First-ever profile of secretive investor Zach Frankel and his $185B portfolio
davidyin44 · x · 2026-10-09
Reporter Jemima McEvoy published the first-ever profile of Zach Frankel, the secretive Ramp and Cognition investor considered a cofounder of many of his portfolio companies, with interviews from Eric Glyman, Alex Taubman, and Scott Wu.
Highlights include:
- $185B+ in portfolio company valuations
- "Air Frankel," a private jet used by his founders
- A $70M Juul dividend
- Recruiting Team USA talent from the International Olympiad in Informatics
- Editing college essays for founders' siblings
Plenty of mystery remains, including how he went from a six-month Founders Fund internship to solo investing in his twenties.
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