Investor profile
CEI Ventures, Inc.
VC
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Analyse your fitInvestment thesis
CEI Ventures manages socially responsible venture capital funds, investing in dynamic, growth-oriented companies that generate positive social, environmental, and financial returns in markets overlooked by traditional VC firms — with a focus on Maine and the broader Northeast. For nearly 30 years, the firm has prioritized businesses that create good jobs and wealth-building opportunities for workers, particularly those with low-to-moderate incomes, are led by individuals underserved by equity markets (including people of color, women, and veterans), and increase the availability of environmentally sustainable products and services. CEI Ventures provides equity capital alongside active partnership: each portfolio company signs a social agreement committing to CEI's Good Jobs Framework — paying a living wage, offering basic benefits, and providing a fair and engaging workplace with training and advancement opportunities. The firm believes that 'investing in good jobs is a win for both the company and its employees,' and that 'great business ideas aren't limited by location, gender or race.'
Notable quotes
“We are incredibly excited to be a part of HighByte's future. The HighByte team is uniquely positioned to understand what customers need to enable digital transformation in industrial manufacturing. Additionally, the company supports all seven components of our Good Jobs definition, a key theme of our latest fund.”
“Looking forward to speaking at Boston Venture Finance Summit on 'Blending Innovation and Impact through DAFs and Collective Action Funds.' Grateful for the opportunity to share how catalytic capital can unlock scalable impact and support the kind of socially responsible investing that drives both financial returns and meaningful community outcomes.”
“We invest where capital is scarce, but opportunity for financial return and generating impact is abundant.”
Team
Chandler Jones
Managing Director of CEI Ventures
Nat Henshaw
Managing Director of CEI Ventures
Michael Salisbury
Finance and Fund Administration Manager
Krunal Thakkar
Justice Fellow, CEI Ventures
Recent investments
| Company | Round | Size | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| NorthSpore | Series A | $3m | 2024-01-01 |
| QMB | Seed | — | 2024-01-01 |
| HighByte | Seed | $4m | 2021-12-08 |
| Defendify | Seed | $3m | 2021-01-01 |
| MedRhythms | Series A | — | 2021-01-01 |
| Senscio Systems | Seed | — | 2021-01-01 |
| AquaViTea | Growth | — | 2021-01-01 |
| Good To-Go | Seed | — | 2021-01-01 |
| Circa | Seed | — | 2021-01-01 |
| Tanbark | Seed | — | 2023-01-01 |
Frequent co-investors
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