Jared Hecht
{{Short description|American entrepreneur}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Jared Hecht
| birth_date = {{circa|1987}}, March 11th[https://mixergy.com/interviews/fundera-with-jared-hecht/ GroupMe founder on his $80M exit (and why he's building his new company differently)], Published: Dec 6, 2017, Mixergy
| birth_place =
| nationality = American
| occupation = Businessman
| alma_mater = Columbia University
| known for = Founder of Fundera, Co-founder of GroupMe
}}
Jared Hecht is an American entrepreneur, and the co-founder and CEO of Fundera, an online small business lending aggregator as well as group messaging app GroupMe.{{Cite web|last=D'Onfro|first=Jillian|title=How 20-Something Serial Entrepreneur Jared Hecht Boosted His Startup's Success By Over 5X|url=https://www.businessinsider.com/jared-hecht-fundera-founder-interview-2014-7|access-date=2020-06-09|website=Business Insider}}
Early life
Hecht studied political science at Columbia University, where he received his bachelor's degree in 2009.{{cite web|author=|date=|title=Jared Hecht '09 - Columbia College Today|url=https://www.college.columbia.edu/cct/archive/winter11/alumni_profiles4|accessdate=4 June 2019|website=www.college.columbia.edu}} While a student at Columbia, he was the managing director and publisher for the university's student-written guidebook, Inside New York.{{Cite web|date=2014-03-27|title=An Angel in New York: Jared Hecht|url=https://www.alleywatch.com/2014/03/an-angel-in-new-york-jared-hecht/|access-date=2020-06-09|website=AlleyWatch|language=en-US}}
Career
Hecht was an early employee at Tumblr and led business development.{{cite web|author=|date=24 August 2016|title=Jared Hecht, Co-Founder & CEO of Fundera|url=https://ventureforamerica.org/blog/jared-hecht-co-founder-ceo-of-fundera/|accessdate=4 June 2019|website=ventureforamerica.org}}{{cite web|last=Zimmerman|first=Eilene|date=27 June 2011|title=Jared Hecht and Steve Martocci, Founders of GroupMe|url=https://www.inc.com/30under30/2011/profile-jared-hecht-steve-martocci-founders-groupme.html|accessdate=4 June 2019|website=Inc.com}} In 2010, Hecht co-founded group messaging app, GroupMe, which allows users to create a private group to which they can send text messages or make conference calls, with his friend Steve Martocci, founder of Blade and Splice who was then a software engineer with Gilt Groupe. They won the South by Southwest breakout ward in 2011. The two raised $11 million from Khosla Ventures and General Catalyst in 2011.{{Cite web|title=GroupMe Scores $10.6 Million From Khosla Ventures And Others|url=https://techcrunch.com/2011/01/04/groupme-scores-10-6-million-from-khosla-ventures-and-others/|access-date=2020-06-09|website=TechCrunch|language=en-US}} After being live for 370 days, Microsoft purchased GroupMe for $80 million.{{cite web|last=Shontell|first=Alyson|date=Feb 6, 2014|title=26-Year-Old Jared Hecht Sold His First Startup For ~ $80 Million In 370 Days, And He Has Raised $3.4 Million For A New Venture|url=https://www.businessinsider.com/jared-hecht-launches-fundera-2014-2|accessdate=4 June 2019|website=Business Insider}}
One of Hecht's early hires at GroupMe, Zach Sims, also a Columbia alumnus, went on to found the online code-learning platform Codecademy.{{Cite web|last=Zhang|first=Maggie|title=9 Startup Lessons From The Founder Of Codecademy|url=https://www.businessinsider.com/startup-lessons--zach-sims-codecademy-2014-6|access-date=2021-08-21|website=Business Insider|language=en-US}}
Hecht later became an angel investor and invested in companies such as Sweetgreen, TransferWise, and Flatiron Health.{{Cite web|title=How Jared Hecht's Fundera is transforming how small businesses find financial solutions|url=https://www.builtinnyc.com/2019/03/12/spotlight-working-at-fundera-jared-hecht|access-date=2020-06-09|website=Built In NYC|language=en}}{{Cite web|last=Ewan|date=2017-06-21|title=Jared Hecht of Fundera|url=http://fintechprofile.com/2017/06/21/jared-hecht-fundera/|access-date=2020-06-09|website=FinTech Profile|language=en-GB}} In October 2013, he launched Fundera, an online broker that helps small businesses get loans from non-bank lenders, after seeing a family member struggle with bank loans, and raised a total of $18.9 million for his platform from investors such as Khosla Ventures, First Round Capital, David Tisch, and more.{{Cite web|last=Michael|first=del Castillo|date=Oct 16, 2015|title=The importance of not being an arrogant jerk when raising capital|url=https://www.bizjournals.com/newyork/news/2015/10/16/the-importance-of-not-being-an-arrogantjerk-when.html|access-date=2020-06-09|website=New York Business Journal}}{{Cite web|date=2017-08-29|title=Jared Hecht '09CC, Founder of Fundera|url=https://entrepreneurship.columbia.edu/2017/08/29/jared-hecht-09cc-wants-help-entrepreneurs-follow-footsteps/|access-date=2020-06-09|website=Columbia Entrepreneurship|language=en-US}} A year since it was launched, the company has secured more than $60 million in credit for 1,200 small-business owners.{{Cite web|last=Kosoff|first=Maya|title=A 20-something sold his first company for $80 million in 370 days — now he's raising $11 million for his new startup|url=https://www.businessinsider.com/fundera-raises-115-million-2015-9|access-date=2020-06-09|website=Business Insider}}
In 2015, he was named in Forbes' "30 under 30" list for the Consumer Tech category.{{Cite web|last=|first=|date=|title=CONSUMER TECH|url=https://www.forbes.com/30-under-30-2015/#/consumer-tech|access-date=|website=Forbes}}
Personal life
He is married to Carrie Weprin, a film producer, and the couple live in Brooklyn with their two children.{{Cite news|date=2011-09-03|title=Carrie Weprin, Jared Hecht|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/04/fashion/weddings/carrie-weprin-and-jared-hecht-weddings.html|access-date=2020-06-09|issn=0362-4331}}{{Cite web|title=Bios|url=http://www.onceinabluefilm.com/bios|access-date=2020-06-09|website=Once in a Blue|language=en-US}}
References
{{Reflist}}
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Category:Year of birth missing (living people)
Category:American chief executives
Category:American company founders
Category:Columbia College (New York) alumni