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Gorges Ventures is an investment club founded by Cornell MBAs for Cornell.

As a club, we invest in and support companies founded or led by members of Cornell University classes of 2024 and 2025.

Gorges Ventures is led by Cornell MBAs and is not officially sponsored or endorsed by Cornell University.

FAQs

Becoming a member

  • Individuals who meet the following criteria are eligible to be a member of the club:

    • Members of the Cornell EMBA/MBA Class of 2024/2025 Community

    • Non-accredited investors must reside in one of the following states: California, Illinois, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Washington.

  • If you're interested in joining the club, please fill out this Google form. We will be using PIN to host our club, so if you qualify, we will send you an invite to join the club on PIN. From there, you can provide personal information, sign the club agreements, and wire your capital commitment.

  • The minimum check size to participate is $3k.

  • We will begin accepting capital commitments on March 1st 2024. Our target for the club is $700K, and we will continue accepting capital until we reach that amount. We anticipate the fund filling up quickly, so we encourage you to make your commitment when you are invited to the club on PIN. However, whether you are the first or last check, you will share in any investment Gorges Ventures makes.

  • We have intentionally set up as an investment club to accept accredited and non-accredited investors. We currently accept non-accredited members from the following states: California, Illinois, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, and Washington.

  • Yes, as long as you follow applicable local laws.

Fund Structure

  • Gorges Ventures will be established as an Investment Club to let unaccredited and accredited investors invest in non-public securities on the same terms as each other in the same vehicle.

  • No, unlike a syndicate which raises funds on a deal-by-deal basis, we will raise one time upfront and deploy the capital into investments that the club votes on.

  • Our target for the fund is $700k to ensure we can deploy it in a reasonable amount of time.

  • The fund term is 10 years which means that we aim to make all investments and return capital in that period. If, in the unlikely event, not all capital has been invested, it will be returned on a pro-rata basis net of expenses at the fund's term. Fundraising will occur at the onset and happen in one go (vs on a deal-by-deal basis). Distributions happen on a deal-by-deal basis as liquidity events occur.

  • We are taking the industry standard of 2/20 in our fee structure. This means there will be 2% annual admin fee, which will be used to cover legal, tax, and operational costs, as deemed appropriate by the owners.

    When portfolio companies exit (e.g., through acquisition or IPO), profits are distributed back to the LPs based on their initial capital contributions and the fund's carried interest structure. 20% carried interest means Members will receive their principal investment + 80% of their share of profits during a distribution (with 20% going to owners as an incentive to get the group into the best deals).