Top Influencers: 101 UK Executive’s To Follow in 2022

3 years ago

Executive Chairman and Co-Founder play a crucial role in any startup. It takes an extraordinary person to fulfil the Executive Chairman and Co-Founder role. We have selected these Executive Chairman and Co-Founder’s for this list as they are inspiring for a variety of reasons – whether that’s pushing boundaries, creating groundbreaking products, or doing their bit to save the world.

Our analysts did their best to select be best, and most innovative Executive Chairman and Co-Founder’s. The list is in no particular order!

Brent Hoberman

Executive Chairman and Co-Founder @ Founders Factory

Follow Brent Hoberman on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

[custom-twitter-feeds screenname=”brenthoberman”]
Spoiler title
Brent Hoberman is chairman and co-founder of Founders Factory, an ambitious corporate backed incubator/accelerator based in London, and also of Founders Forum, a series of intimate annual global events for the leading entrepreneurs of today and the rising stars of tomorrow. Brent is a co-founder and was founding chairman of Smartup, Grip & made.com, a leading European direct-from-factory consumer homewares retailer. Most recently, Brent co-founded Firstminute Capital, a London-based pan-European seed fund, backed by some of the world’s top entrepreneurs. Brent co-founded lastminute.comin April 1998, was CEO from its inception and sold it in 2005 to Sabre for $1.1bn. Technology businesses he has co-founded have raised over $500m. Brent sits on the Advisory board for LetterOne Technology (a $16bn investment fund), the Oxford Foundry and the UK Government Digital Advisory Board. He is a board member of The Economist, a YGL and one of the Prime Minister’s Business Trade Ambassadors. Brent was awarded a CBE for services to entrepreneurship in the 2015 New Year’s Honour’s List. Learn more about Brent Hoberman on Crunchbase…

Read more about Founders Factory on Crunchbase…

Jonathan Seaton

Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer @ Twinkl

Follow Jonathan Seaton on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Jonathan Seaton is the co-founder and chief executive officer at Twinkl. Learn more about Jonathan Seaton on Crunchbase…

Twinkl is a provider of teacher-created lesson planning, teaching, and assessment materials. Read more about Twinkl on Crunchbase…

David K. Dingle

Chief Executive Officer , P&O Cruises (UK) @ Carnival Cruise Line

Follow David K. Dingle on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
David Dingle was appointed CEO of Carnival UK in June 2007. In this capacity, he has full operating responsibility for the UK-based brands P&O Cruises and Cunard, and also is responsible for the UK sales and marketing of Princess Cruises. He is also Chairman of the Carnival plc Management Committee responsible for Carnival Australia. Dingle joined P&O Cruises (UK) in 1978 where, after holding a series of commercial positions, he became managing director in 2000. At the time of the merger of P&O Princess Cruises plc and the Carnival Corporation in April 2003, he became managing director of Carnival UK. Dingle is past chairman of The UK Chamber of Shipping and the European Cruise Council and continues to serve on the boards of both groups. In 2009, he joined the board of the European Community Shipowners Association. He has previously served as a director of the Association of British Travel Agents and The UK Passenger Shipping Association. He is a Younger Brother of Trinity House and was awarded a CBE in the 2009 New Year’s Honours. Dingle attended Jesus College, Cambridge, where he attained a Master of Arts in Classics. Learn more about David K. Dingle on Crunchbase…

Read more about Carnival Cruise Line on Crunchbase…

Maria Raga

Chief Executive Officer @ Depop

Follow Maria Raga on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

[custom-twitter-feeds screenname=”mraga_depop”]
Spoiler title
Maria Raga is the CEO of Depop. Since being promoted to the position in 2016 from VP of Operations, she has presided over every element of the business from finance and engineering to marketing and product. An open and collaborative CEO, Maria is dedicated to her team, which has grown to 150+ employees in 5 offices worldwide in the last three years alone. Perhaps most importantly, since she took over as CEO, she has raised close to $100M in funding, which has helped to grow and nurture the community on Depop – now 13 million users. Prior to Depop, Maria held successively roles at Groupon and Privalia. Having graduated from Insead MBA, Maria joined Bain & Company as a consultant. Born in Valencia, Spain, Maria now resides in London with her husband and 2 children. In her spare time, Maria enjoys connecting with Depop’s entrepreneurial Gen-Z constituency and promoting women in the workplace Learn more about Maria Raga on Crunchbase…

Depop provides a mobile application that allows users to buy, sell, discover, and explore various things. Read more about Depop on Crunchbase…

Rishi Khosla

Chief Executive Officer @ OakNorth

Follow Rishi Khosla on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

[custom-twitter-feeds screenname=”rishi_khosla”]
Spoiler title
Rishi Khosla is a serial start-up entrepreneur; and the co-founder of OakNorth – the next-generation credit platform that’s redefining lending to lower mid-market businesses globally (loans of $0.5m-$25m). Prior to co-founding OakNorth, Rishi co-founded and built Copal Amba into a 3,000 employee business providing outsourced research for investment banks, private equity funds and asset managers. Copal was fully acquired by Moody’s Corporation in 2014. Rishi is also an active venture investor and has provided early stage funding to two multi-billion dollar companies – Indiabulls and PayPal. He has a bachelor’s degree in Economics from University College London and a Masters in Accounting & Finance from the LSE where he attended on a scholarship. Learn more about Rishi Khosla on Crunchbase…

OakNorth is the creator of the ON Credit Intelligence Suite – proven cloud software that transforms commercial lending Read more about OakNorth on Crunchbase…

Marc Moses

Executive Director and Group Chief Risk Officer @ HSBC

Follow Marc Moses on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Marc Moses was appointed as an Executive Director of HSBC Holdings plc in January 2014. He is Group Chief Risk Officer, with responsibility for risk and compliance, and a member of the Group Management Board, positions he has held since December 2010. Mr Moses joined HSBC in November 2005 as Chief Financial and Risk Officer with global responsibility for leading and managing the Global Banking and Markets finance and risk functions. In January 2008 he was also appointed Chief of Staff, responsible for all infrastructure in Global Banking and Markets. Mr Moses began his career at Sedgwick before joining Bankers Trust as a fixed income, money market and futures trader. He is a qualified accountant and a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales. He was audit partner and head of the market risk advisory group at PricewaterhouseCoopers and in 1999 he joined JP Morgan as European chief financial officer and global head of the valuation control group. Mr Moses is married with four children. He is a keen Arsenal football supporter and enjoys playing tennis. Learn more about Marc Moses on Crunchbase…

HSBC is a banking and financial services organization that offers a comprehensive range of services. Read more about HSBC on Crunchbase…

Graham Edwards

Co-Founder and Executive Chairman @ Telereal Trillium

Follow Graham Edwards on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

[custom-twitter-feeds screenname=”Edwars_Graham”]
Spoiler title
Graham Graham Edwards is the Co-Founder and Executive Chairman of Telereal Trillium. He initiated the transaction which resulted in 6,700 properties being transferred from BT to Telereal in a £2.4bn property outsourcing deal. In January 2009, Graham led the negotiations which resulted in the acquisition of Trillium from Land Securities Group Plc. This transaction firmly established Telereal Trillium as the market leader in property outsourcing and investment, creating a combined business with annual revenues in excess of £1 billion. Prior to Telereal Trillium, Graham was chief investment officer of Talisman Global Asset Management, having established it as the Pears FSA registered asset management arm – today having AUM in excess of £1bn. Before joining Talisman, Graham held positions as a fund manager at Merrill Lynch Investment Management and head of finance for the BT Group Plc’s property department. He read economics at Cambridge University and is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ACA), the Association of Corporate Treasurers (AMCT), the UK Society of Investment Professionals (ASIP) and is a Fellow of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (FRICS). Learn more about Graham Edwards on Crunchbase…

Telereal Trillium provides real estate management services in the United Kingdom. Read more about Telereal Trillium on Crunchbase…

John McAfee

Executive Chairman & CEO @ MGT Capital Investments

Follow John McAfee on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

[custom-twitter-feeds screenname=”officialmcafee”]
Spoiler title
John David McAfee (born September 18, 1945) is a American computer programmer and developer of the first commercial anti-virus program. This bore the McAfee brand-name for years, until it was bought by Intel and given the Intel name. His wealth peaked at $100 million, before his investments suffered in the global crisis of 2007. McAfee also has interests in smartphone apps, yoga and all-natural antibiotics. He resided for a number of years in Belize, but after several disputes with the authorities in Belize and Guatemala, he returned to the United States in 2013. McAfee announced that he will seek the office of U.S. President in the 2016 presidential election on September 8, 2015. He is running as a Libertarian. Learn more about John McAfee on Crunchbase…

Read more about MGT Capital Investments on Crunchbase…

Nigel Vaz

Chief Executive Officer @ Publicis Sapient

Follow Nigel Vaz on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

[custom-twitter-feeds screenname=”vaznigel”]
Spoiler title
Nigel is CEO of Publicis Sapient (SapientRazorfish, Sapient Consulting), he is also a member of the Publicis Groupe Executive Committee and leads Global Business Transformation for the Groupe. He is responsible for developing and executing business strategy and identifying market opportunities to drive the growth of the business. A driving force behind the company’s vision to partner with clients to help them realize a better future for their businesses and improve their customers’ lives, Nigel works closely with clients and teams to deliver transformative experiences and business models that make a significant impact on the success of leading global brands including Carrefour, Lloyds, Nationwide,McDonalds RBS/NatWest, Unilever, BNP Paribas and Fiat Chrysler. Nigel has held a variety of leadership positions with Sapient prior to its acquisition by Publicis Groupe, where he is now part of the Groupe Executive Committee Nigel drove the evolution of Sapient’s EMEA business, helping build Sapient Consulting into one of the premier digital consulting firms, and growing SapientNitro to be one of the largest agencies in the UK from a startup a decade ago. He led Sapient’s expansion beyond the UK to be a significant presence across Europe and in Asia. With roots in business strategy, Nigel has consistently helped clients to build businesses and create sustainable value propositions for their brands by operating at the intersection of strategic thinking, creativity and technology. Prior to Sapient, he was a successful entrepreneur – co-founding a public company with interests in consulting and connectivity solutions. Nigel is an inductee of BIMA’s Digital Hall of Fame (British Interactive Marketing Association), was named Individual of the Year at the DADIs, is a Fellow of The Marketing Society and is President Elect of the IPA, and provides mentoring to startups through the Publicis90 program. Learn more about Nigel Vaz on Crunchbase…

Read more about Publicis Sapient on Crunchbase…

Yves Guillemot

Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer @ Ubisoft

Follow Yves Guillemot on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Fresh out of business school, Yves Guillemot and his brothers embarked on an adventure in the nascent video game industry and founded Ubisoft in 1986. Early on, Yves understood that creating original content in-house and growing proprietary brands would be key to Ubisoft’s success. His vision to use technological breakthroughs as an opportunity to innovate, create brands and win over market share proved hugely successful over the years. With a strong focus on organic growth and efficiency, he has developed an organization recognized for its unrivalled collaborative mindset and for being highly competitive, with over two thirds of production based in cost-competitive countries. Yves has led Ubisoft’s evolution over the years with player engagement at the core of the company’s development. Ubisoft is one of the pioneers and a leader of the open world genre, which has become one of the industry’s most popular gaming segments. Ubisoft also develops successful multiplayer games and delivers state-of-the-art live operations that engage fans in the long term. Under Yves’ tenure, Ubisoft launched three of the world’s four best new videogame brands of all time ─ with Tom Clancy’s The Division leading the way ─ a remarkable achievement. The company’s unique capacity as a creator of blockbuster entertainment franchises has created massive value for Ubisoft’s shareholders. As the owner of its brands, Ubisoft today is in a unique position to broaden its franchises’ reach to a much wider audience through movies, TV shows, theme parks and consumer products. Under Yves’ direction, the company is taking an innovative approach by keeping creative control over its major projects ─ a first in the industry ─ to ensure consistency with the franchises’ DNA. Over the past 30 years Yves has led Ubisoft in its evolution from a local video game distributor, to a global entertainment leader. Yves has grown alongside the industry and has a deep understanding of what it takes to survive in a fast-moving, high-risk environment, at the crossroads of creation and technological disruption. His strong business acumen is sought out by multinationals such as Lagardère and Rémy Cointreau whose boards he sits on. He was named Entrepreneur of the Year by Ernst & Young in 2009, and Glassdoor elected him one of the Top 3 most beloved CEOs in France in 2015. Learn more about Yves Guillemot on Crunchbase…

Read more about Ubisoft on Crunchbase…

Bernhard Niesner

Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer @ busuu

Follow Bernhard Niesner on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

[custom-twitter-feeds screenname=”bernardooo”]
Spoiler title
Bernhard Niesner is the CEO and Co-Founder of busuu – the world´s largest social network for language learning with more than 35m users. busuu provides language courses in 12 different languages combined with direct interaction with native speakers from the community. The London-based start-up received several awards and was named “Best Education Start-Up in 2011” by TechCrunch. busuu is backed by renown business angels like Martin Varsavsky and received investment from PRO-Founders Capital. Before founding busuu, Bernhard worked at Roland Berger Strategy Consultants. In addition to busuu, he is Associated Professor at IE Business School in the area of online marketing. Bernhard graduated summa cum laude in International Business from the University of Vienna and holds an MBA (with honors) from IE Business School. In 2009 he was awarded “Entrepreneur of the year” in Austria. Learn more about Bernhard Niesner on Crunchbase…

busuu is a mobile app for language learning with the goal of breaking down language barriers. Read more about busuu on Crunchbase…

Tim Sawyer

Chief Executive Officer @ Carnegie Clean Energy

Follow Tim Sawyer on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Tim has over 13 years experience in marine surveying, environmental impact assessment, management and mitigation of environmental impacts, permitting and approvals. Tim has an in depth knowledge of offshore renewable energy development including wave, wind and tidal stream energy. As Project Development Officer Tim is responsible for wave energy resource definition and commercial site identification and assessment. Tim’s role also encompasses stakeholder consultation and management of project permits and approvals. Learn more about Tim Sawyer on Crunchbase…

Read more about Carnegie Clean Energy on Crunchbase…

Mark Bullingham

Chief Executive Officer @ The Football Association

Follow Mark Bullingham on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Mark Bullingham is Chief Commercial & Operating Officer of the English Football Association. He joined The FA in August 2016 and leads the commercial, marketing, digital and participation functions at the organisation. These include responsibility for all revenue streams across the FA and Wembley, such as broadcast, sponsorship, licensing, hospitality, and diversified revenue streams. In his time annual revenue at the FA has risen by over £100m. He previously held the position of CEO EMEA for Fuse Sports & Entertainment, responsible for running one of the fastest growing businesses in the sector. The team had grown quickly over five years to 245 across 17 offices with an annual fee income of over €28m. The client portfolio included 10 of the top 30 global brands. Mark joined Fuse in 2011 from his position as Director of Marketing, for the America’s Cup Event Authority in San Francisco where he helped transform the global event. Mark has negotiated over $2bn of partnerships across a variety of platforms in sports, arts and music and is a qualified Level One coach involved in grassroots football. Learn more about Mark Bullingham on Crunchbase…

English Football Association covering the England national teams and the Emirates FA Cup. Read more about The Football Association on Crunchbase…

Matthew Moulding

Chief Executive Officer @ THG

Follow Matthew Moulding on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Matthew founded The Hut Group in 2004 and moved full-time into the business in 2006. He qualified as a Chartered Accountant with Arthur Andersen and spent 8 years as Chief Financial Officer of 20:20, the distribution division of The Caudwell Group, revenues increased from £70m to £1.5bn. Matthew also led the £365m sale of 20:20 to private equity in 2006, before moving full-time to The Hut Group. Learn more about Matthew Moulding on Crunchbase…

The Hut Group is an online retailing platform focused on fast moving consumer goods, specifically focused on health and beauty. Read more about THG on Crunchbase…

Jens Montanana

Executive Chairman @ Westcon-Comstor

Follow Jens Montanana on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Jens is the founder and principal architect of Datatec, established in 1986. Between 1989 and 1993, Jens served as Managing Director and Vice-President of US Robotics (UK) Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of US Robotics, Inc. which was acquired by 3Com in 1997. In 1993 he co-founded US start-up Xedia Corporation in Boston, Massachusetts, an early pioneer of network switching and one of the market leaders in IP bandwidth management, which was subsequently sold to Lucent Corporation in 1999. In 1994 Jens became Chairman and CEO of Datatec. He has previously served on the boards and subcommittees of various public companies. Jens graduated with a degree in Electronic Engineering from the University of Reading in the United Kingdom. Learn more about Jens Montanana on Crunchbase…

Read more about Westcon-Comstor on Crunchbase…

Sherry Coutu

Founder & Executive Chairman @ Founders4Schools

Follow Sherry Coutu on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

[custom-twitter-feeds screenname=”scoutu”]
Spoiler title
Sherry Coutu is an angel investor and serves on the boards of companies, charities and universities.As an entrepreneur, Sherry established and successfully sold two businesses in the financial services industry. The first (acquired by Euromoney plc) has operations in more than 70 countries. The second was floated in 2000 on London and Nasdaq and the company was valued at more than $1 billion before being acquired (by AMP plc). Sherry is active in early stage investing and has raised several rounds of venture capital and public equity totaling more than $200 million. Sherry has decades of experience serving companies which range from fast growth private early stage to public and boards with turnover of more than £ 1 bn.She is a frequent public speaker, a national judge of the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year awards, and presents regularly at the top business schools. She specialises in consumer, internet, information services and clean energy. Current university affiliations include Cambridge University and Harvard Business School. Charitable / Government affiliations include the Prince’s Trust, Cancer Research UK and NESTA. Learn more about Sherry Coutu on Crunchbase…

Founders4Schools is a free service that enables teachers to invite founders of successful, businesses to visit schools, to inspire learners. Read more about Founders4Schools on Crunchbase…

Charles Nasser

Chief Executive Officer @ Claranet

Follow Charles Nasser on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Charles Nasser founded Claranet in 1996 and has grown it into an international managed service provider operating in 6 countries. Charles has led the company through a strong period of organic growth as well as several acquisitions from public and private companies. Charles holds a Masters degrees in Electrical & Electronic Engineering from Imperial College (University of London), a Certified Diploma in Accounting and Finance (ACCA) and a Masters in Finance from the London Business School. A keen traveller, Charles has visited over 85 countries and participated in several expeditions, including a trek to the geographic North Pole in 2004. Learn more about Charles Nasser on Crunchbase…

Claranet is an expert in modernising and running critical applications and infrastructure. Read more about Claranet on Crunchbase…

Kosta Kantchev

Co-Founder & Executive Chairman @ Nexo

Follow Kosta Kantchev on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

The World’s Leading Regulated Financial Institution for Digital Assets Read more about Nexo on Crunchbase…

Tom Singh

Founder & Non-Executive Director @ New Look

Follow Tom Singh on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Tom Singh OBE is the Founder of New Look, a leading UK entrepreneur and active private investor with family interests spanning: retail, technology, real estate, renewable energy sectors and private equity. He currently holds the position of Non-Executive Board Member for New Look with over 900 stores worldwide which he founded in 1969. In addition to his responsibilities at New Look, Tom is a founding member of: the Social Investment Task Force, the Chairman of the UK Advisory Council for the British Asian Trust, and is a Trustee of the Pakhar Foundation. Tom is an active philanthropist and social investor and in recent years, has taken an increasing interest in the world of technology. Learn more about Tom Singh on Crunchbase…

New Look is a retail seller of mens and womens clothing. Read more about New Look on Crunchbase…

Darren Shapland

Non Executive Director @ Ferguson plc

Follow Darren Shapland on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Darren is Chairman of Poundland Group plc and was appointed Chairman of Maplin Electronics Limited in August 2014, Chairman of Topps Tiles Plc in March 2015 and Chairman of Notonthehighstreet.com in June 2015. He retired from his position as a Non Executive Director and as Chairman of the Audit Committee of Ladbrokes Plc on 24 September 2015. Between 2012 and 2013 he was Chief Executive Officer of Carpetright Plc. Prior to that, Mr Shapland was J Sainsbury plc Chief Financial Officer from 2005 to 2010 and Group Development Director from 2010 to 2011. He was also Chairman of Sainsbury’s Bank. Previously, Mr Shapland was Group Finance Director of Carpetright plc between 2002 and 2005, Finance Director of Superdrug Stores plc between 2000 and 2002 and held a variety of positions with the Burton Group and Arcadia. Learn more about Darren Shapland on Crunchbase…

Ferguson plc an international business, operating group’s strength is to operate strong national businesses in home markets. Read more about Ferguson plc on Crunchbase…

Joe Giannamore

Founder, Chief Executive Officer & Chief Investment Officer @ AnaCap

Follow Joe Giannamore on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Joe founded AnaCap Financial Partners in 2005 as Europe’s first specialist private equity firm focusing on the financial services sector. Since inception, the partnership has grown from €300 million to more than €3 billion of assets under management, and AnaCap is now the leading financial services investor in Europe, owning three insurance businesses and banks in five jurisdictions. Before founding AnaCap, Joe co-founded auto finance company On:line Finance, which was the first investment grade rated start-up in Europe and the first lender over the internet in Europe. From launch, On:line grew to over a billion dollars in assets within five years, and was one of the ten fastest growing companies in the UK during that period. On:line was subsequently acquired by GMAC UK, the UK finance arm of General Motors, with Joe becoming CEO of GMAC UK. Previously, he was a Vice President at Salomon Brothers. Joe holds a Bachelor’s degree from American University in Washington and an MBA from London Business School. Learn more about Joe Giannamore on Crunchbase…

Read more about AnaCap on Crunchbase…

Ismail Ahmed

Founder & Executive Chairman @ Zepz

Follow Ismail Ahmed on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

[custom-twitter-feeds screenname=”ismail_wr”]
Spoiler title
Ismail Ahmed, Founder & Chief Executive Officer, founding WorldRemit was the culmination of 20 years’ experience in the money transfer industry – spanning academic, consulting and in-house roles. Before setting-up his own business, he worked for the United Nations Remittance Programme, helping African money transfer companies comply with tough anti-money laundering rules introduced after the 9/11 attacks. Ismail has published widely-cited research on the effect of remittances in Somaliland following the country’s civil war. He holds an MSc and PhD from the University of London and an Executive MBA from London Business School. Learn more about Ismail Ahmed on Crunchbase…

Zepz is a money transfer service that helps migrants send money to their loved ones all over the world. Read more about Zepz on Crunchbase…

David Rutter

Founder and Chief Executive Officer @ R3

Follow David Rutter on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

[custom-twitter-feeds screenname=”daviderutter1″]
Spoiler title
David founded R3 in 2015 and in his role of Chief Executive Officer is responsible for the strategic direction of R3. With over 30 years of experience leading some of Wall Street’s top institutions, David is a longtime creative thought leader in financial markets and innovation, and has played a significant role in the adoption of electronic trading in the global OTC derivatives industry. David served for ten years as the CEO of Electronic Broking at ICAP Plc, the world’s largest interdealer broker, where he led the BrokerTec fixed income and EBS foreign exchange platforms. Prior to ICAP, David was co-owner and CEO (Americas) of Prebon Yamane. Learn more about David Rutter on Crunchbase…

Read more about R3 on Crunchbase…

Michael Spencer

Founder & Group Chief Executive Officer @ NEX Group

Follow Michael Spencer on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Michael Spencer is Chairman of the Intercapital Private Group Ltd and a director of Bordeaux Index Ltd. Michael is the chairman of The Conservative Party Foundation Ltd and stepped down from his role as Treasurer of the Conservative Party in October 2010. Michael is 61. His interests include running, wine, art, politics and military history. He founded ICAP Charity Day in 1993 where for one day each year the Company’s global revenue, including broker commissions, were donated to charity. Over 24 years, the event raised nearly £135 million for 2,200 charities worldwide. Michael was named the Ernst & Young World Entrepreneur of the Year 2010 and in April 2011, ICAP won a Queen’s Award for Enterprise in the International Trade category. As Britain’s most coveted business prize, the Queen’s Awards recognise outstanding achievement by UK companies. The award is formally conferred by a Grant of Appointment and is symbolised through a presentation given by Her Majesty’s Lord Lieutenants as The Queen’s local representatives. This was the second time that ICAP received a Queen’s Award in this category, having been named a winner in 2005. Learn more about Michael Spencer on Crunchbase…

NEX is a technology-based services company that offers customers better ways to execute trades and manage risk. Read more about NEX Group on Crunchbase…

Alex Zhavoronkov

Founder & Chief Executive Officer @ Insilico Medicine

Follow Alex Zhavoronkov on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

[custom-twitter-feeds screenname=”biogerontology”]
Spoiler title
Alex Zhavoronkov, PhD, is the founder and CEO of Insilico Medicine (insilico.com), a leader in next-generation artificial intelligence technologies for drug discovery, and biomarker development. He is also the founder and CEO of Deep Longevity, Inc, a global company developing a broad range of artificial intelligence-based biomarkers of aging and longevity. Since 2015 he invented critical technologies in the field of generative adversarial networks (GANs) and reinforcement learning (RL) for generation of the novel molecular structures with the desired properties and generation of synthetic biological and patient data. He also pioneered the applications of deep learning technologies for prediction of human biological age using multiple data types, transfer learning from aging into disease, target identification, and signaling pathway modeling. Under his leadership Insilico raised over $50 million in multiple rounds from expert investors, opened R&D centers in 6 countries and regions, and partnered with multiple pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and academic institutions. Prior to founding Insilico, he worked in senior roles at ATI Technologies (acquired by AMD in 2006), NeuroG Neuroinformatics, Biogerontology Research Foundation. Since 2012 he published over 130 peer-reviewed research papers, and 2 books including “The Ageless Generation: How Biomedical Advances Will Transform the Global Economy” (Palgrave Macmillan, 2013). He serves on the editorial boards of Aging Research Reviews, Aging, Trends in Molecular Medicine, Frontiers in Genetics, and co-chairs the Annual Aging Research, Drug Discovery and AI Forum (7th annual in 2020) at Basel Life, one of Europe’s largest industry events in drug discovery. He is the adjunct professor of artificial intelligence at the Buck Institute for Research on Aging. Learn more about Alex Zhavoronkov on Crunchbase…

Read more about Insilico Medicine on Crunchbase…

Benjamin Todd

CEO, Co Founder & Executive Director @ 80,000 Hours

Follow Benjamin Todd on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
In under three years with Ben’s leadership, 80,000 Hours has grown from a student society, to an Oxford affiliated charity, featured on TED, the Washington Post, the BBC Today Programme and more. Ben has a 1st from Oxford in Physics and Philosophy, has published in Climate Physics and speaks Chinese. Before 80,000 Hours, he was the first undergraduate to intern as an analyst at a top investment fund. Rather than taking the job, he persuaded the Chairman to donate £60,000 to 80,000 Hours. Learn more about Benjamin Todd on Crunchbase…

80,000 Hours is an evidence-based advice on careers that make a difference. Read more about 80,000 Hours on Crunchbase…

James Corcoran

Executive Director & CEO @ NewDay

Follow James Corcoran on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
James Corcoran has over 30 years of global Financial Services experience with large multi-national companies such as American Express, Citibank, HBOS and IBM. James began his career in sales and marketing moving into general management where he has held various senior executive positions over the last 20 years. He has run credit card businesses for First USA/Bank One and Amex and at HBOS his final role was CEO of Distribution, Retail & Insurance Division, prior to which he was Head of their Retail Product business units. James joined NewDay as CEO in January 2009 from Washington Mutual in Seattle where he was President of the Retail Banking Division. Learn more about James Corcoran on Crunchbase…

NewDay provides financial flexibility and convenience. Read more about NewDay on Crunchbase…

William Zeqiri

Chief Executive Officer @ Fresha

Follow William Zeqiri on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

[custom-twitter-feeds screenname=”WilliamZeqiri”]
Spoiler title
William Zeqiri Passionate technology entrepreneur, product creator and angel investor. Learn more about William Zeqiri on Crunchbase…

Fresha provides an online platform for booking beauty and wellness appointments with local businesses. Read more about Fresha on Crunchbase…

Norman Fraser

Co-founder, Executive Chairman @ SoftIron

Follow Norman Fraser on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Norman Fraser Co-Founded and led successful international technology businesses, including Vocalis (IPO) and Endava (ranked as a Leader in the IAOP Global Outsourcing 100 list). A former Visiting Fellow at Henley Business School, UK, he is currently Visiting Professor at Aalborg University, Denmark. Learn more about Norman Fraser on Crunchbase…

SoftIron creates high-performing, scalable, flexible, reliable, and efficient storage solutions for the modern-day enterprise. Read more about SoftIron on Crunchbase…

Andy Phillipps

Non Executive Director @ Thought Machine

Follow Andy Phillipps on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Andy Phillipps is the Advisor, IC and Venture Partner at IQ Capital. Learn more about Andy Phillipps on Crunchbase…

Thought Machine is a Fintech company that builds cloud-native technology to revolutionize core banking. Read more about Thought Machine on Crunchbase…

Christopher Tooley

Chief Executive Officer @ Lycamobile Group

Follow Christopher Tooley on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Chris Tooley is responsible for overseeing the growth and development of the business in all its 23 operating countries as it continues to make in-roads to new markets. Tooley was appointed CEO in 2014, having already spent 10 years in senior leadership roles at Lycamobile. With decades of experience in the telecoms industry, Tooley has pioneered many of the technical, commercial and legal industry standards in the UK and Europe for prepaid products and has worked extensively with Government regulators and tax authorities. Tooley holds a MA in History and Economics from Oxford University. Learn more about Christopher Tooley on Crunchbase…

Lycamobile Group provides international mobile virtual network operator. Read more about Lycamobile Group on Crunchbase…

Andre Pienaar

Chief Executive and Founder @ C5 Capital

Follow Andre Pienaar on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
André Pienaar is Managing Partner, Founder and Executive Chairman of C5 Capital, a specialist venture capital firm focused on cloud computing, big data analytics, artifial intelligence and cyber security. He is also a Mentor for C5 Nebula which aims to empower women aspiring to engage in the tech space. André founded C5 in 2014, to provide long-term support, private equity and venture capital to innovative cyber security companies. The firm is made up of a varied international team of investors and entrepreneurs and has offices in Washington, London, Munich, Luxembourg and Bahrain. A recognised expert on cyber law and cybercrime, André Pienaar started his career with Kroll in 1996 where he went on to hold the position of the company’s youngest ever Managing Director and also built and lead Kroll’s Africa & Natural Resources Division out of London prior to Kroll’s sale in 2004. Following this success, André Pienaar went on to launch G3 (which stands for Good Governance Group), an advisory consultancy which provided advice on regulatory compliance, risk mitigation and cyber security to its global client base. André is also a member of: • USIP (United States Institute of Peace) International Advisory Council • The National Council on White House History Learn more about Andre Pienaar on Crunchbase…

Read more about C5 Capital on Crunchbase…

Tony Hall

Chief Executive Officer and Editor-in-Chief @ BBC

Follow Tony Hall on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

[custom-twitter-feeds screenname=”tonyhallbbcdg”]
Spoiler title
Tony Hall is the 16th Director-General of the BBC. The Director-General is the Chief Executive Officer of the BBC, its Editor-in-Chief and chairs the BBC’s Executive and Management Boards. The Director-General is the editorial, operational and creative leader of the BBC, with responsibility for a significant global workforce and the Corporation’s services across television, radio and online. Tony Hall – Lord Hall of Birkenhead – was appointed Director-General of the BBC on 22 November 2012. He is the 16th Director-General of the BBC. Prior to this, Tony was Chief Executive of the Royal Opera House from April 2001 until April 2013. He joined the BBC as a news trainee in 1973 and during a 28 year career at the Corporation he held roles including Senior Producer at World at One, Assistant Editor of the Nine O’Clock News, Output Editor for Newsnight, culminating as Chief Executive of BBC News from 1996 to 2001. While at the BBC he launched Radio 5 live, BBC News 24, BBC News Online and BBC Parliament. He was Deputy Chairman of Channel 4 Television and the Paul Hamlyn Foundation. He is passionate about education and skills within the cultural industries. He was the founder Chair of Creative & Cultural Skills and Chairman of the Musical and Dance Scheme.He spearheaded the development of the new High House Production Park in Thurrock, Essex. He has been Chair of Stratford East Theatre, and Honorary Visiting Fellow of Journalism at City University, a member of the Regeneration Through Heritage Steering Group, a board member of Race for Opportunity, a former non-executive director of HM Customs and Excise and was a member of the Council for Brunel University. In 2009 he was asked by the Government and the Mayor of London to set up and chair a board to direct the Cultural Olympiad and also joined the board of the London Organising Committee for the Olympic Games. He was appointed a CBE in 2005 and in 2010 was created a life peer with the title Baron Hall of Birkenhead. He sits on the Crossbenches in the House of Lords. Learn more about Tony Hall on Crunchbase…

BBC is a large-scale broadcasting corporation that offers content to inform, educate, and entertain people. Read more about BBC on Crunchbase…

Jeff Kelisky

Chief Executive Officer @ Seedrs

Follow Jeff Kelisky on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

[custom-twitter-feeds screenname=”jkseedrs”]
Spoiler title
Jeff Kelisky is an experienced executive with a track record in building, leading and scaling successful technology businesses. Before joining Seedrs, Jeff was CEO for Picsolve, a Fidelity-backed $75 million image capture business in the entertainment space where he delivered the company’s transformation from analogue to digital. Previously, he was CEO of Multimap, Europe’s first and ultimate leader in online mapping service which he led for five years through the first dotcom crash to a successful sale to Microsoft. In his free time, he enjoys tennis, skiing, cinema, and trying to play COD with his kids. Learn more about Jeff Kelisky on Crunchbase…

Seedrs is a UK-based investment and crowdfunding platform. Read more about Seedrs on Crunchbase…

Jane Whittaker

Chief Executive Officer @ Athena Worlds

Follow Jane Whittaker on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

[custom-twitter-feeds screenname=”WhittakerGames”]
Spoiler title
Jane has been in the interactive entertainment industry for over 30 years, rising from the ranks of trainee programmer to Vice President levels in the industry. Jane has secured a number of accolades including multiple winner of the Programmer Of The Year Awards, Best Game Award, Best Licenced game and a slew of other achievements. “I remember very well the Alien vs Predator development for the Atari Jaguar game system!! Jane worked his ass off. He came through and we got a great game. Thanks Jane!!” – Sam Tramiel, CEO/President Atari “Jane Whittaker lead some of the key titles in our time together at EA. I am also well aware of his great track record before and after our time together. I consider him (like myself) a sage guru of the deep knowledge of the gaming industry!” – Richard Garriott de Cayeux “I was fortunate enough to work with Andrew (Jane) Whittaker on the Alien Vs Predator development crew. Andrew’s dedication to the project helped get us to the finish line, overcoming numerous challenges along the way. Andrew brought his unique vision and applied his engineering expertise to make AvP a better game… we achieved our shared goal to build an engaging game-play experience that raised the bar for console games ” – James Purple Hampton, Producer, Alien Vs Predator, Atari “It’s not often one gets the chance to work with a prodigy, but I believe Jane to be just that. Jane is an extraordinary force of nature and a towering talent. Of course he’s too modest to agree, but damn it, he’s Mozart to me” – Kevin Godley, multi award winning director, musician, technologist, founder 10CC, Godley and Creme. “Few games developers have been as simultaneously influential and unsung as Jane Whittaker” – RetroGamer Magazine “I want to add my recommendation and a big SALUTE! to a good person and very accomplished senior game designer and coder.I can recommend Jane as a person, as a game professional, and a very senior executive. I would love to work with Jane again…” – JW Wild Bill Stealey, co-founder (with Sid Meier), Microprose Software and Civilization franchise “At First Class Simulations and Excalibur Publishing we have had the pleasure of more than a decade of collaboration with Jane Whittaker, producing some of the finest and most popular simulation products in the world” – Robert Stallibrass, Managing Director Excalibur Publishing “Jane is a real games industry hero” – Pavel Sebor, CEO of SCS Software, developer of the smash hit Euro Truck Simulator “One of the finest minds in game design” -Jer Horwitz, Gamepro Magazine USA Learn more about Jane Whittaker on Crunchbase…

Video Games, Video Game Technology Read more about Athena Worlds on Crunchbase…

Andrew Rear

Chief Executive & Digital Partners @ Munich Reinsurance

Follow Andrew Rear on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

[custom-twitter-feeds screenname=”andrewrear”]
Spoiler title
Andrew Rear is the Chief Executive of Munich Re Digital Partners. He joined Munich Re in 2010, leading the Asia, Africa and UK life businesses until May 2016 when he took up his current role. Digital Partners is a global business working with, and investing in, start-ups, digital verticals and the sharing economy, with the ambition of building a more engaged proposition for insurance customers. Prior to joining Munich Re, Andrew was a partner and head of the EMEA insurance practice at Oliver Wyman. Learn more about Andrew Rear on Crunchbase…

Read more about Munich Reinsurance on Crunchbase…

Richard Little

Non Executive Director @ Thought Machine

Follow Richard Little on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Thought Machine is a Fintech company that builds cloud-native technology to revolutionize core banking. Read more about Thought Machine on Crunchbase…

Gordon Sanghera

Chief Executive Officer, Co – founder @ Oxford Nanopore Technologies

Follow Gordon Sanghera on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Gordon Sanghera was co-founder of Oxford Nanopore, together with Hagan Bayley and IP Group. He was appointed CEO in June 2005 having acted as a consultant since February 2005 whilst the Company was established. He brings over 15 years experience in the design, development and global launch of novel point-of-care biosensor devices. At Abbott Laboratories, Dr Sanghera held both UK and US Director level positions, including Research Director and Manufacturing Process Development Director. Before its acquisition by Abbott, Gordon led the R&D of Medisense Inc. where he was instrumental in the launch of several generations of blood glucose biosensor systems for the consumer and medical markets. He has also developed and validated market production processes to meet with the regulatory requirements for USA and Europe. Gordon has a DPhil in biosensor technology and a degree in Chemistry. Learn more about Gordon Sanghera on Crunchbase…

Oxford Nanopore Technologies develops nanopore-based electronic systems for analyzing single molecules, including DNA, RNA, and proteins. Read more about Oxford Nanopore Technologies on Crunchbase…

Matthew Crummack

Group Chief Executive Officer @ Gocompare.com

Follow Matthew Crummack on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

[custom-twitter-feeds screenname=”crumuk”]
Spoiler title
Matthew Crummack is currently Chief Executive Officer of Gocompare.com Holdings Limited, a financial services price comparison website, forming part of esure Group plc. Previously, Matthew Crummack served as CEO of lastminute.com, the online travel and leisure retailer, from 2011 until March 2015 when the business was acquired by Bravofly Rumbo Group (subsequently renamed lastminute.com Group). He served as Deputy CEO and Chief Integration Officer until December 2015, following which he served as a member of its Strategic Advisory Committee. In addition, Matthew Crummack was formerly a Senior Vice President of Lodging at Expedia in Europe and the US, has previously worked for Nestle UK, and spent eight years at Procter & Gamble in a variety of roles. Matthew Crummack is also a Director of his own UK-based company, Interventus Limited. Learn more about Matthew Crummack on Crunchbase…

Gocompare.com is a British financial services comparison website provides comparison details for vehicle, home and pet insurance. Read more about Gocompare.com on Crunchbase…

Jeff Lynn

Co-Founder & Executive Chairman @ Seedrs

Follow Jeff Lynn on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

[custom-twitter-feeds screenname=”jeffseedrs”]
Spoiler title
Jeff Lynn is Executive Chairman and co-founder of Seedrs, the leading pan-European equity crowdfunding platform. Seedrs lets investors invest as much or as little as they like in startups they choose, and it lets startups raise capital from friends, family, angels, institutions and the crowds, all through a simple, online process. In addition to running Seedrs, Jeff serves as founding Chairman of The Coalition for a Digital Economy (Coadec), a non-profit advocacy group for digital startups and SMEs. Learn more about Jeff Lynn on Crunchbase…

Seedrs is a UK-based investment and crowdfunding platform. Read more about Seedrs on Crunchbase…

Richard Laxer

Officer & Member, Corporate Executive Council @ General Electric

Follow Richard Laxer on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Rich Laxer is the Chairman and CEO at GE Capital. Learn more about Richard Laxer on Crunchbase…

Read more about General Electric on Crunchbase…

Piotr Pisarz

Chief Executive Officer and Founder @ Uncapped

Follow Piotr Pisarz on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Piotr joined DN Capital in 2017 as an Investment Manager. Previously he was a VC investor in Orange Growth Capital, where he focused on fintech. Piotr started his career in Citigroup, where he was an M&A Investment Banker covering an energy sector, and then spent several years in Google where he focused on Finance, Hardware and Sales areas. Piotr has a Masters degree from London Business School and B.Sc. in Finance and Accounting from Warsaw School of Economics. Learn more about Piotr Pisarz on Crunchbase…

Uncapped is a provider of revenue-based financing that enables founders to raise growth capital without interest or equity. Read more about Uncapped on Crunchbase…

Paras Chandaria

Executive Chairman @ UST

Follow Paras Chandaria on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Paras Chandaria is the chairman of UST Global where he works with the leadership team to define and articulate the company’s long term strategies and is active in steering the company towards its goals. Paras plays a key role in ensuring that the company’s stated values of Humility, Humanity, and Integrity are upheld and that its unique culture is preserved. Paras has a strong entrepreneurial background combined with a more structured experience working in Private Equity. He has deep and diverse experience starting up, building, turning around, managing and guiding multiple global and regional businesses across different industry verticals. Paras grew up in London and graduated from the London School of Economics and Political Sciences. Having lived and worked in three continents over the last 23 years, he currently resides in Singapore. In addition to his business commitments, Paras spends time on various CSR projects. Learn more about Paras Chandaria on Crunchbase…

Read more about UST on Crunchbase…

Faisal Galaria

Board Member & Non Executive Director @ Green Man Gaming

Follow Faisal Galaria on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

[custom-twitter-feeds screenname=”fais_4″]
Spoiler title
Faisal Galaria is the CEO of Blippar the Augmented Reality company. He previously served as Global Head of Business Development at Spotify Limited, as Managing Director of Europe and Asia at Kayak and was early member of the Skype team. At Skype as Director of Europe, he was responsible for key partnerships across the US, Europe the Middle East, with companies such as Sony, Bebo, British Telecom, Dixons and HP. Prior to joining Skype, he was a member of the Policy Executive of the UK’s telecom and media regulator Ofcom. At Ofcom, he played a senior role in the high-profile negotiation and valuation of distribution rights for Premier League Football and co-authored the Telecoms Strategy Review. He started his career in wireless and Internet consulting and was a senior member of Cluster Consulting, which was acquired by Diamond Technology Partners (NASDAQ: DTPI) for $930 million in 2000. He has been educated across Europe and graduated with honors from UMIST (University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology) with a Bachelor’s in Management Sciences in the UK. He also holds an MBA from IESE in Spain. Learn more about Faisal Galaria on Crunchbase…

Green Man Gaming is a global pure play e-commerce and technology business in the video games industry. Read more about Green Man Gaming on Crunchbase…

Gabriel Mecklenburg

Co-founder, Executive Chairman @ Hinge Health

Follow Gabriel Mecklenburg on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Read more about Hinge Health on Crunchbase…

Obi Nwosu

Chief Executive Officer & Co-Founder @ Coinfloor

Follow Obi Nwosu on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

[custom-twitter-feeds screenname=”obi”]
Spoiler title
Obi leads commercial strategy and our team of finance and cryptocurrency experts. Since 2014, Coinfloor’s market share has grown over 5 times and now handles the majority of GBP exchange volume. Previously, Obi was Founder and CEO of Supalocal and held senior roles at ebookers.com and WeeWorld, overseeing the development of a virtual currency, used by 30 million users. Learn more about Obi Nwosu on Crunchbase…

Coinfloor is an established group of cryptocurrency exchanges for institutional or sophisticated investors and traders. Read more about Coinfloor on Crunchbase…

Matthew Lumsden

Chief Executive Officer/Founder @ Connected Energy

Follow Matthew Lumsden on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
With 20 years experience in the low carbon energy and transport sectors, Matthew founded Connected Energy to commercialise a range of energy storage and control systems developed by parent company Future Transport Systems. Learn more about Matthew Lumsden on Crunchbase…

A pioneer of 2nd life electric vehicle battery based energy storage systems. Read more about Connected Energy on Crunchbase…

Mike Laven

Chief Executive Officer @ Currencycloud

Follow Mike Laven on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

[custom-twitter-feeds screenname=”lavenmichael”]
Spoiler title
Mike Laven is a Chief Executive Officer With more than 25 years’ experience at the helm of a number of high growth fintech and technology businesses, Mike is well-known for his ability to build venture-backed organisations and lead them to profitable growth. Having originally spent six years working for the United Nations, Mike has since gained a glowing reputation for fintech expertise, with executive roles at Infinity Financial Technology, Cohera, Coronet and Traiana. Mike joined Currencycloud in 2011, and as CEO is influential in growing the firm to become the world’s most trusted payment platform. Under his leadership, Currencycloud has established itself as a leading force in the digital financial services revolution and has raised $61m in funding (as of March 2017). Learn more about Mike Laven on Crunchbase…

Currencycloud specializes in a fully cloud-based platform for B2B cross-border payments. Read more about Currencycloud on Crunchbase…

Michael Thamm

Chief Executive Officer , Costa Crociere S.p.A. @ Carnival Cruise Line

Follow Michael Thamm on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Michael Thamm has been chief executive officer of Costa Crociere S.p.A. since July 2012. In this capacity, he has full responsibility for the following brands: AIDA Cruises, Costa Cruises and Ibero Cruises. He previously served as president of AIDA Cruises from 2004 to 2012 and Senior Vice President Operations of AIDA Cruises from 1993 to 2004. Prior to joining AIDA Cruises, he held various management positions within the cargo shipping division of Deutsche Seereederei (DSR). Thamm, who holds a master’s degree in Economics, is a member of the Executive Committee of the European Cruise Council (ECC), which represents the interests of the world’s most important shipping lines in Europe. He was named North European Cruise Personality of the Year 2011, an award selected by Seatrade and V. Ships. In March 2012, the international cruise associations ECC and Cruise Lines International Association appointed Thamm spokesman for the cruise industry in Germany. Learn more about Michael Thamm on Crunchbase…

Read more about Carnival Cruise Line on Crunchbase…

Ed Wray

Director & Non-executive Director @ Funding Circle

Follow Ed Wray on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

[custom-twitter-feeds screenname=”edwray21″]
Spoiler title
Mr. Edward Wray, Ed is a Co-Founder of Betfair Australia Pty Ltd. Mr. Wray co-founded The Sporting Exchange Limited (Alternate Name: Betfair Limited) in May 1999 and served as its Chief Executive Officer. Prior to Betfair, he spent eight years at J.P. Morgan & Co. as a Vice President in the debt capital markets and derivatives area. He serves as the Chairman at Betfair. He has been Non-executive Chairman of The Sporting Exchange Limited since 2006. He served as the Chairman of Betfair Limited since 2006. He served as Non-Executive Chairman of Betfair Group PLC from March 17, 2008 to March 6, 2012. He has been a Director at Sporting Exchange since August 1998. Mr. Wray has been a Director of Betfair Group PLC since August 20, 1999. He serves as a Non Executive Director of Funding Circle Ltd. He served as a Director at Betfair since 1999. Learn more about Ed Wray on Crunchbase…

Funding Circle is a lending platform for small businesses. Read more about Funding Circle on Crunchbase…

Oliver Prill

Chief Executive Officer @ Tide

Follow Oliver Prill on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

[custom-twitter-feeds screenname=”oliverprill”]
Spoiler title
Oliver Prill joined Tide from German online lender Kreditech, where he served as chief operating officer and helped to transform the business into a leading global fintech company. He has more than 20 years of leadership experience in financial services, having worked across banking and insurance. In many of his roles he worked closely with small business owners and has always been inspired by their energy and passion but knows that for too long, they have been let down by traditional banks. Oliver is adamant to put founders at the forefront of Tide’s agenda and fix small business banking for good. Learn more about Oliver Prill on Crunchbase…

Tide is a business banking platform with a mission to save small businesses time and money on their banking and admin. Read more about Tide on Crunchbase…

Stephen Bourke

Co-Founder, Non-Executive Director @ Echo

Follow Stephen Bourke on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

[custom-twitter-feeds screenname=”Immanentizenow”]
Spoiler title
Stephen Bourke is co-founder and CEO of Echo. Stephen successfully launched the pioneering digital health business LloydsPharmacy Online Doctor in Ireland and Australia. Prior to that, he worked as a Head of Strategy for BT and a New Business Development Manager at Endpoint. He has also worked Team Leader of Consumer Parternships at Age UK. Stephen holds a Masters in Marketing from the Vlerick Business School and a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics and Philosophy from University College Dublin. Learn more about Stephen Bourke on Crunchbase…

Echo is a simplifying pharmacy, helping everyone get the medicine they need. Read more about Echo on Crunchbase…

Livingstone Ian

Non Executive Chairman @ Flavourworks

Follow Livingstone Ian on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

[custom-twitter-feeds screenname=”ian_livingstone”]
Spoiler title
Ian Livingstone CBE is one of the founding fathers of the UK games industry. He co-founded iconic games company Games Workshop in 1975, launching Dungeons & Dragons and Warhammer in Europe. He co-authored The Warlock of Firetop Mountain with Steve Jackson in 1982, writing 14 titles in the Fighting Fantasy gamebook series which has sold over 18 million copies worldwide. He designed Eureka, the first computer game published by Domark in 1984. He joined the Domark board in 1992, overseeing a merger that created Eidos plc in 1995 where he served as Executive Chairman until 2002, and as Creative Director until 2006. At Eidos he launched global video games franchises including Lara Croft: Tomb Raider. He co-authored the influential Livingstone-Hope Next Gen review published by NESTA in 2011, recommending changes in ICT education policy. Following publication, he chaired the Next Gen Skills campaign, working with government to introduce the new Computing curriculum in schools in 2014. In the Wired 100 list for 2012, he was ranked the 16th most influential person in the UK’s digital economy. He was listed in the 2015 Debrett’s 500 of most influential people in UK. Roles (as of May 2016): Founder and Chairman of the Livingstone Foundation, Chairman of Playdemic, Chairman of Midoki, Chairman of Sumo-Digital, Chairman of PlayMob, Chairman of Antstream, Chairman of The Secret Police, Chairman of Flavourworks, Vice Chair of UKIE, Patron and Non-executive director of Creative Skillset, a Member of the Creative Industries Council, Non-executive director of Creative Industries Federation, Non-executive director of Creative England, Non-executive director of Young Rewired State, GamesAid Trustee, Advisory Board Member of GameCity, and Adviser to the British Council. Learn more about Livingstone Ian on Crunchbase…

Flavourworks is a computer entertainment in order to bring unique and innovative experiences to broad audiences. Read more about Flavourworks on Crunchbase…

Sacha Deshmukh

Interim Chief Executive Officer @ Amnesty International

Follow Sacha Deshmukh on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

[custom-twitter-feeds screenname=”sachadeshmukh”]

Amnesty International is a global charity organization of people fighting injustice and promoting human rights. Read more about Amnesty International on Crunchbase…

Arnold W. Donald

President and Chief Executive Officer @ Carnival Cruise Line

Follow Arnold W. Donald on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Arnold W. Donald has been a director of Carnival Corporation since 2001 and a director of Carnival plc since 2003. Mr. Donald has been President and Chief Executive Officer of Carnival Corporation & plc since July 2013. He is also Principal of AWDPLC LLC, a private investment company. He was President and Chief Executive Officer of The Executive Leadership Council, a professional network of African-American executives of major U.S. companies, from 2010 to June 2012. He previously served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation International from 2006 to 2008. From 2000 to 2005, Mr. Donald was the Chairman of the Board of Merisant Company, a manufacturer and marketer of tabletop sweetener products, including the Equal® and Canderel® brands. From 2000 to 2003, he was also the Chief Executive Officer of Merisant Company. From 1998 to 2000, he was Senior Vice-President of Monsanto Company, a company which develops agricultural products and consumer goods, and President of its nutrition and consumer sector. Prior to that, he was President of Monsanto Company’s agricultural sector. He has been a member of the boards of directors of Bank of America Corporation since January 2013 and Crown Holdings, Inc. since July 1999. He was a member of the board of The Laclede Group, Inc. from January 2003 to January 2014, Oil-Dri Corporation of America from December 1997 to January 2013 and The Scotts Company from March 2000 to January 2009. Learn more about Arnold W. Donald on Crunchbase…

Read more about Carnival Cruise Line on Crunchbase…

Simon Denyer

Joint Chief Executive Officer @ Perform Group

Follow Simon Denyer on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Simon is the CEO and founder of Perform Group, having joined the board in 2007. In his role as Perform Group CEO, Simon has overseen the strategic development of the leading digital sports content and media group from a product, geographical expansion, rights and commercial perspective. Prior to joining Perform Group, Simon founded Inform Group having previously held senior positions at IMG and Sporta. Simon holds a BA Hons in Economics and Geography from Loughborough University. Learn more about Simon Denyer on Crunchbase…

Perform Group is a digital media company that commercializes multimedia sports content across internet-enabled digital platforms. Read more about Perform Group on Crunchbase…

Thomas Teichman

Chairman and Executive Director @ Spark Ventures

Follow Thomas Teichman on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Tom is the Chairman of SPARK Venture Management and has a long track record in backing, chairing and developing some of Europe’s most successful internet, technology, music, games and software businesses. Additionally, he has 20 years’ prior investment banking experience acquired at Credit Suisse, Bank of Montreal Nesbitt and Mitsubishi Bank, where he held various positions including Head of Corporate Finance, Trading and Syndicate. Tom was Executive Chairman of SPARK Ventures plc for 10 years until 2011 and now chairs SPARK Venture Management, which manages the SPARK Ventures plc portfolio and other significant technology and life sciences portfolios including funds from major institutions and 27 Oxford University colleges and the UK Government. Tom has operated hands-on after his City days in many small and fast growing businesses from start up to IPO or trade sale. Thus, unusually, he combines awareness of the capital markets and the M&A environments with that of entrepreneurial, rapid growth companies with mould-breaking ideas. Learn more about Thomas Teichman on Crunchbase…

SPARK Venture is an early-stage venture capital investor in Europe. Read more about Spark Ventures on Crunchbase…

Alex Khein

Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer @ BlueCove

Follow Alex Khein on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

[custom-twitter-feeds screenname=”AlexKhein”]
Spoiler title
Alex Khein is a Chief Executive Officer at BlueBay Asset Management. Learn more about Alex Khein on Crunchbase…

BlueCove is a new scientific asset management firm. Read more about BlueCove on Crunchbase…

Nigel Wray

Non-Executive Director @ Domino’s Pizza

Follow Nigel Wray on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Nigel Wray is a highly successful entrepreneur, and has been a shareholder in several companies amongst others, Domino’s Pizza, Carlton Communications and Singer & Friedlander. He also has a strong commercial background built in a range of business sectors. Saracens does a lot of excellent work in its local, north London community. Nigel still calls the area home, too – having attended Mill Hill School, he now lives in Totteridge. Learn more about Nigel Wray on Crunchbase…

Read more about Domino’s Pizza on Crunchbase…

Richard Carr

Chief Executive @ Fortitudo Ltd

Follow Richard Carr on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

[custom-twitter-feeds screenname=”RichardCarrUK”]

Fortitudo Property brings a fresh and dynamic approach to developing property. Read more about Fortitudo Ltd on Crunchbase…

Alex Hersham

Chief Executive Officer @ Zencargo

Follow Alex Hersham on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

[custom-twitter-feeds screenname=”alexhersham”]
Spoiler title
CEO at Zencargo. Mostly recently spent 4 years building an international shipping and logistics platform at one of the largest Private Equity businesses in the world. Prior to the, he started his career at Goldman Sachs Learn more about Alex Hersham on Crunchbase…

Zencargo is a logistics company that simplifies global trade by offering digital freight services to help businesses thrive. Read more about Zencargo on Crunchbase…

Chris Bayne

Chief Executive Officer @ The Access Group

Follow Chris Bayne on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
As well as holding the position of CEO for Access UK & Ireland, Chris is the CEO of Access Technology Group (ATG) – the parent company. In his position, Chris contributes to ATG’s growth targets with the aid of Access’ private equity partner, TA Associates. Chris is a product visionary and still gets involved in technical sales and product development. Because he works in close collaboration with the sales team and customers, he’s influenced by the customer demands. All of this helps him to foresee trends and brief the development team on new features and user requirements. Learn more about Chris Bayne on Crunchbase…

The Access Group is a software consultancy and developer company that provides fully integrated business management software. Read more about The Access Group on Crunchbase…

Temitope Lawani

Managing Partner, Member of Executive and Investment Committees @ Helios Investment Partners

Follow Temitope Lawani on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Mr. Lawani received his BS in Chemical Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Juris Doctorate (cum laude) from Harvard Law School and MBA (2nd Year Honors) from Harvard Business School. He is co-founder and Managing Partner of Helios Investment Partners, LLP an Africa-focused private equity firm with approximately $1.8 billion in assets under management. Prior to forming Helios he was a Principal in the San Francisco and London offices of TPG Capital (“TPG”), a leading global private equity firm managing over $50 billion in capital. Tope is also a former Mergers & Acquisitions and Corporate Development Analyst at the Walt Disney Company in Burbank, California. He serves on Boards of Directors of Vivo Energy, First City Monument Bank PLC, Helios Towers Nigeria, InterSwitch Limited, Helios Towers Africa Limited and Finacity. He also serves as a member of the Harvard Law School Dean’s Advisory Board; the Overseers’ Visiting Committee of the Harvard Business School; and the MIT Open Courseware Advisory Board. Learn more about Temitope Lawani on Crunchbase…

Read more about Helios Investment Partners on Crunchbase…

Steve Cahillane

President & Chief Executive Officer @ NBTY

Follow Steve Cahillane on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Steve Cahillane joined NBTY in September 2014 as President & CEO. Since that time, he has also served as a member of the Board of Directors of NBTY. Prior to joining NBTY, Steve served as President of Coca-Cola Americas, which consists of both the North American and Latin American operations. Before assuming that role, he held positions as President and CEO of Coca-Cola Refreshments (CCR), an operating unit of the North American business of The Coca Cola Company, and President of Coca-Cola Enterprise’s (CCE) North American business. Mr. Steven A. Cahillane, also known as Steve, has been the Chief Executive Officer and President at Kellogg Company since October 2, 2017 and has been its Chairman since March 16, 2018. Mr. Cahillane possesses particular knowledge and experience in a variety of areas, including accounting and financial acumen, risk management, innovation and research and development, branded consumer products and consumer dynamics, regulatory and government that strengthens the Board’s Learn more about Steve Cahillane on Crunchbase…

Read more about NBTY on Crunchbase…

William Reeve

Chief Executive Officer @ Goodlord

Follow William Reeve on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

[custom-twitter-feeds screenname=”wreeve”]
Spoiler title
William Reeve is a serial entrepreneur and business angel based in London. He serves as non-executive Director for a variety of high-growth businesses including DealChecker.co.uk, Graze, iAnnounce, True Knowledge, and Zoopla. William co-founded Fletcher Research in 1997, which rapidly became the UK’s leading internet research business. He sold it to Forrester Research (NASDAQ:FORR) in 1999. William co-founded ScreenSelect in 2003. ScreenSelect grew rapidly and took over a variety of other businesses, before rebranding as LOVEFiLM.com in 2006. LOVEFiLM.com is now the leading international online film rental business. It is backed by Amazon.com, Arts Alliance, Balderton Capital, DFJ Esprit, and Index Ventures. Learn more about William Reeve on Crunchbase…

Goodlord offers a cloud-based software to help estate agents, landlords, and tenants manage the rental process. Read more about Goodlord on Crunchbase…

Ashley Almanza

Chief Executive Officer @ G4S

Follow Ashley Almanza on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Extensive board and executive management experience and strong track record working across international borders in complex businesses. Held a number of senior executive roles at BG Group from 1993 to 2012, including Chief Financial Officer from 2002 to 2011 and Executive Vice President from 2009 to 2012. As Executive Vice President he was accountable during 2009 and 2010 for BG Group’s UK, European and Central Asian businesses. He also led a consortium of global companies through complex government negotiations in Central Asia. He holds an MBA from London Business School. Non-executive director of Schroders plc and Noble Corporation. Board member of the Ligue Internationale des Sociétés de Surveillance. He retires from the board of Schroders on 28 April 2016. Learn more about Ashley Almanza on Crunchbase…

G4S is an international security solutions group, focused on BPO sectors where security and safety risks are considered a strategic threat. Read more about G4S on Crunchbase…

Alexandre Harkous

Founder & Executive Chairman @ OneWealthPlace

Follow Alexandre Harkous on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Alexandre, BI-SAM founder, has over 20 years of solid experience in strategy and information systems for the Capital Markets and Asset Management industries. He began his career at Mitsubishi Bank as Head of IT before joining Demachy Worms & Cie Bank as Projects Director and then SIP in 1995 as Client Management Director. In 1998 he joined Deloitte Consulting where he developed the Asset Management Expertise Center working closely with various global clients such as HSBC, Merrill Lynch, ABN Amro AM and Dresdner RCM Global Investors. Throughout his career, Alexandre gained a significant international experience in Europe, North America and Asia Pacific and a solid experience in business development, strategy, change management and systems for banking and asset management including securities services, portfolio management and analytics. Alexandre holds a Degree in Engineering and Computer Science. Learn more about Alexandre Harkous on Crunchbase…

Read more about OneWealthPlace on Crunchbase…

Del Titus Bawuah

Chief Executive Officer @ lili

Follow Del Titus Bawuah on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Del Titus Bawuah is a London based entrepreneur with a background in real estate management and alternative investments. Learn more about Del Titus Bawuah on Crunchbase…

Outdoor City pods offering flexible stay which can be accessed via smartphone or unique code on the move by the hour. Read more about lili on Crunchbase…

Aidan Cooney

Chief Executive Officer @ InCrowd Sports

Follow Aidan Cooney on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Aidan Cooney is a Chief Executive Officer at InCrowd Sports. Learn more about Aidan Cooney on Crunchbase…

Incrowd builds sponsorship activation platforms to give fans an in-stadia experience. Read more about InCrowd Sports on Crunchbase…

Jenny Griffiths

Founder & Chief Executive Officer @ Snap Vision

Follow Jenny Griffiths on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

[custom-twitter-feeds screenname=”JennySnapTech”]
Spoiler title
Jenny Griffiths is an award-winning technology entrepreneur and Computer Vision engineer. She founded her company Snap Vision in 2011, which was the first in the world to offer visual search for fashion retailers and publishers across both mobile and web. Being so early in the journey of the development and commercialisation of today’s AI market, Jenny is a thought-leader not only in AI and computer vision, but also in how to innovate and how to drive markets into adopting new innovations. Her work has led to her winning a number of awards, from the Royal Academy of Engineering’s Silver medal for personal contributions to UK engineering, to being awarded an MBE for Services to Innovation at the age of just 27. This year she was named as one of Forbes Magazine’s Top 50 Women in Tech in the world. Learn more about Jenny Griffiths on Crunchbase…

Snap Vision specializes in the fields of AI computer games and machine learning. Read more about Snap Vision on Crunchbase…

Clive Scrivener

Non-Executive Chairman @ Oxbotica

Follow Clive Scrivener on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Clive Scrivener serves as the chairman of Dukosi. Learn more about Clive Scrivener on Crunchbase…

Oxbotica powers the navigation, perception, user interface, fleet management, and other features needed to run self-driving vehicles. Read more about Oxbotica on Crunchbase…

Kirk A. Lepke

Executive Director, GS Growth @ Goldman Sachs

Follow Kirk A. Lepke on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Kirk A. Lepke is an Executive Director, GS Growth at Goldman Sachs. He was a member of the firm’s investment activities in Europe. Prior to Summit, Kirk worked for Torch Partners and Morgan Keegan Technology Group. He received a BA in commerce, organizations and entrepreneurship, magna cum laude, from Brown University. Learn more about Kirk A. Lepke on Crunchbase…

Read more about Goldman Sachs on Crunchbase…

Adam Share

Chief Executive @ RED Industries

Follow Adam Share on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
After a successful career, with over 25 years experience in the European and American Environmental Service Industry, Adam founded Red Industries in 2005. His previous roles included an executive level position at Safety-Kleen UK Ltd and responsibility for the £80 Million sale of Atlantic Waste Holdings Ltd. Learn more about Adam Share on Crunchbase…

Red Industries is the hazardous and non-hazardous waste management business Read more about RED Industries on Crunchbase…

Troy Collins

Chief Executive Officer @ Endource

Follow Troy Collins on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

[custom-twitter-feeds screenname=”troyism”]

Endource.com is the pinnacle of curated fashion. We scour the most influential fashion sources to bring you the fashion that’s made the cut. Read more about Endource on Crunchbase…

Charles Dunstone

Founder and Chief Executive @ Carphone Warehouse

Follow Charles Dunstone on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Charles Dunstone is a Founder at Carphone Warehouse plc. Learn more about Charles Dunstone on Crunchbase…

Carphone Warehouse is a telecommunications retailer that sells mobile phones, tablets, wearables, phone accessories, and SIMs. Read more about Carphone Warehouse on Crunchbase…

Phillip Nunn

Chief Executive Officer @ Wealth Chain Capital

Follow Phillip Nunn on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

[custom-twitter-feeds screenname=”PhillipNunnUK”]

Wealth Chain Capital specializes in providing customized finance and alpha-generating solutions. Read more about Wealth Chain Capital on Crunchbase…

Michael Ioakimides

Chief executive officer @ Cambridge Education Group

Follow Michael Ioakimides on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Michael Ioakimides is the chief executive officer of Cambridge Education Group. Learn more about Michael Ioakimides on Crunchbase…

Cambridge Education Group provides academic, creative, and English language programs in Europe and the United States. Read more about Cambridge Education Group on Crunchbase…

Laurent Laffy

Founder and Executive Chairman @ SeedLegals

Follow Laurent Laffy on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

The simple way for companies to complete the legals needed to raise investment and distribute equity Read more about SeedLegals on Crunchbase…

Antonin de Fougerolles

Chief Executive Officer @ Evox Therapeutics

Follow Antonin de Fougerolles on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Tony joined Ablynx as Chief Scientific Officer in October 2013. In this role, he leads the company’s discovery organization. Tony has more than 15 years of biotech R&D experience and expertise in building out pipelines and expanding platform technologies. Prior to joining Ablynx, Tony was CSO at Moderna Therapeutics where he led the science, helping to grow the company from a start-up to an established biotech with over 70 people and a $240M upfront pre-clinical deal with Astra Zeneca. Previously, Tony was CSO at Tolerx Incand prior to that he served on the management team of Alnylam Pharmaceuticals as Vice President, Research, Immunology, Metabolic, and Viral Disease from 2003-2010. He also served as a Principal Scientist at Biogen, Inc. (now Biogen Idec Inc.) from 1998-2003 where he worked on several immunology/inflammation-based programs and led research teams working to develop antibody-based therapeutics. Tony has been Principal Investigator on numerous grant awards totaling over $80M, and was named by Pharmaceutical Executive magazine as an “Emerging Pharma Leader” in 2009. Tony has over 60 scientific publications and is an inventor on over 30 issued U.S. patents. He earned his Ph.D. in Immunology from Harvard University, and was an Arthritis & Rheumatism Council (ARC) Research Fellow at the Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge, England. Learn more about Antonin de Fougerolles on Crunchbase…

Evox Therapeutics is a biotechnology company that harnesses and engineer the natural trafficking capabilities of extracellular vesicles. Read more about Evox Therapeutics on Crunchbase…

Britta Bomhard

Executive Vice President, Chief Marketing Officer @ Church & Dwight, Co

Follow Britta Bomhard on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Read more about Church & Dwight, Co on Crunchbase…

Alex Mifsud

Chief Executive Officer @ Weavr

Follow Alex Mifsud on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

[custom-twitter-feeds screenname=”alexmifsud”]
Spoiler title
Before founding Ixaris Alex worked as a senior consultant in the Cambridge-based tech practice of Arthur D. Little, a global management consultancy providing technology and innovation to blue chip clients. Alex holds a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from the University of Malta – where he later headed the computer science departments – as well as MSc and PhD degrees in computer science from the University of Edinburgh. Learn more about Alex Mifsud on Crunchbase…

Weavr is an online platform that creates, integrates, deploys, and runs digital payment flows. Read more about Weavr on Crunchbase…

Mark Oleynik

Founder & Chief Executive Officer @ Moley Robotics

Follow Mark Oleynik on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
An accomplished Ph.D. mathematician, computer scientist and proven trailblazer. Results focused, his career to date is characterized by delivering demanding major projects to time and to budget. Prior to founding Moley Robotics, Mark was a co-founder and a major shareholder of a number of companies working in a healthcare sector in Russia and internationally. Earlier in his career, Mark exercised his passion for building successful products at Pavlov First Saint Petersburg State Medical University and smaller companies. Mark Oleynik is a driven leader and passionate robotics and healthcare expert. Learn more about Mark Oleynik on Crunchbase…

Moley Robotics develops robotic kitchen with oven, hob, sink, and two dexterous robotic arms that allow it to cook. Read more about Moley Robotics on Crunchbase…

Mike Wells

Group Chief Executive @ Prudential PLC

Follow Mike Wells on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Mike Wells has been Group Chief Executive of the international financial services group Prudential plc since June 2015. Founded in London in 1848 and based in the UK, Prudential provides long-term savings and protection products, retirement income solutions and asset management through its businesses on four continents – Prudential Corporation Asia and Eastspring Investments in Asia, Jackson National Life Insurance in the US, M&GPrudential in the UK and Europe, and Prudential Africa. Since becoming Group Chief Executive, Mike has overseen continued growth across Prudential’s key metrics, with the Group delivering record IFRS operating profit of more than £4.8 billion in 2018, and its assets under management reaching £657 billion. Mike joined Jackson, Prudential’s North American unit, in 1995, and became Jackson’s Chief Operating Officer and Vice-Chairman in 2003. In 2011 he was appointed President and CEO of Jackson and joined the board of Prudential. He has more than three decades’ experience in insurance and retirement services, having started his career at the US brokerage house Dean Witter before becoming a managing director at Smith Barney Shearson. Mike was born in Ontario, Canada, and earned a Bachelor of Sciences in Economics from San Diego State University. Learn more about Mike Wells on Crunchbase…

Prudential plc is an international financial services group with significant operations in Asia, the US and the UK. Read more about Prudential PLC on Crunchbase…

Gregg Sando

Founder & former Chief Executive Officer @ Kuur Therapeutics

Follow Gregg Sando on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Gregg Sando is the founder and CEO of Cell Medica. After a career in investment banking based both in London and New York, he completed his Immunology MSc degree at the medical school of Imperial College. Recognizing the significant progress taking place in the field of cellular immunotherapy, Gregg formed Cell Medica in cooperation with a small group of the leading clinicians and immunologists who were pioneering this new mode of medical treatment. (B.A. Biochemistry, Harvard University; M.B.A. University of Chicago; MSc Immunology, Imperial College London). Learn more about Gregg Sando on Crunchbase…

Kuur Therapeutics is committed to transforming the lives of patients with cancer & is leading the development cell therapies. Read more about Kuur Therapeutics on Crunchbase…

Leith Robertson

Non Executive Chairman @ Specialist Risk Group

Follow Leith Robertson on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Leith Robertson is Chairman at Par Equity. Learn more about Leith Robertson on Crunchbase…

Specialist Risk Group is a fast-growing specialist insurance broker company. Read more about Specialist Risk Group on Crunchbase…

Joe Cohen

Executive Chairman @ LiveFrom Events

Follow Joe Cohen on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

[custom-twitter-feeds screenname=”Cohen_Goes_HAM”]

LiveFrom Events provides live streaming services of events, artists and venues. Read more about LiveFrom Events on Crunchbase…

Simon Rogerson

Chief Executive and co-founder @ Octopus Group

Follow Simon Rogerson on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Octopus Group is a privately held financial services and energy firm company. Read more about Octopus Group on Crunchbase…

Michael Mueller

Chief Executive Officer @ Form3

Follow Michael Mueller on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

[custom-twitter-feeds screenname=”mmueller28″]
Spoiler title
Michael set up Form3 after spending more than 25 years in various management positions with Deutsche Bank, Royal Bank of Scotland and Barclays. Most recently, he was Global Head of Cash Management and a Member of the Corporate Banking Executive at Barclays, where he had responsibility for the product management and distribution of the bank’s payment, corporate deposit and customer access products. For many years Michael has been passionate about driving digital change and innovation in global banks and has sponsored many key initiatives in this area, including white-labelling, biometric security, mobile payments (Pingit) and portal and mobile banking technology. More recently he has been actively involved in industry-level discussions about central bank digital currencies and the application of distributed ledger technology in financial services. Michael holds a degree in Organizational Psychology and a Master of Business Administration from INSEAD. Learn more about Michael Mueller on Crunchbase…

Form3 is a cloud native payments-as-a-service platform that designs, builds, and runs the technology that powers the future of payments. Read more about Form3 on Crunchbase…

Charles Wiles

Chief Executive Officer @ Zzish

Follow Charles Wiles on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

[custom-twitter-feeds screenname=”charleswiles”]
Spoiler title
Charles is the CEO and Co-Founder of Zzish, one of Europe’s leading new education technology ventures. Zzish is currently raising a new funding round. Zzish was selected as one of the “Future 30” at the Bett show and “EdTech 20” at EdTech Europe. Our own Quizalize app was ranked as the No.1 new app for schools by preeminent US EdTech site, EdSurge, last year. 15,000 teachers from more than 100 countries have signed up to use it so far! Our mission at Zzish is to enable almost anyone to create state-of-the-art education applications that have a real impact on student achievement. We help them do this far faster, better and cheaper than ever before. Our Zzish APIs let developers add important data driven features to their education applications in hours that would take them many months to implement themselves. Our templated app builder lets teachers create rich applications without writing any code at all. More broadly, Charles is an internet and mobile technology entrepreneur and angel investor with a passion for creating and investing in deep technology businesses that have a strong social impact. As part of this Charles is a Venture Partner at Emerge Venture Lab, Europe’s leading accelerator for education technology companies and runs the monthly London based EdTech Developers meetup. As Google’s first Product Manager hired outside the United States, Charles co-led the mobile browser team in London that built the HTML5 APIs for the Android browser. Then as Managing Director at VisualDNA he reinvented the company to focus it on personalised advertising taking revenues from zero to $3m annual in just two years and helping to grow staff from 25 to 100. He’s an expert in mobile platforms, personalisation, big data and edtech. With a PhD in Computer Science and Robotics from Oxford and and an MBA from London Business School, he’s equally at home working on big data algorithms for deep learning or financial spreadsheets and strategy. Learn more about Charles Wiles on Crunchbase…

Zzish is a valuable classroom digital teaching tool for teachers that provides real-time feedback on the progress of their students. Read more about Zzish on Crunchbase…

Peter Veash

Executive Director @ ImpactSense

Follow Peter Veash on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

ImpactSense makes a simple commitment to clients and provides actionable information that delivers now while keeping an eye on the future. Read more about ImpactSense on Crunchbase…

Helen Stevenson

Non-Executive Director, Chair of Remuneration Committee @ IG

Follow Helen Stevenson on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

IG provides Financial Spread Betting, Contracts for Difference (CFDs), Forex Trading and Execution-Only Share Dealing services. Read more about IG on Crunchbase…

Ricardo Santos Silva

Executive Chairman @ Dorae

Follow Ricardo Santos Silva on Facebook, Twitter or Linkedin.

Spoiler title
Ricardo is a Portuguese entrepreneur and investor in the financial, technology and mining sectors. He co-founded Aethel Partners, a multinational private equity, alternative asset management and financial services firm headquartered in London and co-founded Dorae, the blockchain-enabled global supply chain accountability system. Ricardo received an economics degree from the University of Lisbon. Learn more about Ricardo Santos Silva on Crunchbase…

Dorae is the physical trade cloud. Read more about Dorae on Crunchbase…

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.