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Roelof Botha

Managing Partner at Sequoia Capital

San Francisco Bay Area, CA

RB
LinkedIn
Why they matter

Two-decade Sequoia dealmaker and former Sequoia steward with deep board experience (MongoDB, Block) and a network spanning growth-stage software and fintech.

Background

Roelof Botha joined PayPal in 2000, became CFO in 2001, and led it through its 2002 IPO and eBay acquisition before joining Sequoia Capital in 2003. He built Sequoia's U.S./Europe early-stage franchise, served as the firm's sole Managing Partner and Senior Steward from 2022 until stepping down in November 2025, and now advises the partnership while continuing to sit on portfolio company boards.

Notable deals

  • 2005
    Led Sequoia's Series A investment in YouTube; company acquired by Google roughly a year later
  • 2010
    Partner on Sequoia's investment in MongoDB, sat on its board through its 2017 IPO
  • 2012
    Led Sequoia's investment in Instagram shortly before its acquisition by Facebook
  • 2024
    Co-led Sequoia's participation in Xaira Therapeutics' $1B AI drug-discovery launch round

Call-prep brief

Background

  • PayPal CFO (2000–2003), took the company public and through the eBay acquisition
  • Joined Sequoia Capital in 2003; ran the U.S./Europe early-stage franchise from 2017
  • Sole Managing Partner and Senior Steward of Sequoia US/Europe, 2022–Nov 2025
  • Stepped down in November 2025 amid internal/reputational pressure; Alfred Lin and Pat Grady now co-steward the firm

Current focus

  • Transitioned to an advisory role within Sequoia, continues representing the firm on portfolio boards (MongoDB, Block, Natera, Unity, Ethos, Pendulum)
  • Publicly vocal in 2025–2026 about disciplined, selective investing over chasing sky-high AI valuations

What he cares about

  • Durable, founder-led businesses over hype cycles; capital efficiency and governance discipline
  • AI infrastructure and applied AI (co-led Sequoia's $1B Xaira bet in drug discovery)

Recent moves / sensitivities

  • Leadership transition (Nov 2025) followed a turbulent stretch for Sequoia (China spin-off, FTX fallout, Musk/X exposure) — approach the topic carefully, don't lead with it
  • No longer the firm's day-to-day decision-maker, so his current pull on new fund commitments or platform deals may be more advisory than operational

Questions to ask

  • As an advisor now rather than steward, how involved is he in new investment decisions vs. portfolio governance only?
  • What patterns has he seen in platform/roll-up companies scaling from founder-led to institutional governance (relevant to MongoDB, Block board experience)?
  • Who on the new Sequoia leadership team (Lin/Grady) or within his board network would be the right introduction for a services/accounting roll-up thesis?

Outreach draft

Subject
Quick call on platform scaling patterns
Hi Roelof, I'm on the deal team at [Firm], and we're building an accounting/professional-services roll-up platform. Given your board experience helping companies like MongoDB and Block scale governance and capital strategy through hypergrowth, I'd value 20 minutes of your perspective — particularly on what separates roll-ups that professionalize well from ones that stall out operationally. Happy to work around your schedule, and glad to share more on what we're building beforehand if useful. Best, [Placeholder Name]

Linked companies

Sources

Strongest evidencePage title6 public sourcesVerified2026-08-10How the grades work