49If, if I didn't like, you know, look at myself in the mirror, I'm like, you know, see if you fell short.
21:56That, that was a negative.
21:57Do you feel like you fell short here at all?
21:58I, I, I came out of the bathroom after looking at myself in the mirror and said, I didn't.
22:03I don't know, you did $82 million.
22:0582 is no small feat.
22:06I recognize that.
22:08I recognize that full stop.
22:09But I also recognize that it is an incredible privilege to be liquid, have this, this amount of dry powder to join the journey of the next generation of category leaders.
22:28And for that, I am proud of my team.
22:33I am grateful for my limited partners.
22:35And this is where the hard work happens though.
22:38It's one part of the raise, but now you have to go out and deploy.
22:41And, and that's where, that's where my focus is going forward.
22:44What's Nasir Kadri like running a VC firm in 2025?
22:48Because the same individual, so what type of leader is he?
22:51He says, you know, he's a solid leader because he is good at examining the entire puzzle and understanding where the pieces fit.
22:57And so, you know, what's it like for you running a VC firm here in 2025?
23:02Yeah, I was, I was chatting with a close friend of mine and we had this very common, he's a peer of mine in the space.
23:08And I was sharing with him, you know, giving him the same answer.
23:13Might be the same individual was telling me all this.
23:14It may be, you know, we travel in tight circles, close circles.
23:18I think it's important this year, and even a through line going forward, that I just remain disciplined.
23:28It's just, there's, there's theory and then there's action.
23:31You, you, you share in your pitch deck what you say you're going to do, and then is executing it in action.
23:37And so, that's number one.
23:39I think number two is the importance of developing and retaining top talent across the team.
23:46I do not plan to be the face of zeal.
23:49I want this to be a firm that's around for long time.
23:52Why not, though?
23:52Why do you say that, though?
23:53And I only bring that up because I remember asking Ice Cube this very thing when he was building the big three.
23:58Yeah.
23:58And he's calling me on the phone.
23:59I'm like, yo, you're Ice Cube.
24:00You don't have to do this.
24:02And he says, well, if I'm, if I'm not the face, it's going to fail.
24:04Like, I have to be out there.
24:05Like, this is your brand.
24:07You just, you know, I know you have investors, but why not be the face?
24:09Well, I understand, especially in the early days, we're five years in, there's going to be this overlap of personal brand and zeal brand for me.
24:17But as the firm continues to mature and you see folks that are, that I've hired, they, they're crushing it.
24:27They're out, they're out being thought leaders or writing thought leadership pieces.
24:31They're, they're, they're shepherding deals, sourcing deals and bringing deals to, to final.
24:35Like, I, I want to put them in spaces and places where the broader venture capital community should know about.
24:43And so, I, I, I believe if this firm is going to be around for the long haul, it can't just rest on the seer.
24:51It has to rest on the, the other members of the team that are doing the work.
24:55And so, that's, that's, that's the reason why.
24:59But, you know, I think the other component of the, another, another attribute this year is just getting smarter, getting smarter.
25:07I, I'm a lifelong learner.
25:08I care deeply about if, if, if, if we're truly going to be a category-specific investment strategy, then we have to get smarter across our categories.
25:19And the cool thing about feature categories is that they're always changing, right?
25:23We saw the future of learning work shift from, you know, being, you know, around productivity tools and during COVID to now AI, you know, playing a major role in, in how we think about, you know, student achievement and employment, and employment outcomes, for example.
25:39And so, you know, staying, staying disciplined, getting smarter, and, and continuing just to perform, perform and, and, and communication across both our peers and the broader private market while you're investing in these categories, but also to your founders and, and your limited partners as well.
25:58Yeah.
25:58Take it back to Atlanta, man.
26:00Southwest Atlanta, you grew up, right?
26:01Your mother had you at Clark Atlanta, her sophomore year at Clark Atlanta.
26:05So, you're growing up on campus, right?
26:07That's right.
26:07But what was that like for you growing up in Southwest Atlanta?
26:11You know, we call it the SWATs, right?
26:13And I am a product of, of, of, of Atlanta.
26:22I'm not the person I am today.
26:26Based on the surroundings and the people and the, the nonprofits I went through that taught me the importance of leadership, service, entrepreneurship.
26:35And as, as, as someone who, you know, that area was not the best area.
26:43Um, and I was exposed to, to a lot, but I was also exposed to HBCUs and, again, entrepreneurship.
26:52And so, I credit my mom, my late grandmother, for, for truly just showing me, you know, what success, encouraged me, you know, that my definition of success is subjective versus everyone else's.
27:12And don't get too bottled in to what the world may think of what you have to do.
27:15Um, and so, but then there's also, you know, grandma said, you know, to whom much is given, much is required.
27:22And so, I also navigated, you know, both college and my career up until today.
27:28Uh, we'll continue to train and, and support the next generation as well.
27:32That is my responsibility.
27:34Full stop.
27:35Yeah.
27:35Before you fall in love, right, with the venture capital and the business side and we get into you owning a coffee shop in a minute, right?
27:41I want to learn all about the hot Nasir.
27:43Um, but at the same time, like, before we, before you do that, like, you're on, on a Saturday watching cartoons.
27:49Like, what is Nasir getting up and doing as a young kid, right?
27:52What cartoons are you watching?
27:53What was your favorite at that point?
27:54You know, Jabari, I actually didn't get into cartoons, man.
27:57Not at all?
27:57I mean, maybe Animaniacs when I was young.
28:00All right, there you go.
28:00But, but I was Martin through and through.
28:02Yeah.
28:03I was.
28:03Even as a young kid, you know what I let you watch Martin?
28:05She let me watch Martin.
28:06Wow.
28:07We, we, we watch Martin every Thursday.
28:10A little bit of Family Matters and Fresh Prince as well.
28:12But Martin, um, was.
28:15What's your favorite episode of Martin?
28:16Oh, man.
28:19Has to be the Halloween one.
28:20Come on, man.
28:21That was a classic.
28:21We, we, we, we walked in with a fake dog.
28:23Yeah, when he was pretending to be, his CD player got missing.
28:26The CD player got missing.
28:28That was probably one of my favorite shows.
28:30Yeah.
28:30But, um, but definitely, you know, I think about my time in Atlanta and fast forward to
28:35who I am right today.
28:37I credit my family.
28:40I credit my mentors and my sponsors.
28:42Those are two different types of individuals.
28:46And, um, and now, you know, I have, uh, an incredible wife.
28:50I call her my better three quarters.
28:51Yeah.
28:51And, and Chloe.
28:52And so, I'm, um, I'm so, so grateful.
28:56And I think when I, you know, being, becoming an entrepreneur, whether you're a fund manager,
29:00which is still an entrepreneur, or you're building a company, can be incredibly lonely, man.
29:06And I, uh, you know, I, I, I think about, you know, again, some of the through lines that
29:12has guided me where I am today and continue, continue to, to encourage me, especially in
29:15my, my most challenging days are, um, are those that, uh, are my confidants.
29:21Yeah.
29:22Those are with you at your lowest and those are with you at your, celebrate you at your
29:25as your most highest.
29:26Yeah.
29:26As you're going through it, though, you still have to have, you have to have Martin nearby
29:29as you're building his VC firm.
29:30You get your nose to, right?
29:32That's right.
29:32You got to say no to people.
29:33So you still need some time to laugh.
29:34I'm sure that was.
29:35That's right.
29:35The best for four consecutive years of your life was spent at Hampton University.
29:39That's what you said.
29:40Absolutely.
29:41And so you're coming out of Dunwoody High School, playing basketball, popular this year,
29:45and you go to Hampton University.
29:46Why did you go to that school?
29:49You nailed it.
29:50It was the best four years of my life.
29:53I remember I was actually an older freshman because I did a postgraduate year after coming,
29:59coming to, uh, coming from boarding school in Maine.
30:02And, you know, it's, it was, it was, it was family the moment I stepped on campus.
30:10Um, I felt at home.
30:14I, well, like a lot of us trying to find yourself, I instantly found my people.
30:22Um, and that carried on and like most of us, but, but Hampton was just special after graduating.
30:31I just launched onto, to, to so many friends who we were just supporting each other throughout our careers and their, and our families.
30:41And that, that type of love and, and, and commitment to each other, um, I thought was, and, and continue to, and continue to still believe it's special.
30:54Um, it is, it is the best consecutive four years now.
31:00You know, I would plan to be married for the next 50 plus years.
31:04Your wife may have something to say about that later on.
31:06She, she would.
31:07But, um, but, but not just Hampton.
31:10I just believe that HBCUs are the backbone of this country.
31:14Well, as you're coming out of, you know, Hampton, right?
31:16I mean, you obviously, you, you know, get your feet wet on Wall Street, right?
31:20You do some time up in Connecticut, right?
31:22Working for the, you know, the Department of Education up that way.
31:25That's right.
31:25Um, but you also find time to start a coffee shop, right?
31:28In between that and West Village, right?
31:30That's right.
31:31And so what made you start a coffee shop?
31:33Like, how much money did you put down?
31:35Like, what, what was this era of you being a coffee shop on?
31:38I, I won't get into the economics.
31:39I can tell you my mindset at that time.
31:41It was, it was myself and two of my close friends.
31:45And we had not touched our bonuses at that point.
31:50Coming off of Wall Street.
31:51Coming off of Wall Street.
31:52And we were all still on Wall Street.
31:53I was at State Street Bank at the time.
31:55I was living in Boston.
31:56So I was coming, making the commute while the other two were, were in New York City.
32:00And I remember at first the idea, Jabari, was to, um, was to, to build a speakeasy.
32:09And then we found quickly that that was hard in New York to get the license, to find the real estate.
32:14And one of our, uh, one of my friends, his father was, was pretty, and he still was influential in the real estate game here in New York and found us and got lucky in the spot in West Village.
32:25And then we found this beautiful spot, very, very small, next to, uh, next to NYU.
32:33So we tracked a lot of Stern Business School students.
32:37And we said, you know what, this shouldn't just be a coffee shop.
32:40This should be an incubator.
32:42And what we did was we, we, we attracted a lot of entrepreneurs, not just out of NYU Stern, but also around the new.
32:50This is 20, 2010, 2011, and, um, and that's where my story started with venture capital.
32:57Yeah.
32:58Because hearing all these conversations, yeah.
32:59You, you, you become respectfully nosy because like any owner, you want to ask, how you doing?
33:04You got an ear hustle from time to time.
33:05You got to.
33:05Exactly.
33:05You got to have a, have an ear, but we were attracting, um, investors who were meeting with these entrepreneurs.
33:12And I'm, again, respectfully nosy in getting to know some of these companies.
33:17A lot of those companies were education technology companies and decided to, uh, put some personal capital and started, you know, learning about the private markets, more specifically venture capital, but also more specifically education technology, mission-driven investing.
33:32Because at that point, I was also thinking about how do I, a friend of mine calls this one pocket thinking versus two pocket thinking.
33:40This idea that we should not work in a capacity of, of two pocket thinking.
33:48I'm just paying the bills and maybe 6 p.m. to 12 a.m. or Saturday mornings, I'm doing something I actually, I absolutely love or aligns with my values.
33:56What does one pocket thinking look like for Nasir?
34:00And I found that at the coffee shop where these were mission-driven companies.
34:05I could put a little capital in and started building up my angel track record.
34:10And that was my first four-way into venture capital.
34:13We sold the coffee shop.
34:14And then name was put in the hat to join a firm called Village Capital down in, in D.C.
34:20Yeah.
34:20And been, been in D.C. for 10 years now.
34:22And you learned the ropes of venture capital.
34:23But listen, why didn't you, you should have sold the coffee shop, but you should have kept the recipe for the hotness here, right?
34:28If I'm not mistaken, that was a splash of espresso.
34:30That's right.
34:31Hot cocoa, some cinnamon, and some whipped cream.
34:33That's right.
34:33That was in the hotness here.
34:34And it was the best-selling latte at your coffee shop.
34:37That's right.
34:38That's right.
34:38Man, I almost felt like, man, this cannot be true.
34:40The hotness here.
34:41The shameful thing, I have not had the hotness here, at least that in some time.
34:47You should resurrect it, man.
34:49I should.
34:49Bring it back.
34:50I should.
34:50Right at Zeal, too.
34:51I didn't even have the coffee shop at Zeal called the hotness here, right?
34:54Right until you walk in there, man.
34:56Hey, listen, you know, your career, man, as we wrap up in here and get you into some fun questions a little bit.
35:00But your career, as I revisit your story and your desire to learn about the VC world and learn about banking,
35:08and you come into some pioneer names.
35:10And I want to read them off to you, and you tell me the first thing that comes to mind.
35:14One word when I read these names to you.
35:16People who've played parts in your life.
35:19The first is Ray McGuire over Lazard.
35:21The first thing that comes to mind.
35:22One word when you think of Ray Lazard.
35:25Ray McGuire, excuse me, Ray McGuire.
35:26Focus.
35:27Focus.
35:28Laser focus.
35:28He taught me how to be focused on what's in front of you and just do his exceptional work.
35:39You want to be the top 1% in everything you do, and it takes time.
35:43It takes going above and beyond.
35:46I credit Ray, and I know I'm not the only one because Ray has and continues to mentor and sponsor so many of my peers.
35:54But the attribute of staying laser focus.
35:59Yeah, laser focus.
36:00Fred Royal over at J.P. Morgan.
36:03Oh, Fred is my guy.
36:06Fred is someone.
36:07One word.
36:08It's one word.
36:11Commitment.
36:12Commitment.
36:12Why commitment?
36:13He continued to pour into me, especially in moments where I did not see enough of myself.
36:22And I think we all need a Fred Royal in our lives.
36:27He was one of the first that I actually shared the idea that I'm going to leave AT&T and go raise $25 million.
36:34He thought I was like, at first, and then I came back to him.
36:38He said, Nasir, you got this.
36:40And so he just committed to me over the course, and he still is.
36:44And I'm so grateful for his friendship and him being an incredible sponsor to me as well.
36:52Wes Moore is the governor, right, of Maryland.
36:54One of your first investors, Azeel, one of your very close friends.
36:57When you think of Wes Moore, it's the first thing that comes to mind, in one word.
37:01Leadership.
37:01Leadership.
37:02Why leadership?
37:02Leadership.
37:04You know, when I first met Wes, his demeanor in how he would lead with compassion, ask questions before giving an opinion,
37:25being confident, knowing when to ask questions and build a team around him.
37:32Particularly those that were smarter than him.
37:35Those were attributes that I continue to carry through here at Zeal.
37:39And so the attribute of leadership that I've gotten from Wes over the years continues.
37:47I'm so proud of him.
37:48I'm so proud of him.
37:49Think you'd be president?
37:50I was having a desperate debate with somebody about this long ago.
37:52I was like, man, that might be next.
37:55Wes has a bright future in politics.
37:57I'll leave it there.
37:58I'll take it you'll vote for him.
38:01Yeah, you will.
38:01Absolutely.
38:02Absolutely.
38:02Absolutely.
38:03Absolutely.
38:04Well, listen, let's stay in Maryland for a minute, man.
38:05Because I know you're looking all over Iowa, you know, Chicago.
38:09You know, you always have the coastal cities.
38:11But I always feel like Baltimore gets lost in conversation all the time.
38:15And I'm on the Amtrak, too, coming back forth from D.C.
38:17And I know when I'm riding through Baltimore because I'm from Philly.
38:20And it reminds me so much of that when I'm driving through.
38:22That's right.
38:22We're big wire fans.
38:23So Baltimore kind of like hits home.
38:25What is going on in Baltimore that maybe people aren't talking about?
38:28That maybe Zeal sees something there and you're going all in.
38:31Jabari, when I think about places like Baltimore,
38:33I think about the importance of understanding local assets.
38:37And I think that is loss when you think about the broader venture capital
38:42and just the investor community in general.
38:44Today, 80% of the capital continues to flow in this country in three places.
38:50New York City, San Francisco, and Cambridge, Boston area,
38:55where you have the 47 other states in D.C. fighting over the remaining 20%.
39:00I think that is wrong.
39:03And in fact,
39:03if entrepreneurs are truly going to be the change agents of this country,
39:06then it has to include everyone.
39:09So taking, for example, for Baltimore, John Hopkins.
39:13Baltimore has become a healthcare innovation hotbed.
39:16It's become an education technology workforce hotbed as well.
39:20You look at John Hopkins.
39:22You look at the incubators involved.
39:24Conscious Ventures, my guy, Jeff Cherry, for example, is doing great work.
39:30You have Brown Advisory.
39:32You have investment firms.
39:34You have university systems.
39:36You have a government, both local and at the state level.
39:39You have venture firms, family offices, private foundations.
39:44This is what I mean about understanding when founders understand the power of local assets,
39:53they don't need to move to New York City or Silicon Valley.
39:57And I think if we are more proactive in diving into these quote-unquote flyover cities or second, third-tier markets,
40:06if you call them, they will never want you to call their city second, third-tier markets, by the way.
40:10We'll be careful with that.
40:11You will find entrepreneurs, investable entrepreneurs.
40:17And economically, if you're raising $2, $3, $4 million, they'll go much further.
40:22In Baltimore.
40:22In Baltimore than in Wood here or San Francisco.
40:26So I believe that investors, we have to look more than 20 miles outside of Mellow Park, Manhattan, and Boston,
40:35if we're truly going to democratize acts of capital and resources.
40:38Yeah.
40:39Some young brother out there may be looking at this interview, and he may want to start a venture capital firm, right?
40:43He may want to follow in your footsteps.
40:45What's step one?
40:46What are you telling?
40:46Gain a skill set.
40:47Gain a skill set.
40:48Gain a solid skill set.
40:50There's several skill sets where you can be productive and grow to be 1% in venture capital.
40:56But, you know, one example could be, you know, learning how to model, learning how, you know, understanding deal flow,
41:05understanding the structure of venture capital, and eventually start to build out your track record.
41:11Point to deals that you source, that you shepherd, or you conduct diligence on, that you eventually underwrote.
41:22You have to have conviction in your own self.
41:24What makes you unique as a fund manager is very important.
41:28Because today, there are thousands of venture firms out there.
41:32So the question is, why you?
41:34Why now?
41:36And so that is, that's critically important in terms of understanding your why and what differentiates you versus other VC firms.
41:44Yeah.
41:45If you are talking to an entrepreneur, what trait, one trait that you want to see in them before you just write over a check?
41:51Well, you've got to have zeal.
41:52No, no, no, point intended.
41:54Get some zeal up in here.
41:55You've got to have passion.
41:56You've got to be zealous.
41:58I think number two is having a clear sense of the market.
42:03All right?
42:03And so some founders will share with you that there's no competition.
42:07There's always some form of competition across the marketplace.
42:11And so the ability for a founder to crystallize the market opportunity, but also the potential competition that could be in the space is critically important as well.
42:25The other, I think, is product differentiation and also building a team.
42:30And then just a soft skill attribute, do I believe in this founder to actually execute, going back to theory versus action?
42:41And so those are the areas that I think that I look for in founders and as part of our zeal rubric that gets us excited about a potential zeal portfolio company.
42:51Yeah.
42:52Absolutely, man.
42:53Get you out of here on some fun stuff, man.
42:54First, the million-dollar question.
42:56First million.
42:57How'd you make it?
42:58Well, I would say in a number of different ways.
43:03One is through my previous time on Wall Street.
43:07The other is just through investments in the public markets and in other places, just a bit of a collaborative, the coffee shop.
43:18Yeah.
43:18I'll throw that in there as well.
43:20But the firm, you know, we're well capitalized and I'm proud of it.
43:26Yeah.
43:26We're going to be around for the next, you know, God willing, 40, 50 plus years.
43:30Well, this is only your million, not the firm's million.
43:32So it's only your million.
43:32That's right.
43:33So you made it through Wall Street and through your background.
43:35How did you spend it?
43:37How did you spend your first million?
43:39Well, I'm not a flashy guy.
43:44I don't think, I'm not a flashy guy at all.
43:48I don't think I'll never will be that type of guy.
43:50I know, I do remember crediting literally and figuratively a debt pool of, you know, got my cousin, my brother.
44:03For those of you who are in debt, like, let's put it in there and let me help you.
44:08And didn't get through it all in terms of, you know, but I supported them through managing their debt.
44:14But now that to me was important.
44:16The thing about wealth creation for us, we've got to get out of debt.
44:20And so that to me was better than getting that big time car.
44:24Yeah.
44:24Giving them fresh starts.
44:25Yeah.
44:26It's so funny.
44:26Some schools, I forget which ones I want to say, but I know they do that after their students graduate,
44:31they pay off their student loans if they reach a certain because it's like, man,
44:34you don't want to go in the world with student loans.
44:36I know they're not no fun, right?
44:37Student loans.
44:38They're no joke at all.
44:40I know no fun.
44:40But I'm glad you did that.
44:41So no regrets.
44:42No regrets.
44:42No, absolutely not.
44:44Some Outlook stuff, man.
44:46Gentic AI, right?
44:47We already talked about gen AI, and that's one thing of it, but a gentic AI.
44:52When you hear those two words, that phrase, what comes to mind for you?
44:56What is no one talking about when you think of a gentic AI?
44:59The ability for computers to do everything without any human supervision.
45:03Well, I think that gentic AI in the world of quantum computing is definitely going to play a major role in that regard.
45:09And I think about the workforce, there's this debate around humans being, will we have, will AI or AI in general disrupt the workforce?
45:29And I think there will be, but I think there will always be this human element around decision-making.
45:35Culture as well will always be there.
45:38So I think it's going to play a role in the workforce, for example, but I also don't think it's going to just wipe out the role that humans play from a cultural and making informed decisions perspective.
45:52Yeah.
45:53Black outlook, right?
45:54Nielsen says Black America's spending power will reach 2.1 trillion by 2026, right?
46:00You hear that figure.
46:01What comes to mind?
46:03Opportunity.
46:04Opportunity.
46:04I think opportunity from a point of investment perspective, for sure.
46:08Particularly for those who are in the B2C space, right?
46:11If you're investing in ideas or building, if you're an entrepreneur building a B2C company and its target market is the black community, then there's an opportunity for a market.
46:26There's an opportunity to capitalize on that.
46:29And recognizing spending power from an investor perspective, that's attractive.
46:36Yeah.
46:37I like that.
46:37Love that.
46:38Look around the world, right?
46:39Where is Nasir putting money at right now outside of this country?
46:42Where are you investing at personally, not Zeal, but where are you putting your money at right now?
46:47Which country, why?
46:48You know, it's funny.
46:49My wife and I had this competition around real estate in other countries.
46:54You know, you look at...
46:56She's from Africa, if I'm not mistaken.
46:57She's Congolese, American, yeah.
46:59And so she has pushed me to be the importance of being a global citizen and thinking about both personally and Zeal-related investment opportunities.
47:11And so we often talk about different real estate activities happening in Europe, in Africa, for sure.
47:17She's never been in Latin America, so we plan to head down there and just, you know, browse and take a look at what the economics looks like down there from a real estate perspective.
47:28And so I do think, you know, having exposure in real estate in, like, Italy or in Europe somewhere, I think that makes a lot of sense.
47:41Yeah.
47:42I hear a lot about Italy, man.
47:43I don't know if I can afford it, but I hear it's pretty nice.
47:45Her mother just retired, and so that's her dream.
47:49Her dream is that we're trying to make that happen for her.
47:52Down in Italy?
47:53She retired down there?
47:53No, she just retired, and her goal is to move to Italy.
47:57To move to Italy.
47:58Oh, that's great.
47:58Y'all can go down there and scout it out then.
47:59Exactly.
48:00Well, you have the money.
48:01You can help her buy the house now.
48:02That's the idea.
48:04Hey, man, listen, their favorite three books, right?
48:06Three books that inspire you to perform or your best or motivate you.
48:10What three books are there that will help you out?
48:11Well, Alchemist will always be my favorite.
48:14Paula Coelho.
48:15Omens and all that.
48:17Absolutely.
48:17Absolutely.
48:19The other, I'm a huge podcast head, by the way.
48:23I got a, my wife's book is one of my favorites as well.
48:27Life, I Swear.
48:28Yeah.
48:28I will definitely give her that.
48:31And I think the third, You Make Me Want to Holla.
48:35Make Me Want to Holla.
48:36By Nathan McCall.
48:37Yeah.
48:38It's one of my favorite books as well.
48:39Yeah, that's classic, man.
48:41Good to great time, man.
48:42Get you out of here on that.
48:43What is the difference?
48:44And I think you know, you've been around some icons, some great people.
48:47What's the difference between a good VC firm and a great one?
48:51That is a question, Jabari, I have been really pondering on in terms of going from, you know,
48:58a fairly decent firm to a franchise where, you know, folks will know you on one name basis.
49:05I think Zeal will become that very intentional, I would call.
49:09But it's, I think when you look at both liquidity events and companies that are becoming market leaders,
49:20that allows you to gain credibility that you have the ability to go out and pick and help scale early stage companies.
49:29I think it's also how you treat your team.
49:34And so, you know, fostering a culture that allows folks to climb, whether you're an analyst and your ambition is to become a partner, for example.
49:47And then three is showing the market that you're continuing to produce thought leadership.
49:55And what I mean by that is, you know, again, we're a category-specific investment firm.
50:01And so it's important that we're constantly sharing to the market our latest views across our categories,
50:10fintech, health care, and the future of learning and work.
50:13And so thought leadership is also critically important.
50:17Yeah, I love that.
50:18I mean, I thought you were going to throw the hot in the seer in there somewhere.
50:19Like, hey, one of the greats, you also have to have the hot in the seer at the coffee.
50:23Well, I would say you have to bring your full self.
50:27Yeah.
50:27I think that is, for me, it is, I love things like the hot in the seer.
50:31I love vinyl.
50:33I love to run.
50:34I love basketball.
50:34Yeah.
50:35There are folks on our team who love to Zumba dance.
50:39They love to swim.
50:40You know, it's subjective, but, you know, it's important for me as a leader to create space
50:48so they can perform at the highest clip.
50:52And so that, to me, is part of building the best culture, which is hard in venture.
51:00Yeah.
51:00It is.
51:01Well, you know, have a couple more Martin watch parties, and you might find it a little bit easier.
51:05That's true.
51:05Everybody laughs at the same page.
51:06Now, Seer, thank you so much for the time, and congratulations on raising $82 million.
51:11Again, that is very difficult at this time, right?
51:14I mean, again, VC's sector is going through some very interesting moments.
51:17As one investor said, joy and pain, like Frankie, featuring Frankie Beverly.
51:23I'm all over the place.
51:24That's right.
51:25But joy and pain.
51:26So I know the ups and downs, but, you know, you should be proud of yourself, man.
51:28$82 million, man.
51:29I am.
51:30It's a lot of money.
51:30I am.
51:31I am.
51:31I am.
51:31I'm proud of the team.
51:34The time is now.
51:35Yeah.
51:35It is critically important that entrepreneurs recognize that there is liquidity out there.
51:42There's fresh, dry powder capital out there.
51:45And now the real work continues.
51:50And so...
51:50Well, you got a lot of real work, and you got to return money to investors.
51:54That's right.
51:54That's right.
51:54That's right.
51:54Zeal Capital Partners, fresh off of an $82 million raise.
51:59I cannot be around.
52:00I'd love to be around when they raise $100 million.
52:02Get back here on the show.
52:03We'll talk about it.
52:04Thank you so much, Nancy.
52:05I appreciate the time, man.
52:06Definitely come back so we can talk more in the VC space.
52:09That's right.
52:10Appreciate the time.
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