Investment
NBA Stars Like Kevin Durant and Kyle Lowry are Increasingly Pouring Money into Startups for the Thrill of Investing and a Chance to Break Down Barriers for People of Color By Avery Hartmans
Rich Kleiman and Ke 2019. Taylor Hill/Getty Im
From left: Rich Kleiman, Kevin Durant, André Iguodala; Rudy Cline-Thomas, and Pau Gasol. Lachlan Cunningham/Getty; Steeter Lecka/Getty; Pau Gasol/Getty; Astrid Stawiarz/Getty; Claudio Lavenia/Getty; Skye Gould/Insider
JASON GARDNER WAS SITTING at his desk last year when he was handed a printout of a Bloomberg article. Gardner, the CEO of burgeoning fintech startup Marqeta, read the note scrawled across the front: It contained the phone number and email address of Rudy Cline-Thomas, who was known for connecting athletes like André Iguodala and
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Steph Curry with Silicon Valley startups looking for investors. The old-school, snail-mail approach intrigued Gardner. He decided to reach out. One year later, Marqeta is a $4.3 billion startup backed by the likes of Iguodala and former Major League Baseball superstar Alex Rodriguez, and it's reportedly headed for an initial public offering.
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