VantagePoint Venture Partners Expands Investment Team
SAN BRUNO, Calif.--(Business Wire)--VantagePoint Venture Partners, one of the nation's leading venture capital firms, today announced the expansion of its investment team with the appointments of venture capital industry veterans Tom Bevilacqua and Bill Harding as Managing Directors and Co-Heads of the Information Technology Practice Group, Craig Cooper as Venture Partner in the Information Technology Practice Group, and Dave Thompson as Venture Partner in the Healthcare Practice Group. These additions expand the breadth and depth of the Firm's multi-disciplinary expertise and sector focus. "Tom, Bill, Craig, and Dave bring extensive venture capital, entrepreneurial and operations expertise to assist portfolio companies through the critical stages of development from idea to IPO and beyond. VantagePoint invests in companies that have can have a significant impact - or transform - their industries on a global scale, and we have assembled a team that knows how to accelerate and manage large scale growth," said Alan Salzman, Managing Partner, VantagePoint Venture Partners. VantagePoint's investment team is currently comprised of 40 investment professionals, including 26 Managing Directors and Venture Partners, and is complemented by world class advisory councils and strategic relationships with global corporations. The Firm invests in entrepreneurial companies at all stages in the CleanTech, Healthcare and Information Technology sectors and is currently working with such game changing companies as Anthera Pharmaceuticals, BrightSource Energy, Gain Capital, ReachLocal, Tesla Motors and WageWorks. Tom Bevilacqua, Managing Director and Co-Head Information Technology Practice Group Mr. Bevilacqua has more than 25 years of Silicon Valley experience as an executive, venture investor and advisor to technology driven companies. He co-founded ArrowPath Venture Partners, a successful early stage venture capital fund, and has served as a Managing Partner of that firm for the past seven years. Prior to ArrowPath, he served as an Executive Vice President of E*TRADE Financial, where he established E*TRADE's acquisition and investment strategies. He was previously a Partner at two of Silicon Valley's leading law firms and has served as an advisor to more than 200 public or private financings. He is a graduate of the University of California, Berkeley (BS) and University of California, Hastings (JD). Bill Harding, Managing Director and Co-Head Information Technology Practice Group Dr. Harding has more than 20 years of experience in venture capital. He joined VantagePoint from Morgan Stanley Venture Partners where he was a Managing Member and led key investments such as InterNAP Network Services. Prior to joining Morgan Stanley, Dr. Harding was a General Partner of several venture capital partnerships affiliated with J. H. Whitney & Co. Previously he was with Amdahl Corporation serving in various technical and business development roles and also held several technical positions with Honeywell Information Systems. He is a graduate of University of Arizona (BS and MS) and Arizona State University (PhD). He also served as an officer in the Military Intelligence Branch of the United States Army Reserve. Craig Cooper, Venture Partner Mr. Cooper was formerly a Partner at Softbank Capital where he led the West Coast Digital Media and Wireless Investment Group. Prior to joining SoftBank Capital he was the co-founder of Boost Mobile USA, which was sold to Nextel Communications. He also co-founded the independent energy companies NRG Asia-Pacific and Private Energy Partners, which developed and owned over $5 billion (AUD) in energy projects in the Asia Pacific region. As part of the Information Technology Practice Group, Mr. Cooper will be focusing on digital media, wireless and consumer Internet investments as well as supporting a broad range of VantagePoint's portfolio companies. He holds a Bachelor of Economics and a Bachelor of Laws (Honors) from the University of Sydney. David Thompson, Venture Partner Mr. Thompson joins VantagePoint following a successful 30-year career with Eli Lilly and its affiliates: He most recently led the corporate strategy, business development, corporate ventures, finance and investment banking, and alliance management organizations within the company prior to his retirement. Mr. Thompson joined Eli Lilly in 1971, and throughout the 1970s, held numerous positions in sales, marketing research, sales management, and new product planning and licensing. He was named President and General Manager of Eli Lilly Canada, a Lilly affiliate, in November 1985 and president/CEO of IVAC Corporation, a medical device subsidiary. He served as vice president of pharmaceutical product management and business development from 1988-1992. Mr. Thompson is a graduate of Michigan State University (BS, MBA). About VantagePoint Venture Partners VantagePoint Venture Partners provides creative growth strategies and capital to companies transforming global markets. With more than $4.0 billion of capital under management, the Firm invests in entrepreneurial companies at all stages of development in the CleanTech, Healthcare, and Information Technology sectors. VantagePoint partners with talented entrepreneurs who are seeking to build companies that are world-scale in both size and substance. The Firm has created a network of thought leaders and strategic partners with some of the world's leading corporations to provide portfolio companies with a unique advantage to accelerate growth. VantagePoint Venture Partners: Creative Capital for Transformative Companies. For more information, visit www.vpvp.com. VantagePoint Venture Partners Tracy Barba, 650-624-1596 tbarba@vpvp.com Copyright Business Wire 2007
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