Frost Brown Todd has added Ryan Tharp as a partner in its private equity and venture practice in Denver. Tharp joins FBT with experience in partnership and corporate tax matters, mergers and acquisitions, private placements, corporate governance and commercial issues, allowing him to provide comprehensive, business-focused legal guidance across a wide range of transactions.
Tharp advises entrepreneurs, investors and business leaders on the legal and strategic aspects of building and scaling companies. His practice spans the full company lifecycle — from formation and financing to growth, operations and exit — and includes representing startups, angel investors and venture capital funds. He also advises investors and venture capital funds on fund formation, investments and governance matters.
He regularly counsels emerging companies on entity formation, founder agreements, equity compensation and fundraising through Simple Agreement for Future Equity, convertible notes and priced rounds. As outside general counsel for startups and small companies, he supports clients with commercial contracts, joint ventures, technology transactions and protection of intellectual property and trade secrets.
Tharp earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Colorado, Boulder, and his law degree from the University of Colorado Law School. He earned his Master of Business Administration and another master’s degree from the University of Colorado, Denver. He was selected for inclusion in the Denver 5280 Magazine’s Top Lawyers, Mergers and Acquisitions 2025 list and was a Colorado Rising Stars® for Business/Corporate Law in 2018 and from 2020 to 2024.