# Hannah Chelkowski

> Hannah Chelkowski is Co-Founder and General Partner at Blank Ventures, a $65M specialist fund investing at the intersection of fintech and commerce. A native Londoner now based in San Francisco, she brings an unusual backstory to venture - energy risk modeling at Total S.A. led to startup investing at Initialized Capital and Inovia Capital before she launched her own firm in 2022. Named to Business Insider's 71 Rising-Star VCs in 2022, she runs a deliberately concentrated portfolio with an LP base architected as a go-to-market asset: C-suite executives from major financial institutions, billion-dollar startups, and global family offices who become direct distribution channels for her portfolio companies.

- **Role:** Co-Founder and General Partner at Blank Ventures
- **Organizations:** Blank Ventures, Inovia Capital, Initialized Capital, Total S.A.
- **From:** London, United Kingdom
- **Nationality:** British
- **Education:** BSc Economics and Finance, University of Brighton, CFA Level I & II (pursuing full designation), CFA Institute
- **Known for:** Co-founded Blank Ventures, a $65M specialist early-stage VC fund focused on fintech and commerce, Named to Business Insider's '71 Rising-Star VCs Who Shook Up the Industry in 2022', Featured in Forbes' 'How To Raise A VC Fund: 15 Tips From Women Who Have Done It'

## Career timeline

- **2013-2016** — Gas & Power Risk Manager at Total S.A. - responsible for portfolio balancing, forecasting European energy demand, and risk modeling
- **2017** — Analyst at Initialized Capital, San Francisco - first venture role in the US
- **2018-2021** — Investor at Inovia Capital - deal sourcing, due diligence, portfolio company support including board seats and operating model development
- **2021** — Co-founded Blank Ventures alongside Antoine Nivard and Abhi Tiwari
- **2022** — Named Co-Founder and General Partner, officially launched Blank Ventures as a $65M specialist fund
- **2022** — Named to Business Insider's '71 Rising-Star VCs Who Shook Up the Industry in 2022'
- **2022-present** — Building concentrated fintech/commerce portfolio including Neo Financial (unicorn), Spotnana, 1Password, Certn, Agree.com, Caspian, Receive, and others

## Achievements

- Co-founded Blank Ventures, a $65M specialist early-stage VC fund focused on fintech and commerce
- Named to Business Insider's '71 Rising-Star VCs Who Shook Up the Industry in 2022'
- Featured in Forbes' 'How To Raise A VC Fund: 15 Tips From Women Who Have Done It'
- Backed Neo Financial - a Blank Ventures portfolio company that achieved unicorn status
- Backed Spotnana, 1Password, and Certn during tenure at Inovia Capital
- Built an LP base of C-suite executives from major financial institutions and global family offices that functions as a go-to-market network for portfolio companies
- Pioneered proactive deal execution - sent a preemptive term sheet to Agree.com, becoming the only investor to do so

## Latest updates

- **2026-01** — Blank Ventures portfolio company signed with a top global exporter to modernize logistics
- **2025-12** — A Blank Ventures portfolio company grew 20x during 2025
- **2022-12** — Named to Business Insider's '71 Rising-Star VCs Who Shook Up the Industry in 2022'

## Links

- Website: https://blank.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hannahchelkowski
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/hchelkowski

---

Profile page: https://yespress.io/hannah-chelkowski
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-05-18