Paul Ferri

Born in Rome, Italy, Ferri grew up in Virginia and the New York area. His father worked in aeronautical engineering.⁠[2]

He earned a BS in engineering from Cornell and an MS in electrical engineering from the Polytechnic Institute of New York. Before finance, he worked as an engineer at Grumman.⁠[3][4]

Ferri earned his MBA from Columbia Business School in 1968. The school’s 2008 report also lists him on its Board of Overseers.⁠[5]

He became a securities analyst at Loeb, Rhoades in 1968 and joined Phil Greer’s venture firm WestVen in 1970.⁠[4]

His partnership with Warren HellmanWarren HellmanWarren Hellman (1934–2011) was an investor, philanthropist and banjo player. He served as president of Lehman Brothers, co-founded Hellman & Friedman and founded San Francisco’s free Hardly Strictly Bluegrass festival.Open the full entry began in 1977 through the business known as Hellman Ferri Investment Associates. Ferri increasingly favored early technology investments; Hellman pursued later-stage private equity.⁠[2]

In 1982, Ferri and Rick Fluegel established Matrix Partners, working from opposite U.S. coasts.⁠[4]

Ferri increasingly focused on information technology. He backed Cascade Communications, later acquired by Ascend; its alumni went on to establish Matrix-backed ArrowPoint, Sonus and Sycamore.⁠[2]

Sonus Networks’ 2004 proxy statement records Ferri’s service as a director beginning in November 1997.⁠[3]

Sycamore Networks’ 2004 proxy statement dates his directorship to February 1998.⁠[6]

In 1999, Ferri and David Goel co-founded Matrix Capital Management. A University of Michigan approval describes a long/short hedge fund focused on technology stocks, distinct from venture investor Matrix Partners.⁠[7]

Netezza’s 2010 proxy statement records his Airvana directorship from May 2000 to April 2010.⁠[8]

He received the Massachusetts Telecommunications Council’s Venture Capitalist of the Year award in 2001 and entered the Private Equity Hall of Fame in 2003.⁠[9]

Ferri joined Netezza’s board in November 2005. Its 2010 proxy statement highlighted his venture-investing and board experience.⁠[8]

In 2009, Ferri was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in business, corporate and philanthropic leadership.⁠[9]

Reflecting in 2012, he emphasized experienced operators and judging results by cash returned to investors.⁠[4]

By 2013, Ferri had stepped away from Matrix’s daily management.⁠[10]

In an interview published in 2021, Avnish Bajaj recalled Ferri’s warning to reconsider an investment if the investor is the smartest person in the room. Bajaj used it to emphasize founders’ superior understanding of their businesses.⁠[11]

In a separate interview, Bajaj attributed to Ferri a principle of favoring the founder when in doubt. The discussion concerned differing interests in exit decisions, rather than unconditional acceptance of every founder decision.⁠[12]

On August 20, 2024, Bloomberg reported that Goel was closing Matrix Capital Management and returning client money, citing health problems. The announcement concerned the hedge-fund business, rather than Matrix Partners.⁠[13][7]

On June 27, 2025, Ferri and related investment entities sued Goel and affiliated businesses, alleging withheld profit shares and mismanagement.⁠[14]

On April 3, 2026, Matrix Capital Management Fund and AyurMaya Capital Management Fund sued Ferri-controlled Gothic Partners and two trusts in New York. The funds claimed authority to allocate Massachusetts litigation expenses to those investors and sought at least $5.5 million. This was requested relief.⁠[15]

The Ferri entities sought dismissal or a stay, arguing that the funds’ defense costs did not benefit those investors and that the contracts did not authorize such fee shifting. They also sought deference to the earlier Massachusetts case.⁠[16]

On August 24, the New York court stayed discovery. Its public docket still listed the case as active on October 12, 2026.⁠[17][18]

On August 31, the Massachusetts court dismissed implied-covenant, fiduciary-duty and some consumer-protection claims, while allowing the remaining claims, including contract and fraud, to proceed. This pleading-stage ruling did not establish ultimate liability.⁠[14]

Matrix Partners: Official website: https://matrix.vc/ (opens in a new window).⁠[1]

American Academy of Arts and Sciences: Official website: https://www.amacad.org/ (opens in a new window).⁠[9]

Columbia Business School: Official website: https://business.columbia.edu/ (opens in a new window).⁠[19]