ETF Venture Funds

Infobox_Company
company_name = ETF Venture Funds
company_
company_type = Private company
foundation = 1999
location = West Conshohocken, PA, USA
key_people = Wayne Kimmel- Managing Partner Ian J. Berg- Managing Partner
Tony Bifano- Operating Partner
Howard Smith- Director of Business Development
Scott D. Bohrer, Esq.- Principal Bob Wright- Principal
"Advisory Board:"
Ira Brind- Chairman Advisory Board
Dr. Marty Lautman- Advisory Board
Hal Rosenbluth Advisory Board
Brian Tierney- Advisory Board
industry = Venture Capital
homepage= http://www.etfventurefunds.com/

ETF Venture Funds is one of the top performing venture capital funds in the United States in its class. ETF Venture Funds invests primarily in early stage, high growth technology-enabled companies in the financial services, healthcare services, business services, Internet and Media industries. ETF targets experienced management teams using technology to make a traditional business process better or easier. Target portfolio companies will typically have some revenue and the potential to be a market leader. [http://www.etfventurefunds.com/ Home - ETF Venture Funds ] ] ETF focuses on companies located in the Eastern corridor that have an outstanding management team led by energetic entrepreneurs and have leadership potential in a large and / or rapidly growing market sector. [http://www.fundingpost.com/venturefund/venture-fund-profile.asp?fund=30 ETF Venture Funds, Venture Capital Fund: Wayne Kimmel, Managing Director ] ]

Investment Focus:Early stage technology companies

Sector Focus:Internet, Healthcare services, Media, Business services, and Financial services

Select ETF investments include:

-NutriSystem (Nasdaq: NTRI), 2005's #1 performing stock in the U.S. [ [http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2005/12/30/the-best-of-2005.aspx The Best of 2005 ] ]

-SeamlessWeb Professional Solutions, the #1 ranked Internet-based services company in the 2005 Deloitte Technology Fast 500 and in 2006 was acquired by ARAMARK (NYSE: RMK) [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SeamlessWeb]

-Take Care Health Systems, in 2006 raised $77 million, the largest ever healthcare funding for the emerging retail healthcare sector. [ [http://www.ereleases.com/pr/20060315014.html Viant Group Advises Take Care Health Systems on $77 Million Private Equity Financing ] ]

-RippleTech won best of show at C3 Expo for Best Enterprise Software. [ [http://www.rippletech.com/products/LogCasterBestOfShow.htm RippleTech LogCaster 5.5 Wins Best of Show at C3 ] ]

-Philadelphia Media Holdings acquired The Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia Daily News and Philly.com. [ [http://www.advfn.com/news_Philadelphia-Media-Holdings-Completes-Purchase-of-Philadelphia-Inquirer-Philade_15962338.html Philadelphia Media Holdings Completes Purchase of Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia Daily News, Philly.com and Related Media ] ]

-OneOncology has secured over $1.5 billion in annual drug purchasing commitments. [ [http://www.pr-inside.com/oneoncology-announces-senior-staff-promotion-r448394.htm OneOncology Announces Senior Staff Promotion ] ]

-Patria captures value through multiple revenue streams and high margin deal structures. [ [http://www.mypatria.com/ Patria - right offer. right customer. right time.> ] ]

"The Team"

Wayne D. Kimmel - Wayne is a Managing Partner at ETF Venture Funds. He is also on the Board of Directors and the Investment Committee of NewSpring Ventures, L.P., a $90 million SBIC venture fund. In addition, Kimmel is the Chairman of the Board of the Philadelphia Capital Opportunity Fund (PCOF). The Philadelphia Business Journal recognized Kimmel as one of the Philadelphia region’s emerging leaders. In addition, Kimmel was selected as one of the Philadelphia region’s “40 Under 40” young business leaders, and PhillyTech Magazine selected him as one of the “30 people under 30” to watch in the high-tech industry in the year 2000. Kimi serves on several Boards of the ETF's portfolio companies, and he frequently lectures on technology, management, and venture capital at various universities, corporations and seminars. In 2003, Kimmel received the "Distinguished Alumni Award" from The Tatnall School in Wilmington, DE. He received his undergraduate degree from the University of Maryland at College Park, and received his law degree from the Widener University School of Law.

Ian J. Berg - Ian is a Managing Partner at ETF Venture Funds. He has served on the Board of Directors of several of ETF portfolio companies, including SeamlessWeb. Currently, he is on the Board of Directors & Audit Committee of NutriSystem (NASDAQ: NTRI) and on the Investment Committee Merion Investment Partners. Berg also serves on the Board of Directors of Healthcare Finance Group, Inc. and is an Adjunct Professor of Venture Financing at Drexel University Lebow College of Business. Berg has a Bachelor of Science degree in industrial engineering and a master's degree in business administration from Drexel University. Berg was the founder, President and CEO of Copelco Financial Services Group which under his leadership amassed over $5 billion in assets, grew to 1,600 employees, and generated over $500 million in revenues in the US, Canada and Europe. [http://www.forbes.com/finance/mktguideapps/personinfo/FromPersonIdPersonTearsheet.jhtml?passedPersonId=909372=Forbes]

Tony Bifano - Tony is the Partner at ETF Venture Funds. Tony Bifano has worked closely with ETF Venture Funds since the inception of the fund and has spent over 10 years operating venture capital backed early stage companies. Prior to joining ETF, he was with Health Market Science, a leading healthcare data services company recognized by the INC 500, as one of the fastest growing privately held companies in the United States. In 1998, Bifano founded an online personal information manager publishing platform similar to today’s blogging and RSS platforms. That company was acquired by Aroundcampus, Inc., the largest collegiate telephone directory publisher, which was subsequently acquired by White Directory, a division of the Hearst Corporation. Bifano was honored by Philly Tech Magazine as a "30 under 30" hottest technology executives in the region and has been featured in Philadelphia Magazine. He also has advised several early stage companies in the Mid-Atlantic region and over the last seven plus years has served on the board of software and media companies, including AroundCampus, Specialty Diets and Boomi. Bifano spent the early part of his career as a manufacturing engineer with Procter & Gamble and as a programmer with Anderson Consulting technology practice. Bifano earned a degree in Industrial Engineering from Penn State University. [ [http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0EIN/is_2000_June_1/ai_62415323 aroundcampus.com Merges With egenda.net to Provide Campus-Centric Community Platforms for Higher Education Institutions | Business Wire | Find Articles at BNET ] ]

Howard Smith - Howard is the Director of Business Development at ETF Venture Funds. He is responsible for generating and evaluating new investment opportunities and he supports the fund’s investment portfolio companies. Prior to joining ETF, Howard was a Senior Associate at PricewaterhouseCoopers and IBM’s (NYSE: IBM) Business Consulting Services. Howard consulted for many Fortune 500 companies and Universities such as: AT&T (NYSE: T), Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ), HJ Heinz (NYSE: HNJ), Rohm & Hass (NYSE: ROH) and the University of Pennsylvania Health Systems. In addition to consulting for PWC and IBM, Howard also served as the Global Knowledge Manager of the Financial Management Solution Division where he was responsible for the tacit and explicit knowledge of the firm. Howard earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Arts & Sciences, from Syracuse University, and an MBA from Nova-Southeastern University.

Scott Bohrer - Scott is the Principal at ETF Venture Funds. He plays an active role in screening and managing investment opportunities submitted to ETF Venture Funds and working closely with ETF’s portfolio companies. Prior to joining ETF Venture Funds, Scott worked at TMG Health, recognized by the INC 500 as one of the fastest growing privately held companies in the United States. He served as Special Assistant to the President & CEO and helped the company’s revenue grow by over 250% in a two year period. Prior to working at TMG Health, Scott worked for over 6 years in the sports/entertainment marketing industry, most recently with Comcast-Spectacor. He brings extensive branding, strategic planning and event management experience. Scott earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree from Penn State University and a Juris Doctorate and an MBA from Temple University.

Bob Wright - Bob is the Principal at ETF Venture Funds. Prior to joining ETF, Wright consulted for Rivel Research Group, providing investor perception research for a multitude of companies including: Bank of America, Capital One Financial, Cardinal Health, CB Richard Ellis, CIT Group, Exelon, Genentech, Genzyme, Home Depot, Intel, Limited Brands, Northrop Grumman, 3M, McDonalds, Reynolds American, Prologis] and United Technologies. Also, Wright served as Director of Investor Relations for two publicly held companies, Infonautics, Inc. and Integrated Circuit Systems, Inc. In those roles, he was responsible for all financial marketing communications with the Wall Street community. He was also Director of Business Development and Client Services for StockTrans, Inc., one of the nation’s most respected transfer agents, responsible for both growing the business and taking care of the customer base. Wright earned a degree in Liberal Studies, with concentrations in Psychology and Communications and a Minor in Economics from West Chester University.

References