Claudius E. Watts IV (“Bud”) is a private investor and founder of Meeting Street Capital, a private investment firm focused on early-stage software businesses based in the Southeast.

Bud currently serves as chairman of the board of directors of CommScope (NASDAQ: COMM) and as a member of the boards of privately held Parkdale, Inc., Thread Bancorp, and DebtBook. He also serves as a senior advisor to the Carlyle Group.

Prior to founding Meeting Street Capital, Bud was a partner and managing director at the Carlyle Group. He joined the firm in 2000 and led numerous aerospace and defense investments. He established Carlyle’s technology buyout group in 2004, led it until 2014, and retired from the firm in late 2017. Prior to joining Carlyle, Bud was a managing director at Bowles Hollowell Conner & Co., where he founded and led the firm’s defense, aerospace, and technical services group.

Bud served as a fighter pilot in the US Air Force. During his service, he flew both the F-16 and A-10 aircraft and held leadership and operations management positions in the United States and abroad.

In addition to his current business activities, Bud serves as chairman of the board of the Citadel Trust and on the board of the Citadel Foundation. He also serves as chairman of the board of the Belle W. Baruch Foundation and as vice chairman of the Roper St. Francis Foundation.

Bud earned a B.S. in Electrical Engineering cum laude from The Citadel in Charleston, South Carolina, and an M.B.A. from the Harvard Graduate School of Business Administration.