Michael Kelley

Michael J. Kelley has spent more than 15 years executing and managing principal investments across private equity, venture capital, and real estate. He is a Founding Partner of the ARC Angel Fund, a New York–based member-led angel fund launched in 2010, and has also served as a Principal/Director at Merion Investment Partners, a subordinated-debt-and-equity (mezzanine/SBIC) fund, a role he has held since August 2012. His work bridges the institutional private-equity world and the early-stage angel ecosystem.

Prior to Merion, Kelley was the founder and principal of Formation Capital, Inc., which managed in excess of $50 million in equity across roughly 30 investments. Formation's venture portfolio included Foxfire Printing and Packaging, iProcess Online, and Performance Systems Development. Earlier in his career he was a principal with HK Special Situations Group, where he provided advisory services to the U.S. Small Business Administration, and a principal with GSA Management and with Intrust USA, where he was responsible for raising and investing four real estate tax-credit funds and one venture capital fund.

Kelley is active in the Delaware and broader Mid-Atlantic entrepreneurial community. He has served as Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Delaware Innovation Fund and sits on the boards of Foxfire Printing, Early Stage East, and the Metropolitan Wilmington Urban League. He earned a BA in History, magna cum laude, from the University of Delaware.

• Invests through ARC Angel Fund's member-led model, in which angel investors and fund partners actively participate in investment decisions and can personally co-invest alongside the fund.
• Targets early-stage companies with a product and some revenue and valuations generally under $5M.
• Writes checks of roughly $50,000–$250,000 over the life of an investment, with a typical average of ~$50,000–$150,000.
• Focuses on sectors where fund members have direct operating experience: software, IT/internet, tech-enabled services, business services, digital media, mobile, and healthcare IT.
• Geographically concentrated on NYC and the Northeast/Mid-Atlantic ("we'll look from PA to MA").