After eight years as SoftBank, Vision Fund managing partner Lydia Jett has announced she is leaving the firm.
Lydia Jett is leaving her managing partner position at SoftBank Investment Advisers, which runs Japan-based internet services group SoftBank’s Vision Funds, Bloomberg reported.
SoftBank hired Jett in 2015 and she joined Vision Fund as an Americas-based investor when it was launched shortly afterwards.
Jett was promoted to partner at SoftBank Investment Advisers in 2019 and, after making GCV’s Rising Stars list the following year, she moved up to managing partner and head of ecommerce. She has not disclosed her next position.
During her time at SoftBank, Jett was an investor and board member for startups including Fanatics, Flipkart and Weee! She had previously been a vice-president at growth equity firm M/C Partners following two years as an investment banking analyst for technology media and telecoms at JP Morgan.
Jett told GCV in 2022 after receiving an Emerging Leaders award: “My role at SoftBank Investment Advisers provides an incredible learning opportunity. We are among the most active investors in the sectors where I focus – ecommerce as well as fintech and robotics – and we have a global mandate.
“And on a personal level, it is just fascinating to watch economies, populations and countries develop and to look for ways to help accelerate that development.”
SoftBank’s two Vision Funds are sized at over $150bn in total and invest in AI, digital services, deep learning, robotics and internet-of-things startups. They have backed more than 180 companies in total.
