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Private company

Accel

Logo: Accel Partners, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons4

Venture capital firm

Accel, formerly known as Accel Partners, is an American global venture capital firm. The company has offices in Palo Alto, California and San Francisco, California, with additional offices in London, and India. The company's most notable investment was a $12.7 million investment in Facebook in May 2005 for 10% of the company, before the company had revenue.2 It was founded by Jim Swartz and Arthur Patterson.1 It employed 300 people in 2024.1 Wikipedia text CC BY-SA 4.0

Last updated Oct 21, 2026.

Overview

1983Founded1
  • Industryventure capital1
  • HeadquartersPalo Alto1
  • Websitewww.accel.com
  • Legal formprivately held company1
  • LEI9845001B45C45BFT1C123
  • StatusActive3
  • LEI statusIssued and current3
  • Registered address3RD FLOOR, SFI COMPLEX, 178, 600034 Chennai, India3
  • Registered withMinistry of Corporate Affairs, L30007TN1986PLC1002193

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Accel, formerly known as Accel Partners, is an American global venture capital firm. The company has offices in Palo Alto, California and San Francisco, California, with additional offices in London, and India. The company's most notable investment was a $12.7 million investment in Facebook in May 2005 for 10% of the company, before the company had revenue.2

Corporate structure

Accel sits at the top of its group. 3 entities, 2 countries on record. Switch between the flow chart and the network, and select any entity to see its details.

Built from parent and subsidiary links from GLEIF, the Global Legal Entity Identifier Foundation (CC0); subsidiaries, stakes and holdings from Wikidata (CC0). Each entity in the chart links to its source.

What it owns

What Accel reports owning in its annual reports to the SEC: buildings, land and equipment, real estate and locations, investments, intangible assets and inventory, at the end of its latest fiscal year and a year before.

Stakes and holdings (Wikidata)

Things Wikidata records the company as owning, with the share when stated.1

The story

Founded by Arthur Patterson and Jim Swartz in 1983.1

In 1983, Accel was founded by Arthur Patterson and Jim Swartz. The co-founders developed the firm's "prepared mind" investment philosophy based on the Louis Pasteur quote "chance favors the prepared mind", which they say requires "deep focus" and a disciplined and informed approach to investing.

In 2000, Accel and Kohlberg Kravis Roberts formed Accel-KKR, an independently operated technology-focused private equity investment firm focused on control investments in middle-market companies. In the same year, Accel partnered with IDG Capital to create IDG-Accel, a joint venture focusing on early-stage and growth investments in the Chinese market.

In May 2005, Accel, under the leadership of Jim Breyer, invested $12.7 million for 10% of Facebook, before the company had revenue. This investment became one of the most lucrative in venture capital history and was worth $6.6 billion at the time of the company's initial public offering in 2012.

From Wikipedia’s article on Accel (company), shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.5

Leadership

Who has led Accel, and when. Pick a name to see everywhere that person has worked.

Products and brands

  • venture capital

Listed on Wikidata.1

Subsidiaries and ownership

Also owns

Subsidiaries (GLEIF)

From Wikidata.1 Ownership links from GLEIF, the Global Legal Entity Identifier Foundation (CC0); each one cites its LEI record.

Employees over time

  • 20243001

Timeline

  1. 1983Founded Founded1

Sources

The numbers on this page point here. Each one links to the record it came from.

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