OUR TEAM

Led by Ben Stokes, our team brings a wealth of experience, passion, and dedication. With an impressive track record of successful exits, investments, and recognition in the VC community, we're well-equipped to identify and nurture the next generation of LGBTQ+ unicorns.

  • Ben Stokes (he/him/Ben) is the Founding Partner of Chasing Rainbows and a prolific leader in changing the funding landscape for LGBTQ+ entrepreneurs. He has been internationally recognized for his LGBTQ+ advocacy work and his commitment to changing the VC funding landscape.

    In 2024, Ben was a mainstage speaker at SXSW, and was named one of 100 American Dreamers by the Milken Institute. On top of this, Chasing Rainbows was named by Fast Company as a top Impact Fund, and was named on Impact Assets IA50 list. In 2023, Ben was named 40 under 40 Rising Stars of Venture by the Venture Capital Journal, and named 40 under 40 LGBTQ+ Pride Leaders by Business Equality Magazine. In 2022, Alumni Spotlight named him in the Top 100 Investors and was recognized by the NVCA as one of the Top LGBTQ+ Investors Making an Impact. In addition to this, in 2021, Ben spoke at the UN General Assembly on Living with Purpose, has been a guest speaker for the Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Centre, British Government and gave the Graduation Address for his Alma Alter after being awarded Young Alumni of the Year 2021 for the University of Tasmania.

    On top of his work at Chasing Rainbows, Ben sits on a number of NFP boards, including the Victory Institute and StartOut. Prior to founding Chasing Rainbows, Ben previously founded SocialTable, a social platform used on every continent, which he exited in 2021. Using his own experience as an LGBTQ+ founder of color, he has been an active angel investor and advisor for 20+ companies, successfully achieving 2 exits and multiple markups for invested companies, and has been featured on a number of international podcasts and speaking platforms.

  • Leigh has spent her career focused on allocating capital for a more equitable and sustainable world.

    She's currently a member of AngelList's Venture team where she is responsible for managing 30 early stage venture funds investing across the technology, consumer, finance, and climate sectors.

    Previously, Leigh was an ESG Associate at private equity firm, TPG Global, where she focused on the firm’s $14B impact funds, Rise and Rise Climate, covering deals across healthcare, education, financial inclusion, and climate. In this capacity, she completed pre-investment ESG due diligence and managed portfolio company engagement on topics such as ESG governance, GHG measurement and reduction, Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion (DEI), and ethical supply chain.

    As a Principal at Chasing Rainbows, she supports fundraising and LP engagement, pre-investment due diligence, and founder advisory initiatives.

    Leigh graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Stanford University with a BA in International Relations, and minors in Human Rights and Modern Languages