Pat Wilson

Pat Wilson is the Partner at Route 66 Ventures. As an entrepreneur, Pat has experienced both failure and success. As an investor, ten years of elbow grease liberally applied over multiple asset classes and investment strategies has crafted his unique voice and adeptness for early-stage investing within the venture world. Prior to joining Route 66, Pat was a Vice President with Quona Capital, a growth-stage venture fund where he focused on fintech in emerging markets. At Route 66, Pat brings together his entrepreneurial, direct investment and global fintech expertise to source, evaluate and lead new venture investments as well as mentor and support Route 66’s existing portfolio. After co-founding a marketing tech start-up during university, Pat spent his early career in middle-market buyouts where he worked as an investment banker and private equity investor at Citigroup, Brazos Private Equity Partners and HBK Capital Management, a global hedge fund managing $10 billion in equity capital. Pat left HBK in 2008, to start a private equity fund specializing in the acquisition, renovation and management of multi-family affordable housing. Under his leadership, the company redeveloped properties now housing 1,062 low-income families. Pat understands the challenges of starting and growing a business. He knows firsthand the pain of discipline, the importance of people and the humility of leadership. Pat is passionate about entrepreneurs’ ability to create a better, more inclusive tomorrow and feels privileged to support Route 66’s investees with the time, attention and hard work required to ensure success. Out of the office, Pat’s insatiable curiosity keeps him active as a beta tester, adventure racer, family guy, art student, church goer, frequent questioner and sometimes answerer. You’re likely to find him on a beach in the Outer Banks kiteboarding in the sound or reading on a beach chair. Having recently returned from a two-year, 46-country walkabout, Pat and his wife are fueled by a chronic sense of adventure and a passion to commune with the people inhabiting the world and communities around them.