CVC further strengthens expertise in its Strategic Opportunities strategy with appointment of Zrust as Partner and Head of Infrastructure
Jiri joins from Macquarie Group’s infrastructure funds business in London where he spent 10 years. Most recently he was a Senior Managing Director and Head of Energy Transition and was leading country coverage and origination across infrastructure and real assets in Europe. Before joining Macquarie, he worked for 17 years in the transport and logistics sector. Jiri will join in March 2022.
CVC’s Strategic Opportunities platform invests in high-quality, stable businesses with longer investment horizons. The strategy focuses on corporate private equity investments with a lower risk profile and often partners with founding families or foundations looking for a long-term partner.
Jiri’s appointment reflects an increasing strategic emphasis now being placed on investment opportunities within the broader infrastructure space coupled with a growing interest within CVC for energy transition.
Lorne Somerville, Managing Partner, Co-Chair and Co-Head of CVC Strategic Opportunities said: “I’m delighted that Jiri will join us to lead our infrastructure-plus investment platform. This is a key component of CVC Strategic Opportunities as it expands its focus. His experience and track record will prove invaluable in driving the growth of this strategic pillar.”
Jiri Zrust, added: “CVC Strategic Opportunities has a great team and investment track record and I am looking forward to adding value across the whole strategy. It is particularly exciting to be able broaden CVC’s focus on new investment opportunities in the cross-over between infrastructure and core private equity as well as in the energy transition space.”
Kristoffer is credited for a focused, sustainable investment strategy and development under his leadership
Strong year for Nordic Capital, which completed its second remote fundraising with the close of EUR 1.2 bn Nordic Capital Evolution, announced fourteen platform deals, made seven full or partial exits and maintained intense focus on active ownership
Financial News andPrivate Equity Newshas again named Kristoffer Melinder, Managing Partner, Nordic Capital Advisors, as one of Europe’s 50 Most Influential People in Private Equity. Kristoffer has been included in this list every year since it was first published four years ago. Honorees in this year’s list represent the top dealmakers, investors, business leaders and advisers shaping the European private equity market, selected for their leadership and firepower within their firms and the wider market over the past 12 months.
The list highlights how Kristoffer’s leadership has enabled the evolvement of a robust and sustainable investment strategy for Nordic Capital, today with assets under management of EUR 24 bn, supported by the careful growth and development of the organisation with a team of 160 people (including Nordic Capital Advisors) now operating across ten offices.
Financial News andPrivate Equity Newscredit Nordic Capital for closing its EUR 1.2 bn mid-market focused fund Nordic Capital Evolution in June 2021, and its largest-ever fund, Nordic Capital X, at EUR 6.1 bn in September 2020. The list also recognises the momentum behind Nordic Capital’s transactional activity, with 14 platform acquisitions and seven full or partial exits made in the last 12 months, including the listings of Cary Group, Cint and Nordnet.
Having joined the business from JP Morgan in 1998, Kristoffer is recognised as a champion of sustainable investment. During his leadership of Nordic Capital Advisors, Nordic Capital has received A+ scores from the United Nations’ Principles for Responsible Investment (UNPRI) for its ESG work.
Kristoffer Melinder commented: “2021 has been another landmark year for Nordic Capital, with Nordic Capital Evolution successfully launched, a high pace of investment and exit activity and an intense focus on active ownership across Nordic Capital’s portfolio of market-leading businesses. It is a great honour to be recognised a fourth time in this list of very talented individuals, but the achievements are collective, and this recognition is very much shared with the whole team. This success is a direct result of their talent, dedication and passion and I am delighted that their commitment has been recognised in this way.”
Note: The 50 “most influential” people were selected by Financial News and Private Equity News, who conducted thorough market research to assess candidates’ firepower in Europe, their recent track records and their wider industry profile.
Press contact:
Nordic Capital
Katarina Janerud, Communications Manager
Nordic Capital Advisors
Tel: +46 8 440 50 50
e-mail: katarina.janerud@nordiccapital.com
About Nordic Capital
Nordic Capital is a leading private equity investor with a resolute commitment to creating stronger, sustainable businesses through operational improvement and transformative growth. Nordic Capital focuses on selected regions and sectors where it has deep experience and a long history. Focus sectors are Healthcare, Technology & Payments, Financial Services, and selectively, Industrial & Business Services. Key regions are Europe and globally for Healthcare and Technology & Payments investments. Since inception in 1989, Nordic Capital has invested more than EUR 19 billion in over 120 investments. The most recent entities are Nordic Capital X with EUR 6.1 billion in committed capital and Nordic Capital Evolution with EUR 1.2 billion in committed capital, principally provided by international institutional investors such as pension funds. Nordic Capital Advisors have local offices in Sweden, the UK, the US, Germany, Denmark, Finland, Norway and South Korea. For further information about Nordic Capital, please visit www.nordiccapital.com
“Nordic Capital” refers to, depending on the context, any, or all, Nordic Capital branded entities, vehicles, structures and associated entities. The general partners and/or delegated portfolio managers of Nordic Capital’s entities and vehicles are advised by several non-discretionary sub-advisory entities, any or all of which are referred to as “Nordic Capital Advisors”.
New York, December 9, 2021 – Blackstone (NYSE:BX) today announced that David Ben-Ur and Atish Nigam have joined the firm in senior leadership roles in the Blackstone Alternative Asset Management (“BAAM”) business. David will be the Chief Investment Officer of BAAM’s hedge fund solutions business (“BPS”) and Atish will serve as the Chief Investment Officer of BAAM’s special situations investing business (“BSOF”).
In conjunction with Mr. Ben-Ur’s hire, Blackstone also announced BAAM agreed on preliminary terms to manage the assets of CAM Capital, Bruce Kovner’s family office.
Jon Gray, Blackstone President & COO, said: “These announcements demonstrate the tremendous momentum we have in BAAM. David and Atish are exceptional investors with great track records of managing money and delivering strong, risk-adjusted returns through market cycles. It is also an incredible honor to have the opportunity to manage the assets of CAM Capital, as Bruce is a pioneer in the hedge fund industry.”
Joe Dowling, Blackstone Global Head of BAAM, said: “David and Atish will be key leaders in BAAM and are excellent additions to the team. Their experience and networks will help us make better investments and support more managers across asset classes and investing styles. This is very positive news for Blackstone and our investors.”
David Ben-Ur, Chief Investment Officer of the BPS platform, said: “With the firm’s unique scale and expertise, I look forward to working with the team to continue to drive BAAM’s leadership in the hedge fund solutions market. BPS is the core business within BAAM and exemplifies how hedge fund managers can deliver attractive returns and the important role these strategies play in a balanced investment portfolio.”
Atish Nigam, Chief Investment Officer of BSOF, said: “I am excited to join the team and help drive new investment ideas to deliver strong absolute returns for BSOF and its investors. I look forward to working with and learning from Joe and the many other talented members of the BAAM team.”
BPS was launched in 1990 and today is the largest discretionary allocator to hedge funds in the world managing approximately $60 billion of assets (out of BAAM’s $81 billion total). BPS includes both a commingled fund business and a customized solutions business.
The BSOF platform was launched in 2011 and has over $13 billion of assets, including customized, commingled and co-investment solutions.
Mr. Ben-Ur joins from CAM Capital, where he served as Chief Investment Officer, and managed assets exclusively for entities related to Mr. Bruce Kovner and its senior employees. He also served as Chief Investment Officer of The Kovner Foundation, which manages the personal philanthropy of the Kovner family. Prior to joining CAM Capital, he was a Partner and Co-Chief Investment Officer at Corbin Capital Partners. He has previously worked at Goldman Sachs Asset Management and Fidelity Management & Research Company. Mr. Ben-Ur received an MPP in International Trade and Finance from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University and BA from Tufts University where he graduated magna cum laude.
Mr. Nigam joins from Appaloosa Management, an investment firm run by Mr. David Tepper, where he was a senior analyst and investor for nearly a decade. At Appaloosa, he focused on combining a top-down world-view with bottom-up, independent, fundamental analysis to identify long-term investment theses across asset classes and capital structures. Mr. Nigam has previous experience at SAC Capital, FTV Capital and McKinsey & Company. He received an MBA from Harvard University, undergraduate and masters degrees from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and is a CFA Charterholder.
Mr. Ben-Ur and Mr. Nigam will start at the firm at the beginning of 2022.
About Blackstone Blackstone is the world’s largest alternative asset manager. We seek to create positive economic impact and long-term value for our investors, the companies we invest in, and the communities in which we work. We do this by using extraordinary people and flexible capital to help companies solve problems. Our $731 billion in assets under management include investment vehicles focused on private equity, real estate, public debt and equity, life sciences, growth equity, opportunistic, non-investment grade credit, real assets and secondary funds, all on a global basis. Further information is available at www.blackstone.com. Follow Blackstone on Twitter @Blackstone.
Media Contact Paula Chirhart
+1-347-463-5453
paula.chirhart@blackstone.com
Kinnevik AB (publ) (“Kinnevik”) today announced that Samuel Sjöström has been appointed Chief Strategy Officer and member of Kinnevik’s management team.
Samuel Sjöström joined Kinnevik in 2013 and has worked across all of Kinnevik’s functions and teams, most recently as Head of Strategy. In his role as Chief Strategy Officer, he will work closely to Kinnevik’s CEO on the development, monitoring and implementation of Kinnevik’s corporate strategy as it builds on its position as Europe’s leading listed growth investor.
Georgi Ganev, Kinnevik’s CEO, commented: “Samuel has been instrumental to Kinnevik’s transformation over the last years, and has a unique set of insights into our strategies, day-to-day business, values and culture. I look forward to working even closer with him as we continue to build for the future and deliver on our promises to our stakeholders.”
For further information, visit www.kinnevik.com or contact:
Kinnevik’s ambition is to be Europe’s leading listed growth investor, and we back the best digital companies for a reimagined everyday and to deliver significant returns. We understand complex and fast-changing consumer behaviours, and have a strong and expanding portfolio in healthtech, consumer services, foodtech and fintech. As a long-term investor, we strongly believe that investing in sustainable business models and diverse teams will bring the greatest returns for shareholders. We back our companies at every stage of their journey and invest in Europe, with a focus on the Nordics, and in the US. Kinnevik was founded in 1936 by the Stenbeck, Klingspor and von Horn families. Kinnevik’s shares are listed on Nasdaq Stockholm’s list for large cap companies under the ticker codes KINV A and KINV B.
Industrifonden is proud to announce that Peter Wolpert has been appointed its new CEO. Peter has extensive experience developing and taking life science and tech companies to market. He will take up the helm at Industrifonden in March 2022. He succeeds David Sonnek, who joins Navigare Ventures.
Peter Wolpert has over 20 years of experience in company development as CEO, strategy consultant and board member. He founded the pharmaceutical company Moberg Pharma AB (publ) in 2006, which reached close to half a billion SEK in revenue worldwide before its commercial portfolio was divested in 2019. Peter’s portfolio of successful ventures includes companies that have been publicly listed, entered partnerships or been acquired by leading investors and industrial players in the US, Europe and Asia. Peter has been based in the US for the past few years, and is currently chairman of the board of Moberg Pharma AB (publ) and advisor to A3P Biomedical AB and OncoZenge AB (publ). He has been advisor to a number of smaller companies, including Appeal Software Solutions which was sold to BEA (today Oracle) in 2002, and previously worked as a strategy consultant at McKinsey & Co. Peter has an MSc in Engineering Physics from the Royal Institute of Technology (KTH) and an MSc in Economics from the Stockholm School of Economics.
“We are very pleased to have recruited Peter Wolpert as the new CEO of Industrifonden. Peter’s experience of taking companies from innovation to commercialization, and his passion for research and technology development will be a great asset to the fund. Peter is also a strong leader and team builder with extensive experience in both corporate financing and commercial negotiations. Together with Industrifonden’s experienced analyst and investment team, Peter will continue our strategic journey to make Sweden smarter by investing early in growth companies where Industrifonden can make a difference”, says Industrifonden chairman Birgitta Stymne Göransson.
“Industrifonden has an important role to play by investing in the best innovative ventures and supporting them to mature into successful global businesses. Building a successful company from a pioneering innovation requires deep technology insight, willingness to take risk and perseverance. I am excited to work together with the team at Industrifonden, talented entrepreneurs and investment partners to make Sweden stronger”, says incoming CEO Peter Wolpert.
Industrifonden is an independent foundation with 6 billion SEK under management that invests in early- and growth-stage companies in deep tech, life science and transformative tech. Initial investments are typically 10–50 million SEK, with the capacity to reinvest further during the holding period. Industrifonden’s 40 years of experience in scaling and growth includes investments such as Funnel, EnginZyme, Asgard Therapeutics, Arcam, Oatly and CellaVision. Industrifonden is constantly looking for the most transformative venture opportunities in Sweden; those with a potential to provide meaningful improvements to our lives, industries, and to the society.
The board has appointed Per Anell, Senior Investment Director at Industrifonden, as acting CEO until Peter Wolpert takes office in March 2022.
If you’re curious to learn more, see this interview with Peter Wolpert in DI Digital today.
NEW YORK–(BUSINESS WIRE)– KKR today announced a newly promoted group of 18 Partners and 42 Managing Directors, effective January 1, 2022.
“Congratulations to our senior leaders for not only reaching new career milestones at KKR but for all they have done to get to there. Their many contributions as well as their commitment to KKR’s culture and values have played a significant role not only in shaping our firm and inspiring our colleagues, but also in helping meet KKR’s mission of supporting our clients and the companies in which we invest. Today, we recognize and thank these individuals, and wish them continued success,” said Joe Bae and Scott Nuttall, Co-Chief Executive Officers of KKR.
The following individuals have been promoted to Partner at KKR:
Brandon Brahm – Private Equity Americas, New York
Doug Brody – Credit & Markets, New York
Cathy Cai – Capstone, Beijing
Brian Dillard – Credit & Markets, Hong Kong
Nancy Ford – Private Equity Americas, Menlo Park
Felix Gernburd – Private Equity Americas, Menlo Park
Jake Heller – Next Generation Technology, New York
Craig Lee – Insurance & Strategic Finance, New York
Ted Oberwager – Private Equity Americas, New York
Sandra Ozola – Human Capital, New York
James Rudy – Global Macro & Asset Allocation, Balance Sheet and Risk, New York
Hardik Shah – Infrastructure, Mumbai
Steve Shanley – Next Generation Technology, London
Alberto Signori – Infrastructure, London
Chris Sun – Private Equity Asia Pacific, Beijing
Waldemar Szlezak – Infrastructure, New York
Joel Traut – Real Estate Credit, New York
Nick Zeitlin – Capstone, Menlo Park
The following individuals have been promoted to Managing Director at KKR:
Racim Allouani – Global Macro & Asset Allocation, Balance Sheet and Risk, New York
Ian Anderson – Credit & Markets, London
Jan Baumgart – Real Estate Equity, Frankfurt
Yacine Boumahrat – Client and Partner Group, Paris
Bradley Brown – Private Equity Americas, Menlo Park
Steve Codispoti – Finance, Tax and Accounting, New York
Benjamin Conner – Energy Real Assets, Houston
Aidan Corcoran – Global Macro & Asset Allocation, Balance Sheet and Risk, Dublin
Hunter Craig – Private Equity Americas, Menlo Park
Kate de Mul – Global Markets Operations, New York
Brandon Donnenfeld – Client and Partner Group, New York
Mark Ennis – Credit & Markets, London
Paul Fine – Real Estate Credit, New York
Federica Gironi – Credit & Markets, London
James Gordon – Infrastructure, London
Lauren Hahn – Credit & Markets, New York
Beth Hammond – Client and Partner Group, New York
Greg Hickey – Global Markets Operations, Dublin
Paul Horwood – Finance, Tax and Accounting, London
Hadi Husain – Global Macro & Asset Allocation, Balance Sheet and Risk, New York
David Katz – Public Policy and Affairs, Singapore
Jason Kelley – Real Estate Credit, New York
Brandi Kendall – Energy Real Assets, Houston
Keith Kim – Infrastructure, Seoul
David Kirby – Credit & Markets, New York
Scott Lazarz – Technology, Engineering and Data, New York
Joshua Lederman – Credit & Markets, New York
Jenn Lee – Credit & Markets, San Francisco
Rony Ma – Credit & Markets, New York
James Marsh – Client and Partner Group, London
Kyle Matter – Global Impact, New York
Hilary McNamara – Human Capital, New York
Johnny Mullins – Credit & Markets, Dublin
Ryan Murphy – Credit & Markets, New York
Thomas Murphy – Finance, Tax and Accounting, San Francisco
Matthew Ross – Credit & Markets, New York
Oleg Shamovsky – Infrastructure, London
Mike Shea – Finance, Tax and Accounting, New York
Peter Sundheim – Real Estate Equity, New York
Ananya Tripathi – Capstone, Mumbai
Paul Wasserman – Real Estate Equity, Houston
Michael Whyte – Real Estate Equity, New York
About KKR
KKR is a leading global investment firm that offers alternative asset management and capital markets and insurance solutions. KKR aims to generate attractive investment returns by following a patient and disciplined investment approach, employing world-class people, and supporting growth in its portfolio companies and communities. KKR sponsors investment funds that invest in private equity, credit and real assets and has strategic partners that manage hedge funds. KKR’s insurance subsidiaries offer retirement, life and reinsurance products under the management of The Global Atlantic Financial Group. References to KKR’s investments may include the activities of its sponsored funds and insurance subsidiaries. For additional information about KKR & Co. Inc. (NYSE: KKR), please visit KKR’s website at www.kkr.com and on Twitter @KKR_Co.
General Atlantic, a leading global growth equity firm, announced today that Ajay Banga has joined the firm as Vice Chairman. In this role, Mr. Banga will advise on strategic matters for the firm, its investment teams and its portfolio of more than 165 growth companies around the world.
Mr. Banga is a global leader in technology, data and financial services, with a long track record of developing commercially sustainable social impact and innovating for inclusion. Over the course of his career, he has developed and executed major international growth strategies and has served as an advisor to governments, companies and organizations of all kinds, and has advocated for partnerships and systems that deliver on profit, as well as purpose.
He joins General Atlantic after 12 years at Mastercard, including more than a decade as President and CEO, and most recently as Executive Chairman. During his tenure at Mastercard, he drove its transformation, repositioning it from a payments network solely focused on serving banks to a technology and data services company focused on connecting people, governments and businesses of all kinds to the digital economy. He expanded the business into new markets globally, acquiring and integrating new companies and products, more than tripling its revenue and overseeing an increase of 16X in its market cap.
Bill Ford, Chairman and CEO of General Atlantic, commented, “We could not be more thrilled to have Ajay joining our firm at this very exciting moment for global growth investing. I have long respected Ajay’s global perspective, his focus on the long term and his leadership as a champion for innovation. Our portfolio companies and our entire firm will benefit tremendously from Ajay’s diverse experience and insights.”
Mr. Banga commented, “Today’s entrepreneurs are currently building some of the most exciting solutions and companies in the financial, technology, healthcare and consumer sectors, and embedding in them new approaches to tackling some of the biggest societal and environmental issues of our time. I look forward to helping them scale and deliver impact as a member of the General Atlantic team, itself a true partner to high-growth businesses.”
Mr. Banga will continue to serve as a member of the Advisory Board for BeyondNetZero, General Atlantic’s climate venture that invests in high-growth companies developing innovative climate solutions.
Mr. Banga also currently serves as Chairman of the International Chamber of Commerce. He is also an independent director at Singaporean investment firm Temasek and the Exor holding company, where he serves as Chair of the company’s environmental, social and corporate governance committee. He is the former Chairman of the U.S.-India Business Council, having represented more than 300 of the largest international companies investing in India during his time with the organization. Mr. Banga is a co-founder of The Cyber Readiness Institute, a founding trustee of the U.S.-India Strategic Partnership Forum, a former member of the National Committee on United States-China Relations and Chairman Emeritus of the American India Foundation. He served as a member of President Obama’s Commission on Enhancing National Cybersecurity and the U.S. President’s Advisory Committee for Trade Policy and Negotiations.
Over the past decade, Mr. Banga’s service has been recognized with India’s Padma Shri Award, the Distinguished Friends of Singapore Public Service Star, the Ellis Island Medal of Honor, the Business Council for International Understanding’s Global Leadership Award and the Foreign Policy Association Medal.
Prior to Mastercard, Mr. Banga served as CEO of Citigroup Asia Pacific, where he led in a variety of senior management roles in the United States, Asia Pacific, Europe, Middle East and Africa over the course of his nearly 13-year tenure with the bank. Mr. Banga began his career at Nestlé India.
Mr. Banga will assume his responsibilities with General Atlantic on January 1, 2022.
About General Atlantic
General Atlantic is a leading global growth equity firm with more than four decades of experience providing capital and strategic support for over 445 growth companies throughout its history. Established in 1980 to partner with visionary entrepreneurs and deliver lasting impact, the firm combines a collaborative global approach, sector specific expertise, a long-term investment horizon and a deep understanding of growth drivers to partner with great entrepreneurs and management teams to scale innovative businesses around the world. General Atlantic currently has over $78 billion in assets under management inclusive of all products as of June 30, 2021, and more than 215 investment professionals based in New York, Amsterdam, Beijing, Hong Kong, Jakarta, London, Mexico City, Mumbai, Munich, Palo Alto, São Paulo, Shanghai, Singapore and Stamford.
For more information on General Atlantic, please visit the website: www.generalatlantic.com.
Lucian Schönefelder concurrently appointed KKR Advisor to support Asia next generation technology strategy
HONG KONG–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Global investment firm KKR today announced the appointment of Mukul Chawla as Partner and Head of Growth Equity in Asia Pacific. In the newly created role, he will lead and accelerate KKR’s regional investment strategy into emerging, high-growth companies in sectors such as technology, health care, fintech, consumer, and other growth categories. Mr. Chawla’s appointment is effective as of December 9, 2021, and he will be based in Asia while also spending considerable time in KKR’s global offices, including Menlo Park.
Mr. Chawla joins KKR from Temasek, where he was Managing Director, Joint Head of Global Telecom, Media & Technology, Joint-Head of North America, and a member of their investment and management committees. After joining Temasek in 2010, he helped to build their Telecom, Media & Technology and North America franchises based in New York and San Francisco. Mr. Chawla sponsored 39 technology buyout and growth investments including Airbnb, Xiaomi, Doordash, Roblox, Virtu Financial, Dell Technologies, Ancestry and Waymo, and served on 11 boards including GHX, Creative Artists Agency, WebMD, Internet Brands, Fanatics, Blujay (now E2Open) and Intapp. Earlier in his career, he worked at Warburg Pincus in New York, Cisco Systems in Silicon Valley and the U.S. Federal Communications Commission in Washington DC. Mr. Chawla holds an M.B.A. from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, a master’s degree in Computer Science from the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign, and a bachelor’s degree from the Birla Institute of Technology & Science, Pilani.
Ming Lu, Partner and Head of KKR Asia, said, “We are seeing more homegrown innovation and startups originating in Asia than ever before, and the ideas that these companies and entrepreneurs introduce to our global economy have the potential to transform our daily lives and entire industries. Because of this, Asian growth equity is becoming an increasingly important part of the region’s broader investment landscape. As we continue to pursue these attractive investment opportunities, we are excited to welcome an experienced global growth equity investor of Mukul’s caliber to the KKR team. We want to leverage his leadership experience, proven track record, and deep relationships across the region and globally to provide a truly differentiated approach to emerging Asian businesses and help them to achieve their growth aspirations at this exciting time.”
Concurrent with Mr. Chawla’s appointment, KKR announced that Lucian Schönefelder, Partner and Head of Technology investing at KKR Asia, is transitioning to the role of KKR Advisor. Mr. Schönefelder has been at KKR since 2007, and prior to his move to Asia, he was a Partner in KKR’s London office focused on both growth equity and private equity technology investments across Europe and Israel. As a KKR Advisor, Mr. Schönefelder will support KKR’s Asia Pacific next generation technology investment strategy and will advise KKR’s portfolio companies.
“We are grateful to Lucian for his role in building and advancing KKR’s private equity technology and next generation technology strategies in both Asia and Europe,” said Mr. Lu. “He has been a valued member of our team, and we are pleased that Lucian will remain within the KKR family as a KKR Advisor. His insights on next generation technology trends will continue to be a great resource to our team and as KKR accelerates its growth equity technology strategy across the region.”
About KKR
KKR is a leading global investment firm that offers alternative asset management and capital markets and insurance solutions. KKR aims to generate attractive investment returns by following a patient and disciplined investment approach, employing world-class people, and supporting growth in its portfolio companies and communities. KKR sponsors investment funds that invest in private equity, credit and real assets and has strategic partners that manage hedge funds. KKR’s insurance subsidiaries offer retirement, life and reinsurance products under the management of The Global Atlantic Financial Group. References to KKR’s investments may include the activities of its sponsored funds and insurance subsidiaries. For additional information about KKR & Co. Inc. (NYSE: KKR), please visit KKR’s website at www.kkr.com and on Twitter @KKR_Co.
Zurich, 1 December 2021 –Blue Horizon, a pure-play impact investor accelerating the transition to a new Sustainable Food System, welcomes Manu Gupta, a leader in US and European venture capital, to its Board of Directors.
The appointment of Manu Gupta to the Board of Directors further bolsters the leadership of Blue Horizon with additional strategic counsel from a leader in venture capital investment with a track record identifying early-stage opportunities primed for growth.
Manu joins a Board that has overseen the rapid expansion of Blue Horizon in the last 6 years since founding, on a mission to accelerate the global transition to a new sustainable food system while delivering outstanding returns for investors and the planet.
The news follows significant business developments of the asset manager which recently appointed a General Counsel, a new Partner as well as two Directors to the investment team. The investment team of 9 now consists of 67% women with 28 Blue Horizon employees worldwide. Manu brings a wealth of experience and knowledge to the Board of Directors at an inflection point of new investment opportunities in sustainable food and agriculture innovation, which Blue Horizon aims to capture amid increasing interest from institutional investors and multibillion-dollar funds in a sustainable future of food.
Manu has been investing in tech for more than 12 years across the US, Europe, and Asia. Today he is best known as founder of Blue Lion, a venture capital firm that invests in multi-stage technology companies. Manu is also a founding member and ex-Partner of Lakestar, one of Europe’s largest tech venture funds. His investments and board memberships include Opendoor (IPO), SoFI (IPO), Robinhood (IPO), Maker Studios (M&A), Pipe, Forward Health, Figure Tech, Taulia, Aetion Health, Builder.ai, Even Health, Vested Finance, Casafari, Omio, to name a few.
Manu was previously an Executive Director and Head of European Internet coverage at Goldman Sachs, working across both the London and San Francisco offices. He started his career as a Product Manager at Oracle and software coder at Sun Microsystems. Manu graduated with honors in Electrical Engineering & Computer Science (EECS) from UC Berkeley and has an MBA from the University of Chicago. He has lived in San Francisco, Chicago, New York, Zurich and London.
Bjoern Witte, Managing Partner & CEO of Blue Horizon, said: “We are very excited to announce that Manu has joined the Board of Directors as we continue to grow Blue Horizon’s deep bench of talent, drawing expertise from across disciplines that include venture capital, technology, and scientific research to cement our position as the leader in the transition to a new Sustainable Food System. As a well-renowned venture capitalist, Manu brings an invaluable perspective grounded in more than a decade of personal experience investing in early stage start-ups that have gone on to become global technology leaders which gives us another unique advantage to create value for investors and a sustainable future of food.
”Manu Gupta, Member of the Board of Directors at Blue Horizon, said:“Blue Horizon invests at the forefront of an industry that will change the way all of us think about food. I am delighted to join such a high calibre board and actively help shape the bright future of this young company. Blue Horizon offers the possibility to participate in a market opportunity that offers outstanding returns for investors and the planet and I am very much looking forward to being an active part of this ecosystem.”
To date, Blue Horizon has raised funds of over $850 million and invested in 50+ companies with a focus on protein alternatives and food tech. Some of the firm’s most recent investments include Planted, an alternative protein start-up, Mosa Meat, which is developing tissue engineering technologies to mass produce affordable, cultured meat and dairy formulation and AgBiome, the leader in developing innovative products from the Earth’s microbial communities.
Jesse Väisänen has been appointed investment analyst for Tesi’s Growth and Industrial Investments team as of December 1st, 2021. Jesse is currently working as an investment analyst trainee at Tesi. Jesse holds an M.Sc. in Economics and Business Administration from Aalto University School of Business and he has majored in finance.
Congratulations, Jesse!
Tesi (Finnish Industry Investment Ltd) is a state-owned investment company that wants to raise Finland to the front ranks of transformative economic growth by investing in funds and directly in companies. We invest profitably and responsibly, hand-in-hand with co-investors, to create the world’s new success stories. Our investments under management total 2.1 billion euros. www.tesi.fi | @TesiFII
