Sequoia Capital transitions to new leadership

• It's also managed a series of management successions, owing to a stewardship tradition set by firm founder Don Valentine — at a time when many VC firms used founder names as their brands.

Catch up quick: Botha, PayPal's original CFO, had been a Sequoia steward since 2017 and led Sequoia solo since 2022, when Doug Leone stepped back.

• He'll remain with the firm and on portfolio company boards.

Zoom in: Lin has co-led Sequoia's early-stage investing business since 2017, backing such companies as Airbnb and DoorDash.

• Grady has co-led its growth-stage investing business since 2015, with a portfolio that includes HubSpot and Zoom.
• Both also have worked on Sequoia's OpenAI investment together.

The bottom line: Botha will be a tough act to follow.

• He created Sequoia's scout program more than a decade ago, and a source says that Sequoia has distributed $52 billion since he first became a steward in 2017.
• Botha also oversaw Sequoia's landmark fund restructuring and splitting off from its China and India arms.