Meet Your Investment Team
These are your classmates who wake up every day on your behalf to assemble a great venture portfolio
Gail Gilbert Ball
Managing Partner
During Gail’s long career at global financial services firms, she has served in decision-making posts as a banking executive, regulator, service provider, and board member. Her areas of expertise include financial services, portfolio development, financial analysis, and information tech. Gail served as a C-suite member of The Bancorp Bank, the innovative banking solution provider for the most recognizable names in digital banking. She also filled other executive roles at PNC Bank, Chase and Capital One, and NCO Financial Systems. In addition, she headed the Payments Studies Group at the Richmond Fed. Gail has a BS Economics, Finance and Statistics from Wharton (‘79).
Andy Ervin
VP of Investments
Andy is VP of Investments at Alumni Ventures Group, where he supports investment operations, analytics, and portfolio management. Previously, Andy held several executive roles at a VC-backed start-up in Boston called MiniLuxe, where he led finance and operations during a period of significant growth. Andy was also a consultant at The Parthenon Group, and began his career as an actuary at the Liberty Mutual Group. Andy holds a bachelor’s degree from Penn State University, and an MBA from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth.
Investment Committee
Classmates and fellow investors who help create your venture portfolio
Steven Finn
Steven Finn was cofounder of LocalStove (Acquired Summer 2018 by HUNGRY Marketplace Inc), a marketplace connecting the best local, independent chefs with corporate catering customers. He launched LocalStove during the final semester of his Wharton MBA (WG ’16 – Entrepreneurial Management). He cofounded his first company (RentMine.com) as an undergrad at Wharton (W ’08 – Operations and Information Management). He holds a third Penn degree, a Masters in Engineering (GEng ’10 – Computer and information Technology). Earlier, he was at Bloomberg LP for four years as a full stack software engineer in their Internal Systems/CRM group. He lives in NJ with his wife and three children.Steven Finn was cofounder of LocalStove (Acquired Summer 2018 by HUNGRY Marketplace Inc), a marketplace connecting the best local, independent chefs with corporate catering customers. He launched LocalStove during the final semester of his Wharton MBA (WG ’16 – Entrepreneurial Management). He cofounded his first company (RentMine.com) as an undergrad at Wharton (W ’08 – Operations and Information Management). He holds a third Penn degree, a Masters in Engineering (GEng ’10 – Computer and information Technology). Earlier, he was at Bloomberg LP for four years as a full stack software engineer in their Internal Systems/CRM group. He lives in NJ with his wife and three children.
William Velez
William is the CIO of Intermex Wire Transfer (NASDAQ: IMXI), where he architected and implemented Intermex’s online processing and anti-fraud capabilities. Prior to Intermex, he served as CIO of Abarca Health, held leadership roles at PwC and Accenture, a Fortune Global 500 management consulting and professional services firm, where he directed technology and strategic initiatives for diverse organizations in financial services, consumer goods, higher education and healthcare. William currently serves as a director for a STEM-focused non-for-profit organization, and holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Puerto Rico, a Master’s Degree in International Studies from the University of Pennsylvania and an MBA from the Wharton School.
Yuval Bar-Or
Yuval is a leading expert in decision-making in the context of risk and the founder of the Pillars of Wealth financial literacy initiative for medical professionals. He is a faculty member at Johns Hopkins University’s Carey Business School, where he primarily teaches investments, corporate finance, wealth management, and risk and leadership courses. In 2015 he was awarded the school’s Excellence in Teaching Award and he’s received a Dean’s Award for Faculty Excellence each year from 2015 to 2018. Yuval is also the founder and president of the Light Brigade, LLC (a management consulting company) and the author of seven books, including the Pillars of Wealth book series for doctors and Leveraging People for a Corporate Turnaround (also available in Chinese). Prior to launching The Light Brigade, Yuval held senior strategy and operations roles with some of the world's leading risk management firms, notably KMV and Algorithmics. His roles have included managerial responsibilities in New York, San Francisco, Toronto, London, Singapore, and Sydney. His risk management expertise has assisted global financial institutions in management of over a trillion dollars in assets. Yuval has lectured extensively in academic, government, and corporate settings on the subjects of risk management and financial literacy. He’s been a contributor on Forbes.com and has been quoted in various media, including The Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg BusinessWeek, Reuters, USA Today, The Baltimore Sun, TheStreet.com, WTOP radio, American Public Media, FoxBusiness.com, Bankrate.com, Washingtonian, Investopedia.com, AdvisorOne.com, InvestmentNews.com, The Arizona Republic, Consumers Digest, US News & World Report, Treasury; Risk, Morningstar.com, RIABiz.com, WalletHub.com, Sweet Fish Media, Progressive Dentist Magazine, the Journal of Medical Practice Management, Cureus, and The Journal of Risk Management in Financial Institutions. Yuval holds Ph.D. and M.A. degrees in finance from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, as well as an engineering degree (B.Eng.) and two economics degrees (B.A. summa cum laude, M.A.) from Canada’s McMaster University. As a college student he was a member of the varsity wrestling and rugby teams, and prior to that a provincially ranked gymnast.
Bruce Cahan
Bruce has advised Fortune 1000 corporations and federal technology investors; negotiated billions in finance, merger, and reorganization transactions; innovated investment strategies for sharing smarter open data; and is redesigning banking, its impacts, and safety. He co-founded Urban Logic, a nonprofit that harnesses finance and technology to improve sustainability decisions in real time, and is a frequent mentor for startups in Silicon Valley. Bruce graduated from Wharton and Temple Law School.
Colleen Taylor
Colleen joined Mastercard in March 2017 as Executive VP New Payments, driving non-consumer payment volume growth from B2B, government, and new economy sources. She joined Mastercard from Capital One, where she most recently served as head of Treasury Management and Enterprise Payments. Colleen has had a successful career in finance with various positions at Wachovia Bank/Wells Fargo and JPMorgan Chase, where she managed their ACH business. She graduated from Spelman College and received her MBA from Wharton.
Carol Curley
Carol has held senior investment banking positions with Berkshire Capital Corporation, Prudential-Bache Capital Funding, and Smith Barney, Harris Upham & Co. She is the Chief Investment Officer of The Charian Group, an early stage investment vehicle. Previously, Carol was Executive Vice President, Chief Operating Officer, and a member of the Board of Westwood Management Corporation, a registered investment advisor. Carol holds a BA in Economics from Wellesley College, an MBA in Finance from Wharton, and is a Chartered Financial Analyst.
Alberto Moriondo
Alberto has over 25 years of strategy, product marketing, and business development experience. He is Founder and President of Alameda Holdings, advising clients on innovation and investing in startups in mobile, cloud, and digital technologies. Alberto is also a Mentor at 1871, the premier Chicago innovation hub. Previously, he served as a senior manager at Tribal Brands, a digital and entertainment marketing agency. Earlier, he co-founded Tribal Technologies, a mobile marketing and analytics platform, and led development of global content and applications at Motorola. He holds a BS in Economics from Universidad Católica Argentina and an MBA from Wharton.
Rebecca Singer
Rebecca is the Managing Member of the Singer Group, a family-owned private equity and venture capital fund that provides advisory services and funding to early and growth-stage startups in the biotech, digital media and hospitality industry. She has also served as an advisor and board member for several public and private digital media companies. Rebecca was publicly elected three times to serve as a member and, later, as the President, of her local Board of Education. Rebecca is currently a program coordinator for the AmeriCorps VISTA program for the Habitat for Humanity of Bergen County and is part of the Climate Reality Leadership Corps. Rebecca holds a BA from the University of Pennsylvania, and an MS in genetics and a PhD in molecular biology, each from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine.
Eric Wiklendt
Eric is a Director of Speyside Equity, a PE firm, where he oversees sourcing, analysis, financial modeling, transaction structuring, and operational optimization. Previously, he was President & CEO of Kelix Heat Transfer Systems, a manufacturer focused on the geothermal HVAC space. Eric also held progressive roles at Eaton Corporation and Hilti Corporation, where he completed mergers and acquisitions, opened an automotive plant in Mexico, ran the marketing department, and led the salesforce. He has degrees from the University of Notre Dame and Wharton.
Meg Charles-Horn
Meg is a seed investor and growth strategist focused on mobile and disruptive products and services. Leveraging her business acumen, empirical global management, and legal knowledge, she provides guidance and funding to early and growth stage startups. Meg has held key leadership roles as an equity partner in the global law firm Swidler, Berlin (now part of Morgan Lewis Bockius); Head of Strategy of a venture-backed global telecom startup; Deputy General Counsel of Orange Business Services; and as a member of the Executive Leadership Team and General Counsel of the GSM Association. She has a BA in Internal Relations from Penn and a JD from Georgetown.
Mike Dishowitz
Mike manages a portfolio of PCI Ventures startups, focusing on medical device, biotech, and therapeutic sectors. He helps build and fund businesses that commercialize Penn intellectual property. He is also director of Penn’s medical device startup accelerator, DevelUPmed, and manages several capital acquisition and business development programs. Previously, he was a member of boutique consulting agency PriceSpective, determining valuation and potential of emerging life science technologies. Mike graduated with a BS in Mathematics from the University of Florida and a PhD in Bioengineering from the University of Pennsylvania.
Frances Chen
Frances is the founder of Birds Nest Advisors, which mainly advises US companies in the broader consumer, edtech, and healthcare sectors on China strategy and strategic partnership. Previously she led the New York team of a private equity fund ($1B) for Fosun Group, a Chinese conglomerate that has actively invested on a global basis. Before that, she worked in investment banking for over 12 years at JPMorgan, Morgan Stanley, and Goldman Sachs in various offices (New York, Hong Kong, and Beijing), advising Chinese and multinational corporations on cross-border M&A and capital market transactions. She holds a BS in Finance from University of Bridgeport and an MBA in Finance from Wharton, and is a Chartered Financial Analyst.
Jeffrey Liebenthal
Jeff is the President and CEO of Trilogy Leasing, a top independent lessor focused on technology and capital assets. He has spent over 35 years as a serial entrepreneur, selling two financial services companies, managing a family hedge fund, and owning and managing real estate holdings. He has also invested in early stage companies. Previously, he was Co-founder and Executive VP of Sales for Princeton Credit. He holds a BS in Computer Science from Hofstra, and an MSE from the Moore School with a specialization in business at Wharton.
Robert Blumenthal
From 2011-2014, Robert was VP of Lending at Franchise America Finance. In 2015, he formed Blu Flame Capital, a venture lending fund offering growth stage capital. In 2016, Robert formed Blu Flame Real Estate. This real estate investment fund focuses on the development and acquisition of single and multifamily student housing in and around the Philadelphia market. Robert Blumenthal holds a BS in Economics from Northeastern University.
Cleo Sham
Cleo is Head of Regional Operations for Uber in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. Previously, she was Director of Operations at Uber China. Before Uber, Cleo was a proprietary trader at Bank of America Merrill Lynch and a Business Analyst at McKinsey & Company. She has been involved with startups as a founder, co-founder, and advisor within the Internet, clean tech, and food & beverages sectors. Cleo holds a BA from Rice University and an MBA from Wharton.
Justin Shreve
Justin Shreve has been a software developer and entrepreneur for over 20 years. He has worked extensively in the fields of commercial real estate, online payment solutions, and sports technology. He has been involved with 13 startups helping them launch ideas, drive user engagement, and build innovative products. He is the Founder of Rentmatic rent payment software (acq. by LiveLovely) and enterprise media planning platform Adgile Interactive (acq. by Doubleclic). Justin holds a BA from the University of Pennsylvania.
Venture Fellows
Select group of young Penn alums participating in our Venture Fellow Program
Nancy Wang
Venture Fellow
Nancy is an experienced enterprise software product manager and VC, currently leading core product lines and a stealth product line (to be launched 2019) at Rubrik. She continues to engage herself in the tech VC landscape in her role leading product and engineering for Buttonwood, a software-focused platform for elite startups raising capital. Nancy was also formerly a PM at Google, where she led the development of products for the Google Fiber network infrastructure team. She is a passionate advocate for diversity and is an avid supporter of women empowerment in STEM through founding Advancing Women in Product, a 501(c)(3) non-profit dedicated to providing equal opportunities in tech for men and women. Nancy graduated from the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Engineering & Applied Sciences.
Krystle Karoscik
Venture Fellow
University of Pennsylvania
Krystle is a serial entrepreneur with an extensive background in biotech consulting. As an ambassador for the Center for Advancing Innovation, Krystle has co-founded several startup companies that are commercializing therapeutic technologies focused on nanoparticle drug delivery systems and neurodegenerative disease. Krystle earned a Master’s Degree in neuroscience and bioethics from the University of Pennsylvania, and is completing an Executive Doctorate focused on translating innovative research into emerging biotech companies.
Aneesha Raghunathan
Venture Fellow
The Wharton School
Aneesha is passionate about entrepreneurship and investing and is a current Private Equity Associate at TA Associates in Boston. Prior to TA, Aneesha spent two years in venture capital investing at Bessemer Venture Partners in New York City. Aneesha holds a Bachelors Degree in Finance from The Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania.
Ifeanyi Obukwelu
Venture Fellow
The Wharton School
Ifeanyi is an MBA candidate at The Wharton School (WG’19). Prior to Wharton, he covered the financial services industry as an investment banker at Barclays and The Blackstone Group, and then as a private equity investor at Partners Group. He earned a Bachelor’s Degree from Harvard University, where he was a member of two Ivy League championship football teams. Ifeanyi is passionate about investing to support entrepreneurship and innovation through the venture ecosystem.
Manan Agarwal
Venture Fellow
The Wharton School
Manan (WG’19) is an MBA candidate at The Wharton School. He is an experienced entrepreneur with a background in consulting and tech. Prior to Wharton, Manan co-founded a food-tech startup in India, heralding a new innovative food product category in the region. At Parthenon, Manan analyzed markets and identified opportunities across 15+ countries. Manan received his Bachelor’s in Computer Science and engineering from IIT Delhi.
Daniel Fetner
Venture Fellow Emeritus
The Wharton School
Daniel joined the Fellow Program after spending the summer at Third Kind Venture Capital, an early stage Venture Capital firm in NYC. Daniel has since transitioned to focus full time on his own startup enterprise in fintech, Instrument Capital.
John Braze
Venture Fellow Emeritus
The Wharton School
John (WG ’16) joined the Fellow Program with extensive experience in the strategic growth and new market entry of innovative medical technology, working with multiple early-stage companies in the U.S. and Europe. John transitioned to work full time founding the Bay Area chapter of the Wharton Alumni Angels.
Christian Rolon
Venture Fellow Emeritus
The Wharton School and the Penn School of Engineering and Applied Science
Christian brings extensive investing experience, having worked both as a portfolio manager on the US Rates team at JPM Fixed Income and a research associate at Coatue Management covering technology stocks. Most recently, Christian worked at Instrument Capital, a FinTech startup working to democratize customized portfolio allocation solutions for retail clients. Christian earned his AB in Economics from Princeton University and is currently pursuing joint MBA/MCIT degrees from The Wharton School and the Penn School of Engineering and Applied Science. Christian is a CFA charterholder.
Emily Sun
Venture Fellow Emeritus
Emily is Venture Engagement Manager for Enverest, an investment/M&A advisory firm focusing on the US, China, and APAC. She has extensive global experience in the semiconductor sector with AMD, Spansion, and Cypress, specializing in corporate finance and operations, business process improvement, M&A integration, and systems implementation. She holds an MBA in Finance and Entrepreneurship from Wharton and is a CFA Level II Candidate.
Peter MacEwan
Venture Fellow Emeritus
The Wharton School
Peter is a social impact leader and entrepreneur. With deep experience in education and non-profit program management, he serves as Associate Director for the Making Waves Foundation. His work focuses both on executing long-term strategic growth and implementing day-to-day operational efficiencies. Peter holds a BA from Wesleyan University and an MBA from Wharton, completing majors in both finance and management.
Antina Lee
Venture Fellow Emeritus
Antina is currently a business development professional at Procter and Gamble. She loves being involved with startups and is passionate about bringing innovations to market. Antina is pursuing MBA/MPA joint degrees at Wharton School and the Harvard Kennedy School.
Alumni Ventures Group Support Staff
The team behind the Chestnut Street Investment team - freeing them to build you a great venture portfolio
Chris Sacharuk
Investor Relations Manager
Prior to joining AVG, Chris was a Customer Advocate at Graphic Packaging and in Sales & Marketing at Putnam Investments, where he created materials for reps and investors. He’s a graduate of the University of Massachusetts Lowell, Manning School of Business, where he studied Entrepreneurship and Entrepreneurial Studies.
Anne Miller
Investor Relations Manager
Previously, Anne was an Applied Behavioral Analysis Counselor for Melmark and a medical biller for Physicians Resources. She is also a certified Certifiied Personal Trainer and Group Fitness Instructor, with her own clientele. Anne has a Bachelor’s in Psychology from the University of New Hampshire.
Hilary Ncala
Director of Investor Relations
Prior to joining AVG, Hilary was a Staffing Executive and Program Manager at Robert Half. Previous positions include Retirement Planning & Guidance Consultant for Fidelity and an Investor Assistant for an independent investor. She has a Bachelor of Science, Business Management & Marketing from Fisher College.
Jamie Eitel
Community Relations Manager
Jamie was the Clinical Secretary Sr for Pediatric Gastroenterology at Dartmouth-Hitchcock. Earlier, he served as a Claims Processor Associate and then a Senior Associate at Cigna Health. He has also served in multiple church youth ministries for over 15 years throughout Ontario, Canada, in many different cultural contexts. He was part of the adjunct faculty in the youth ministry department at Tyndale University College. He has a BA in Psychology from York University, a Masters of Divinity from Tyndale Seminary, and a Doctor of Ministry degree from Fuller Theological Seminary.