# Scott Banister

> Scott Banister is a serial entrepreneur and prolific angel investor who co-founded IronPort Systems (acquired by Cisco for $830M), was the first outside investor in PayPal, and is credited by insiders with conceiving the paid keyword search advertising model that spawned the entire Google AdWords ecosystem. With 100+ investments spanning Uber, SpaceX, DeepMind, Facebook, and Affirm - most at seed stage - he is one of the most consequential yet least-known members of the PayPal Mafia.

- **Role:** Venture Partner at Long Journey Ventures; Co-Founder at Memyard
- **Organizations:** Long Journey Ventures, Memyard, IronPort Systems, PayPal, Submit It!, SponsorNet New Media, Zivity, Idealab!
- **From:** Kansas City, Missouri, USA
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** Computer Science (dropped out sophomore year), University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
- **Known for:** First outside investor in PayPal; founding board member, Co-founded IronPort Systems, acquired by Cisco for $830 million (2007), Co-founded Submit It!, acquired by LinkExchange/Microsoft for ~$250 million (1998)

## Career timeline

- **1995** — Co-founded SponsorNet New Media at UIUC with Max Levchin and Luke Nosek - first online ad auction for search engine placement
- **1996** — Dropped out of UIUC to co-found Submit It! - free tool to submit websites to multiple search engines simultaneously
- **1996** — Pitched paid keyword search advertising concept to Idealab's Bill Gross and Tony Hsieh - concept became Overture (later Yahoo Search Marketing) and precursor to Google AdWords
- **1998** — Submit It! acquired by LinkExchange; LinkExchange then acquired by Microsoft for ~$250 million
- **1998-2000** — Served as VP of Ideas at Idealab!, contributing the keyword auction advertising model
- **1999** — Became first outside investor in PayPal; served as founding board member; co-invented email payments feature
- **2000** — Co-founded IronPort Systems with Scott Weiss to fight spam and secure corporate email
- **2007** — IronPort Systems acquired by Cisco Systems for $830 million
- **2007** — Co-founded Zivity, adult social photography platform, with wife Cyan Banister
- **2007+** — Transitioned to full-time angel investing; backed 100+ companies including Uber, SpaceX, DeepMind, Facebook, Affirm, Zappos, Postmates
- **2013** — Joined Board of Regents at Da Vinci Schools
- **2015** — Donated $125,000 to UCLA Law; renamed the Scott & Cyan Banister First Amendment Clinic
- **2016** — Won TechCrunch Crunchie Award for Angel of the Year (with Cyan Banister)
- **2023** — Joined Long Journey Ventures as Venture Partner
- **2023** — Co-founded Memyard, an AI-powered personal data estate platform
- **2024** — Purchased historic 'Western White House' mansion in Hillsborough, CA for $23 million

## Achievements

- First outside investor in PayPal; founding board member
- Co-founded IronPort Systems, acquired by Cisco for $830 million (2007)
- Co-founded Submit It!, acquired by LinkExchange/Microsoft for ~$250 million (1998)
- Credited with conceiving the paid keyword search advertising model (precursor to Google AdWords)
- Early angel investor in Uber, SpaceX, DeepMind, Facebook, Affirm, Zappos, Postmates
- Won TechCrunch Crunchie Award for Angel of the Year (2016, with Cyan Banister)
- Co-founded SponsorNet with future PayPal co-founders Max Levchin and Luke Nosek
- 100+ angel investments across seed and early-stage tech companies
- Named the Scott & Cyan Banister First Amendment Clinic at UCLA Law School
- Venture Partner at Long Journey Ventures (Fund IV: $181.8M, 2025)

## Latest updates

- **2026-03** — Participated in Artemis (formerly Monalee) $6M Series A - AI platform for solar and storage project development
- **2025-03** — Long Journey Ventures Fund IV raised $181.8 million
- **2024-10** — Purchased the 'Western White House' historic mansion in Hillsborough, CA for $23 million via Willowmoss LLC
- **2023-08** — Co-founded Memyard, a platform to build personal data estates for training personal AI models
- **2023-01** — Joined Long Journey Ventures (co-founded by wife Cyan Banister) as Venture Partner

## Links

- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/banister/
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/scottbanister

---

Profile page: https://yespress.io/scott-banister
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-04-25