DISCUSSSION: Joe Guzel, Senior Associate Crosslink Capital; Ken Elefant Sorenson Capital Partners; Ben Narasin Partner Canvas Ventures; Chris Downer Associate XL Innovate; MODERATOR: Pierre-R. Wolff Managing Director ExecConnect
Venture Capital
Alex Lazarow, Principal Omidyar Network #creditinnovation
Alex Lazarow Principal Omidyar Network, where he sources, executes, and manages for-profit investments and non-profit grants globally on behalf of the firm’s Financial Inclusion initiative. Prior to joining Omidyar Network, Alex was a management consultant with McKinsey & Co.’s Brussels and Washington D.C. offices, focusing on the intersection of finance, economic development, and strategy. He is a Kauffman Fellow, earned an MBA from Harvard Business School, and is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) charterholder. Alex has a bachelor of commerce in international business and finance from the University of Manitoba.
Don Butler, Managing Director Thomvest #creditinnovation
Don Butler, Managing Director Thomvest. Don works with entrepreneurs in the financial technology, advertising technology, and enterprise software-as-a-service markets. Don currently serves on the Board of Directors for companies in each of these focus areas including Apsalar, DataXu, and Vungle (in the adtech space), Kabbage (in the fintech space), and Axcient and NetBase (in the enterprise SaaS space). Together with the team at Thomvest, prior investments include Lending Club (NYSE: LC), FlashSoft (acquired by SanDisk), GuardianEdge (acquired by Symantec), and Okena (acquired by Cisco). Prior to Thomvest, Don led the Asian business development efforts for several startup companies in the multidimensional data analysis and networking industries as part of his work with Asia Pacific Ventures. He also spent three years as an Analyst with Lehman Brothers, where he worked with clients in the software and semiconductor industries. Don received a B.A. in Chinese from UCLA and M.A.s in both East Asian Studies and Political Science from Stanford University.
Alex Davidov, Investor Core Innovation Capital #futurepayments
Alex Davidov is an investor with Core Innovation Capital, a fintech-focused venture capital fund. His career spans financial services and technology, as an investor and an operator. Alex co-founded two companies, Intellitoys (an interactive children’s toy) and SkillSlate (a labor marketplace that was acquired by TaskRabbit). He spent six years in financial services, working to scale a wealth manager and informing trading strategies for Bridgewater Associates. Alex earned a computer science degree and an MBA from Columbia University.
