I back pre-seed and seed founders directly - no committee, no six-week process. Twenty years of finance, operations and risk experience, now potentially able to help your company. If the thesis is sharp and the founder's clearly the right person to chase it, I move.
I'm Hubert Lee and I have spent over two decades in finance, the last twelve at BlackRock, working across operations, risk management, and fixed income. I was heavily involved with credit default swaps, CDOs, and other structured products while at BlackRock. After retiring, as an accredited investor, I was able to paticipate in pre-IPO private placements in Uber and Airbnb.
I'm now deploying smaller, direct checks into companies at a much earlier stage than anything I worked on in the past. The check size is different. The diligence habits aren't - I read the cap table, I understand what I'm converting into, and I ask the questions a founder should want an investor to ask.
I'm most useful in the window before a round has real momentum - when $15K helps you finish a prototype, close your first ten customers, or get to a number that makes the next raise easier. I'm not trying to lead your round or take a board seat. I'm trying to be a fast, informed yes or no.
I'm genuinely open to any new or emerging technologies - I don't want a narrow thesis to filter out something good. That said, one area I care about specifically: technology that helps people with disabilities, be they physical or cognitive. I am a father of a child with a disability and this is very close to me. If you're building something in that space, I want to see it.
A short deck or a plain-language summary - what you're building, why now, and what the check unlocks.
If it's a fit, we talk - mostly me asking questions about the problem and the market, not a pitch rehearsal.
Yes, no, or a specific reason to come back later - inside 10 business days, either way.
This is a new practice, not a new skill set - this comes from over twenty years of institutional experience. There's no long portfolio to point to yet, just a clear thesis, real diligence, and a fast process.