Jake Colognesi
LinkedIn Copy
Hey Jake — congrats on launching Mamba. Similar IB → growth equity background here — been deep in vertical SaaS origination lately. Would be good to connect.
Hey Jake, see we share a similar PE path, though I was in London doing growth equity not building a fund focused on embedded finance. most funds I talk to have a database — PitchBook or Grata — maybe a CRM, and then the origination setup is mostly Excel and email from there. but proprietary deal flow still feels thin. thesis, network, and intelligence never sync into one system — so origination resets every cycle instead of compounding. do you disagree? — Russ
Hey Jake, see we share a similar PE path, though I was in London doing growth equity not building a fund focused on embedded finance. most funds I talk to have a database — PitchBook or Grata — maybe a CRM, and then the origination setup is mostly Excel and email from there. but proprietary deal flow still feels thin. thesis, network, and intelligence never sync into one system — so origination resets every cycle instead of compounding. do you disagree? — Russ
hey Jake — was thinking about this more. when I was doing growth equity we had every subscription going — PitchBook, CRM, enrichment tools, the lot — and I still spent half my time manually pulling origination together across all of it. always wondered if that was just us being disorganised or if it's genuinely universal. imagine Mamba has a way more dialled setup — but figured I'd ask. — Russ
hey Jake — appreciate the connect either way. I'm in and around vertical SaaS origination all day — if you ever want to swap notes on what's working, I'm easy to find. — Russ
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Hey Jake, looks like we share a similar IB → PE path, though I was doing growth equity for a European fund not building an embedded finance-focused fund. most growth equity funds I talk to are running on PitchBook or Grata, maybe Affinity, and then basically Excel and email for everything else on the origination side. yet the off-market pipeline stays weirdly thin. the intelligence is all there but it's scattered across tools and inboxes — so nothing compounds into a real origination edge. do you disagree? Russell searchloop.ai linkedin.com/in/russellt23
Hey Jake, been talking to a few growth equity funds this week and a pattern keeps showing up. most funds have targets in the CRM but no one's quite sure what thesis they came in under, whether someone's already reached out, or if they're worth retrying. no system of record tying it together — everyone's working from a slightly different picture of the pipeline. curious whether Mamba has cracked that or if it's the same pattern. Russell searchloop.ai linkedin.com/in/russellt23
hey Jake — one more thought on this. at my old fund we had a solid stack and smart people, and origination still felt like it restarted from scratch every cycle. took me a while to realise it wasn't a people problem — the tools just didn't talk to each other. imagine Mamba has a way more dialled setup — but figured I'd ask. Russell searchloop.ai linkedin.com/in/russellt23
hey Jake — been thinking about this a lot — the difference between funds that build origination infrastructure in the first couple of years vs those that keep running on brokers and inbound. by year 3-4 the gap is pretty hard to close. curious if you've been thinking about this at Mamba. Russell searchloop.ai linkedin.com/in/russellt23
hey Jake — no stress on any of this. spend most of my time thinking about origination infrastructure for funds — if that ever becomes a thing worth talking about, I'm around. Russell searchloop.ai linkedin.com/in/russellt23
Prospect Research
## PROSPECT INFORMATION: Name: Jake Colognesi Title: Founder Fund: Mamba Background: Name: Jake Colognesi Current Role: Founding Partner at Mamba Growth (launched July 2024), an early growth equity firm focused on bootstrapped, profitable B2B software companies. Current Focus & Interests: - Growth Equity & Sourcing: Jake is actively deploying Mamba Growth Fund I ($104M closed in Oct 2024). He emphasizes "value-first" sourcing and partnering with founder-owned businesses. - Vertical SaaS & Embedded Finance: A primary investment thesis. He believes vertical software that monetizes financial flows (payments, lending, insurance) builds "antifragile" business models and superior moats compared to pure seat-based SaaS. - Portfolio Support: Heavily involved in leadership hiring and strategy for Mamba portfolio companies, particularly Ludus (performing arts software) and OTTO SPORT AI. Key Background: - Professional: Previously a Partner at Sageview Capital (2019-2024) and Principal at Volition Capital (2011-2019). Began career as an Analyst at Cowen and Associate at Fidelity Ventures. - Education: MBA from Dartmouth (The Tuck School of Business) and B.A. in Economics from Colby College. - Personal: Former Division I Alpine Skier at Colby College; maintains a strong interest in the New England ski community. Key Skills: Growth Investing, Vertical Software, Embedded Finance, Due Diligence, Financial Modeling, and Board Governance. Recent LinkedIn Activity & Quotes: February 17, 2026: "While software companies of all kinds are currently having their resilience tested, system of record, vertical software companies that move thoughtfully into payments, lending, banking, etc. are building moats." February 4, 2026: "Our friends at Ludus are looking for Customer Support professionals and Business Development Representatives (BDRs)... working in (unquestionably) one of coolest offices in Michigan." January 29, 2026: Regarding a partnership with the community platform Charge Forward, he noted: "The embedded finance landscape is deliberately opaque. Pricing models vary wildly, and contract terms are buried in legal jargon. Worst of all, most educational content is just vendor marketing in disguise." January 16, 2026: Mentioning his appearance on the Deal Sourcery podcast: "Everyone at Mamba Growth invests loads of time into thoughtfully approaching Founders, so I appreciated the opportunity to tell that side of our story to your audience!" January 12, 2026: Regarding a CFO search for a portfolio company: "The team is looking for their first CFO... who's scaled a business through meaningful growth ($5M → $50M+ ARR), can handle the full stack (FP&A, fundraising, M&A, investor relations)." May 30, 2025: On Mamba's $12M investment in Ludus: "Our team learned about Ludus while researching the performing arts market... we continually heard theater directors and market experts mention positive things about a Grand Rapids-based vendor called Ludus we hadn’t previously known." March 17, 2025: A community post supporting Whaleback Mountain: "I'm a big fan of the smaller New England ski hills... I can assure you the ownership and management are excellent people and would greatly appreciate support during a trying time." Fund details: - Description: Mamba Growth Equity focuses on early growth equity investments in exceptional, capital-efficient software companies ranging in size from $2M to $15M revenue. Our team is dedicated to adding value for entrepreneurs through strategic introductions, market insights, and deep expertise in embedded finance. - Website: https://www.mambagrowth.com/ - Location: New York, New York, United States - Lead qualification: Research: - Query: =Mamba Jake Colognesi recent investments fund thesis - Answer: Jake Colognesi founded Mamba Growth Equity in 2024, focusing on early-stage tech investments. He recently led a $12 million investment in Ludus, a software provider for performing arts organizations. Mamba Growth targets growth-stage companies in software, fintech, and cybersecurity sectors.