Source: 1789 Capital, where Donald Trump Jr. is a partner, is in talks to raise $3B for its second growth fund and has already raised $2B of that target amount
Investment firm 1789 Capital, where Donald Trump Jr. is a partner, is in talks to raise $3 billion for its second growth fund …
Context & Ripple Effects
1789 Capital had already passed $1 billion in assets by September 2025, with investments including SpaceX, xAI, Neuralink and Perplexity. The reported second fund would test whether that initial portfolio-building momentum can translate into a repeatable growth-equity franchise.
The firm was also reported to be leading Polymarket's $1 billion financing at a $21 billion post-money valuation. That proposed Polymarket round makes fund size consequential: 1789 is seeking the capacity to anchor large private-company financings, not simply make smaller venture bets.
First-order effects
- If the reported $3 billion target is reached, 1789 Capital would have substantially more capital to lead or anchor late-stage rounds such as the proposed Polymarket financing.
- Prospective limited partners would be backing a second vehicle while Donald Trump Jr. remains a confirmed partner at 1789, making the firm’s investment access and partner network central to its fundraising pitch.
Second-order effects
- A larger 1789 vehicle would intensify competition for allocations in sought-after late-stage companies, alongside managers pursuing similarly sized growth pools such as Founders Fund's planned third growth fund.
- For companies such as Polymarket, a well-capitalized lead investor can reduce reliance on assembling a round from many smaller funds, concentrating negotiating leverage with the lead and its co-investors.
Third-order effects
- If newer firms repeatedly raise multi-billion-dollar follow-on vehicles, growth investing becomes less concentrated among long-established managers and more dependent on firms that can pair fundraising with access to high-demand private deals.
- The pattern points toward private-market financings being organized around a smaller number of large lead investors, with fund size increasingly determining which managers can compete for marquee rounds.
The trend: Growth equity is becoming a scale business in which demonstrated access to coveted private companies helps managers raise the larger funds needed to lead their next deals.