# Steve Krausz

> Steve Krausz is a General Partner (now Senior Advisor) at U.S. Venture Partners (USVP), one of Silicon Valley's longest-running early-stage venture capital firms. With over 35 years of investing experience, he has led or co-led board-level involvement in landmark exits including Check Point Software, Box, Guidewire Software, Imperva, and Trusteer (acquired by IBM). A Stanford-trained electrical engineer and Arjay Miller Scholar MBA, Krausz joined USVP in 1985 and has built deep domain expertise in cybersecurity, enterprise software, and data analytics. He currently serves on the boards of Cato Networks, Human Interest, Quantifind, Badge, Informed.iq, and Zefr, and is a strategic advisor to the B612 Foundation, which tracks near-Earth asteroids.

- **Role:** Senior Advisor at U.S. Venture Partners (USVP)
- **Organizations:** U.S. Venture Partners (USVP), Cato Networks (board), Human Interest (board), Quantifind (board), Badge (board), Informed.iq (board), Zefr (board), Quokka (board), B612 Foundation (Strategic Advisor), World Affairs Council / Commonwealth Club, Stanford GSB Venture Capital Fund (board), Stanford DAPER Investment Fund (President)
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** B.S. in Electrical Engineering, Stanford University, M.B.A. (Arjay Miller Scholar), Stanford University Graduate School of Business
- **Known for:** Board involvement in 8 IPOs including Check Point Software, Box, Guidewire Software, Imperva, Xylan, Epic Design, New Focus, and Harmonic Lightwaves, Board involvement in notable acquisitions: Trusteer (IBM), Appthority (Symantec), Vontu (Symantec), CipherTrust (Secure Computing), Part of USVP team with 3.5X track record across four most recent fully-invested funds

## Career timeline

- **pre-1985** — Worked as a NASA and IT executive before transitioning to venture capital
- **1985** — Joined U.S. Venture Partners (USVP) as a General Partner
- **1994** — Backed Check Point Software (later IPO), one of USVP's landmark cybersecurity investments
- **1990s** — Led or co-led investments in Xylan, Epic Design, Stratacom, Harmonic Lightwaves, Verity - multiple IPOs
- **2000s** — Invested in Vontu (acquired by Symantec) and CipherTrust (acquired by Secure Computing)
- **2010s** — Backed Box (IPO 2015), Guidewire Software (IPO 2012), Imperva (IPO 2011), Trusteer (acquired by IBM 2013)
- **2020** — USVP raised $340M for USVP XII early-stage fund
- **2021** — Appeared on SALT Talks Pandemic Venture Investment Series
- **2022** — USVP closed USVP XIII at $400M, focused on cybersecurity, enterprise software, consumer, and healthcare
- **present** — Serves as Senior Advisor at USVP; active board member at Cato Networks, Human Interest, Quantifind, Badge, Informed.iq, Zefr, Quokka

## Achievements

- Board involvement in 8 IPOs including Check Point Software, Box, Guidewire Software, Imperva, Xylan, Epic Design, New Focus, and Harmonic Lightwaves
- Board involvement in notable acquisitions: Trusteer (IBM), Appthority (Symantec), Vontu (Symantec), CipherTrust (Secure Computing)
- Part of USVP team with 3.5X track record across four most recent fully-invested funds
- Former Treasurer and Executive Board Member of the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA)
- Former President of Western Association of Venture Capital (WAVC)
- Arjay Miller Scholar at Stanford Business School (awarded to top 10% of graduating class)
- Strategic Advisor to B612 Foundation, tracking near-Earth asteroids
- President of Stanford DAPER Investment Fund
- Over 35 years of venture capital experience at a single firm - rare in the industry

## Latest updates

- **2022-12** — USVP closed its 13th fund (USVP XIII) at $400M, with Steve Krausz as part of the core investment team, focused on Series A/B in cybersecurity, enterprise software, consumer, and healthcare
- **2025-01** — Quantifind, a board company, raised new funding (Series Unknown, Jan 2025)
- **2025** — Steve Krausz transitioned to Senior Advisor role at USVP while maintaining active board seats at portfolio companies

## Links

- Website: https://usvp.com
- LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/stevekrausz
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/skrausz1
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/US-Venture-Partners-USVP/113779035358509

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/steve-krausz
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Last updated: 2026-05-17