We are excited to announce the promotion of Livingston Miller from general counsel to chief operating officer at Initialized Capital. This announcement is personal to me because the COO role is one that I filled with pride for nearly five years at Initialized before I was promoted to president and then managing partner.

Livingston has qualities I believe make him an excellent fit for this role. He is extremely high integrity and naturally builds trust and a rapport with our team, our founders, and our external partners. I have previously noted that the key qualities of an effective COO are good judgment, a sense of fairness, and a focus on doing what is right for the company above all else. Livingston exemplifies all these qualities; he’s great at managing cross-functional teams and uses good judgment to guide important decision-making.

In his new role, Livingston will take on additional responsibilities overseeing our finance, investor relations, HR and administrative functions. He will continue to oversee legal & compliance as our general counsel, and serve in an advisory role with our investment team on deals. 

Livingston joined us as our first general counsel in 2021. He immediately became an invaluable member of our team and demonstrated exceptional leadership capabilities across multiple departments. Among the many contributions he has made to our team, Livingston has: 

  • Streamlined our deal execution process enabling us to rapidly execute new investments so that our founders receive funding quickly to support their startups.
  • Revamped our compliance program to to deal with an enhanced regulatory environment for private funds. 
  • Managed raising capital for follow-on investments in certain portfolio companies. 
  • Led cross-functional teams on critical projects related to investments and firm management.   

In particular, Livingston enjoys supporting our portfolio companies and their founders. Sometimes that means assisting with hiring legal counsel or providing strategic advice on structuring a bridge round. Other times, it involves giving founders guidance on navigating complex business situations like restructuring or M&A deals, management transitions, fundraising, and commercial transactions.

We recently led an investment in Caliza, a startup that provides financial infrastructure that removes global borders from commerce. Livingston got to know Caliza’s cofounder, Ezra Kebrab, well as he worked with the company and its legal team during the investment process.

“Livingston was patient and always a quick call away to field my numerous questions along our fundraise,” said Ezra. “In him I saw someone who I can trust, and cared for me as a founder in Caliza’s work with Initialized and beyond.”

Before joining Initialized, Livingston was WeWork’s general counsel for the US and Canada, where he oversaw the day-to-day legal operations of the region. Prior to that, he was in private practice for over seven years at both Davis Polk, and WilmerHale, focusing on mergers and acquisitions and emerging companies.

We are confident that Livingston will excel in his new role as COO, bringing his unique blend of legal acumen, business insight, and leadership to our firm. Join us in congratulating Livingston on this well-deserved promotion.