About First Analysis
First Analysis is a venture capital firm founded in 1981. It is primarily based out of Chicago, United States. As of Aug 2025, First Analysis has invested in 146 companies. It primarily invests in Series A round in United States based startups. Its investments are spread across a wide range of sectors from Enterprise Applications to FinTech and High Tech. Most recently it participated in the $***** Series B round of SynergySuite Overall, First Analysis portfolio has seen 16 IPOs and 78 acquisitions including key companies like Upwork, Smartsheet and Avalara. A lot of funds co-invest with First Analysis, with names like Argentum Group sharing a substantial percentage of its portfolio. First Analysis has team of 33 people including 9 partners.Key Metrics
Team Members
Portfolio Count
Portfolio Sectors
Portfolio Locations
Rounds of Entry
Series A, Series B & 6 more
Portfolio IPOs
Portfolio Acquisitions
Portfolio Soonicorns
Deals in last 12 months
First Analysis' List of Top Investments
First Analysis has a portfolio of 146 companies. Their most notable investments are in DataSphere and Nimbelink.Their portfolio spans across United States, Canada, Israel and 4 more locations. They have invested in Enterprise Applications, FinTech, High Tech and 30 other sectors, across stages such as Series A, Series B and 6 more. Here is the list of top investments by First Analysis:1. Upwork
Provider of freelance marketplace connecting businesses with independent talents. It offers an AI powered suggestions, screening questions, and boosted proposals for visibility, built-in tool with screenshots and activity logs for hourly work transparency . It provides in-app messaging, file sharing, video calls, and mobile apps for iOS and Android.
Key facts about Upwork
- Founded Year: 1999
- Location: San Francisco (United States)
- Annual Revenue: $500M - $1B as on Dec 31, 2025
- Stage: Public
- Total Funding till date: $74M
- Employee Count: 170,883 as on May 31, 2026
- Investors: Section Partners, Savano Capital Partners and 24 Others
- Latest Funding Round: Post IPO, Aug 10, 2021, $*****
- Highlight: Public
2. Smartsheet
Cloud based suite solutions for enterprise collaboration. It is a web based platform that provides spreadsheet with collaborative file sharing and discussions, visual timeline management, and automated workflow capabilities. It is used to manage different types of work including projects, programs, and business operations. The platform enables users to track and visualize the work in real time. It automates tasks and workflows.
Key facts about Smartsheet
- Founded Year: 2005
- Location: Bellevue (United States)
- Annual Revenue: $500M - $1B as on Jan 31, 2024
- Last Known Valuation: $*****
- Stage: Acquired
- Total Funding till date: $121M
- Employee Count: 4,007 as on May 31, 2026
- Investors: HTIF, Insight Partners and 11 Others
- Latest Funding Round: Post IPO, Sep 14, 2020, $*****
- Highlight: Acquired
3. Avalara
Provider of cloud-based solutions for tax compliance and related services. The company offers tools for tax calculation, returns filing, exemption certificate management, and e-invoicing. It serves businesses of various sizes across multiple industries. The business provides resources such as sales tax calculators, rate tables, and nexus assessments.
Key facts about Avalara
- Founded Year: 2004
- Location: Seattle (United States)
- Annual Revenue: $500M - $1B as on Dec 31, 2021
- Last Known Valuation: $*****
- Stage: Acquired
- Total Funding till date: $343M
- Employee Count: 5,667 as on Apr 30, 2026
- Investors: HTIF, Mubadala and 17 Others
- Latest Funding Round: Post IPO, Nov 11, 2025, $*****
- Highlight: Acquired
4. Pluralsight
Provider of online courses, learning paths, and skill development resources. The business offers resources for individuals, businesses, and public sector organizations. It provides tools for skill assessments, hands-on learning, and certification preparation. The company delivers solutions for security, cloud transformation, upskilling, and software delivery.
Key facts about Pluralsight
- Founded Year: 2004
- Location: Farmington (United States)
- Last Known Valuation: $*****
- Stage: Acquired
- Total Funding till date: $235M
- Employee Count: 1,864 as on May 31, 2026
- Investors: Cross Creek, Herald Investment Management and 12 Others
- Latest Funding Round: Series C, Dec 12, 2016, $*****
- Highlight: Acquired
Provider of cyber security solutions for networks, SASE, and cloud. The company delivers solutions for network security, cloud security, and workspace security. It offers services such as managed security, incident response, and training programs. The company provides resources such as a resource center, blog, and customer stories.
Key facts about Check Point Software
- Founded Year: 1993
- Location: San Carlos (United States)
- Stage: Public
- Employee Count: 8,554 as on May 31, 2026
- Investors: Herald Investment Management, Venrock and 7 Others
- Latest Funding Round: Post IPO, Jan 25, 2022, $*****
- Highlight: Public
First Analysis' Year-on-Year Investment Trends
First Analysis has invested in 146 companies over the last 29 years, with an average of 2 new investments annually in the last 10 years. In 2025, it made 1 investment. Its most recent first time investment was in Sware and most recent follow-on round was in SynergySuite.Year | No. of Investments | ||
|---|---|---|---|
1st Round | Follow-on | Total | |
2026 (YTD) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
2025 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
2024 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
2023 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
2022 | 5 | 0 | 5 |
2021 | 4 | 3 | 7 |
2020 | 2 | 2 | 4 |
2019 | 4 | 0 | 4 |
2018 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
2017 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
First Analysis' Investments by Stage
First Analysis has made 28 investments in Series A stage with an average round size of $6.78M, 12 investments in Series B stage with an average round size of $12.6M and 10 investments in Series C stage with an average round size of $14.9M.Stage of entry | No. of Investments |
|---|---|
Series A | 28 |
Series B | 12 |
Series C | 10 |
Series D | 6 |
Seed | 2 |
Others | 4 |
Note: We have considered here, only first round of investments
First Analysis' Investments by Sector
First Analysis has a diverse portfolio, with companies operating in the Enterprise Applications, Vertical SaaS, Life Sciences, FinTech and High Tech. Notably, it has invested in 118 Enterprise (B2B) companies, 97 Tech companies, 73 Software companies and at least 42 companies focusing on Saas.Sector | No. of Investments |
|---|---|
Enterprise Applications | 38 |
Vertical SaaS | 10 |
Life Sciences | 9 |
FinTech | 8 |
High Tech | 7 |
Others | 44 |
Note: We have considered here, only first round of investments
First Analysis' Investments by Geography
First Analysis has made most investments in United States (59), followed by France where it has made 1 investment.Country | No. of Investments |
|---|---|
United States | 59 |
France | 1 |
Ireland | 1 |
Note: We have considered here, only first round of investments
First Analysis' recent investments
First Analysis has not made any investment in 2026 so far.Here are the most recent investments by First Analysis:
Filter this listDate | Company | Location | Round Details | Round Amount | Co-Investors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Aug 20, 2025 | Ireland | Series B | 8259 | ||
Apr 17, 2024 | United States | Series B | 6998 | [+2] | |
Jan 24, 2024 | United States | Series A | 4729 | - | |
Aug 08, 2023 | France | Series A | 5174 | [+2] | |
Oct 07, 2022 | United States | Series A | 3925 | [+1] |
IPOs and Publicly Listed companies in First Analysis' Portfolio
16 of First Analysis' portfolio companies have become public. Exodus got listed on the American Stock Exchange (NYSEAMERICAN), in Sep 2021 and Pure Cycle got listed on the National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations (NASDAQ).Here are First Analysis' portfolio companies that went public:
Company | IPO Date | First Invested on | First Round of Investment | Round Size |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Sep 16, 2021 | - | - | 5375 | |
Jan 27, 2021 | - | - | 2027 | |
Oct 03, 2018 | - | - | 7329 | |
Oct 28, 2016 | - | - | 3312 | |
Nov 07, 2014 | - | - | 9229 |
Acquired companies in First Analysis' Portfolio
78 companies from First Analysis' portfolio have been acquired. The most recent acquisition was Dina in May 2026 by IHCS for $*****.Here are First Analysis' portfolio companies that got acquired most recently:
Company | Acquisition Date | First Invested on | First Round of Investment | Round Size |
|---|---|---|---|---|
May 20, 2026 | Jan 24, 2024 | Series A | 5629 | |
Jul 31, 2025 | Aug 18, 2014 | Series D | 9008 | |
Jul 30, 2025 | - | - | 3427 | |
Jul 01, 2025 | - | - | 8949 | |
Mar 11, 2025 | Jun 10, 2016 | Series A | 2805 |
Team profile of First Analysis
First Analysis has a team of 33 members including 9 Partners and 3 Principals located in United States. First Analysis' team sits on the board of 3 companies.Here is a list of top team members in First Analysis:
Name | Designation | Location | Board Memberships | Contact Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Partner | Chicago | |||
Partner | Chicago | - | ||
Partner | Chicago | |||
Partner | Chicago | - | ||
Partner | Chicago | - | ||
Partner | Chicago | - | ||
Partner | Palatine | - | ||
Partner | Chicago | - | ||
Partner | New York City | - | ||
Principal | Chicago | - | ||
Principal | Chicago | - |
Co-investors of First Analysis
Over the past 29 years, 268 investors have co-invested in First Analysis's portfolio companies. This includes funds and angels.
- Invested before First Analysis: Bessemer Venture Partners, VisionTech Partners and 113 others have invested in rounds before First Analysis. There are 3 companies where Bessemer Venture Partners has invested before First Analysis and 2 companies where VisionTech Partners has invested before First Analysis.
- Top Co-investors of First Analysis: 86 investors entered a company along with First Analysis. These include investors like Argentum Group (9 companies).
- Invested after First Analysis: A total of 67 investors have invested in First Analysis's portfolio after their investments. Top Investors include Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (3 companies), JMI Management (2 companies) and Blue Chip Venture (2 companies).
Recent News related to First Analysis
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SynergySuite Raises $12 Million to Accelerate its AI Engine that's Redefining Restaurant Chain Ops
PR Newswire•Aug 20, 2025•LAGO, Oyster Ventures, First Analysis, SynergySuite and 1 other
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CSA Medical: $53 Million (Series D) Raised For Advancing RejuvenAir SystemPulse 2.0•Sep 09, 2024•TVM Capital, RejuvenAir, Yonjin Capital, SV Health Investors and 4 others
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Sware Raises $6M to Accelerate Life Sciences Innovation by Automating FDA-Mandated Software ValidationBusiness Wire•Jun 06, 2024•Sware, First Analysis, LRVHealth, New Stack Ventures and 1 other
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Gemspring acquires HR software firm ClearCompanyPE Hub•Sep 22, 2023•ClearCompany, Gemspring Capital, First Analysis
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First Analysis invests in Stamus Networks, provider of enterprise class Suricata-based network securityFirst Analysis•Aug 08, 2023•Stamus Networks, First Analysis, SmoothBrain, Elevate Ventures and 1 other
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Masttro Secures $43M in Growth Equity FundingFinSMEs•Mar 10, 2023•Masttro, FTV Capital, Citi, First Analysis
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Cleveland startup Drive My Way raises $4.4 millionCrain Communications•Oct 27, 2022•Drive My Way, First Analysis, Jumpstart Ventures, JobsOhio and 1 other
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CoolR Group raises $10 million to accelerate automated ordering globallyPR Newswire•Oct 13, 2022•CoolR technology, First Analysis, Moneta Ventures, Remarkable Ventures and 1 other
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First Analysis invests in Yunu, a multi-site clinical trials imaging workflow platformFirst Analysis•Sep 29, 2022•Yunu, First Analysis
