12th Annual Funding, Exits & IPO's 2023 - #FEIbabcsf
Please join us for the 12th Annual Funding, Exits and IPO's event on Wednesday, March 1st, 2023. Following a record-breaking tech IPO year in 2021 the tables turned in 2022 with fewer than 80 tech IPOs, deal proceeds plummeting 94% from $156 billion to less than $9 billion and the Nasdaq having its worst year since 2008. Soaring energy prices, higher labor costs, pent-up consumer demand and global supply chain bottleneck coupled with rising interest rates intended to reduce inflation don't appear to indicate a return to market growth and a return to the previous rate of tech company IPOs anytime soon. One leader of a Bay Area-based venture firm recently commented that they have "kind-of written off for next year," adding that "2023 is about being heads down and trying to gain market share and look at 2024 for exits." Other investors hope that by next fall, or the fourth quarter of 2023, they may see tech IPOs start flowing again. As we look ahead to 2023, who might take up the challenge and go public? Some of the potential IPOs to watch in 2023 include SpaceX, Stripe, Databricks and Airtable. Others who had been primed to go public recently but pulled back might include Instacart or Klarna. We will also discuss the venture climate and predictions for the year on how British founders will respond to evolving market conditions and provide observations of the cross-Atlantic fundraising environment with a particular focus on the UK government's approach to encourage greater venture capital investment to scale innovation and entrepreneurship. Join us for an evening of lively, engaging and fun discussions and hear more about how things might work out for the technology community in 2023 and get a chance to ask questions our panel of Venture Capitalists. BUSINESS CARD DRAWING: Our thanks to Air Canada for donating two round-trip tickets from SFO to anywhere that Canada flies in North America and to Fairmont Pacific Rim Hotel for a 2-night stay in a deluxe suite with daily breakfast included.   |
| PANELISTS: | More Panelists to be added |
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RICHARD WATERS West Coast Editor, The Financial Times Richard Waters is the West Coast Editor for the Financial Times. His beat covers the technology industry. Before moving to the West Coast, Mr Waters was based in the FT's New York office for nine years. His roles there included Wall Street reporter, New York bureau chief, and the FT's first information industries editor, overseeing global coverage of technology, telecommunications and media. He previously worked at the FT in London where he held a number of positions, including editor of international capital markets, securities industry correspondent and accountancy and taxation correspondent. Before working for the FT, Mr. Waters worked as a reporter and editor for several financial magazines. He also worked for two years at Lloyd's Bank International and lived in Chile, also working as a teacher. In 2004, he was awarded Corporate Finance Reporter of the Year for his coverage of Google's IPO. He was shortlisted for the Business & Finance Reporter of the Year award at the British Press Awards in 2003 and won the award in 1992 as part of a team covering the BCCI scandal. In 1988, he was named Accountancy Journalist of the Year. He appears regularly on the BBC, CNBC, MSNBC, CNNfn and NPR. Mr. Waters received his Bachelor's degree from St. Edmund Hall, Oxford University |
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BILL REICHERT Partner, Pegasus Tech Ventures Bill Reichert is a Partner at Pegasus Tech Ventures, managing investments in the US from the Silicon Valley headquarters. He has helped manage Pegasus investments in AI, robotics, quantum computing, neuromorphics, space, and other sectors. He is also the Chief Evangelist for Startup World Cup, a platform that connects and supports startup ecosystems all over the world. Bill started his investment career as the co-founder and Managing Director of Garage Technology Ventures, and has served on the boards of many startups. He also has several years of experience as a serial entrepreneur and operating executive. Prior to Garage, Bill was a co-founder or senior executive in several venture-backed technology companies, including Trademark Software, The Learning Company, and Academic Systems. Earlier in his career, Bill worked at McKinsey & Company, Brown Brothers Harriman & Co., and the World Bank. He has authored many articles and delivered many speeches on entrepreneurship, venture capital, innovation, and other topics. Bill holds a B.A. degree from Harvard College and an M.B.A. from Stanford University. He has been a member of the faculty at the University of California, Berkeley, where he taught Venture Finance. He is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations in New York, and is a former Chairman of the Churchill Club in Silicon Valley. He is a Beachheads Advisor for New Zealand Trade & Enterprise, and is also an Advisor to the Women's Startup Lab, Nordic Innovation House, and the Korea Innovation Center. |
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JEN HOLMSTROM Head of Platform, GGV Capital Jen Holmstrom joined GGV in 2016 and leads the firm's talent and recruiting efforts. To support founders as their companies scale, she created Founders + Leaders, a leadership development platform that provides training, mentorship, global network, and more. Prior to joining GGV, Jen was a Talent Partner at Highland Capital Partners and a leader on the executive search team at Facebook. Jen's career has been focused on team building in fast-growing companies. Before Facebook, Jen was a Director at San Francisco-based Riviera Partners, an executive search firm focused on recruiting engineering and product leadership for fast-growing venture-backed technology companies, and she also worked with SPMB, a technology-focused talent search firm. Jen received an MBA from UC Berkeley Haas School of Business and a B.S. from Boston College. |
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RONAN KENNEDY Vice President of Capital Formation, B Capital Group Ronan Kennedy serves as B Capital Group?s Vice President of Capital Formation, partnering with portfolio company leadership on their financing and transactional needs while helping to develop financial rigor. Ronan joined B Capital from Microsoft's venture fund, M12, where he built a team focused on partnering with growth equity and buyout investors. He previously served as a Vice President at Goldman Sachs and as an Associate at JPMorgan Chase. After undergrad, Ronan spent five years in the United States Army, where he led soldiers on the front lines of Iraq. |
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HILARY SHANNON
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Date and Time
Wednesday Mar 1, 2023
5:30 PM - 8:30 PM PST
Networking - 5.30 - 6.30pm
Panel Session - 6.30 - 7.30
Q & A - 7.30 - 7.45
Post Event Networking - 7.45 - 8.30pm
Location
3175 Hanover Street
Palo Alto, CA 94304
THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS:
Presenting Sponsor:
Platinum Sponsors
Wine Sponsor
Fees/Admission
$65- BABC Members
$85 - Non-Members
$45 - Young Professionals Members
Hors D'oeuvres and wine included.
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Contact Information
BABC Events Team - (415) 296 8645
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149 New Montgomery Street, San Francisco, CA 94105 – (415) 296-8645 – chastings@babcsf.org