Join us in discovering...
THE FUTURE OF COMMERCE.
WHAT WE DO
At Commerce Ventures, we are building a new and different type of venture capital firm. Our investors are a unique and strategic blend of leading entrepreneurs, senior executives and corporates from our focus sectors (mobile, retail, payments, digital marketing). In addition to providing capital, we are committed to helping our portfolio companies succeed in scaling their commerce-related innovations. Commerce Ventures' strategy is typically
NOT
to lead investment rounds, but instead to participate alongside top notch lead investors such as VCs, seed funds and strategic corporations. Although we do not target a specific security or round, most of our investments will be in companies that have recruited a core team, developed a flagship product and demonstrated
EARLY
product-market fit. If you think we might be the right partner for you, please contact us through any of the channels below and we will do our best to respond in a timely fashion.
WHO WE ARE
Dan Rosen
General Partner
Dan has been investing in startups for 13 years, most recently as a Principal at Highland Capital Partners, where he focused on mobile and payments-related startups. Prior to Highland, Dan was an Associate at HarbourVest Partners, worked in Corporate Development at RSA Security (Acq'd by EMC); and as a software consultant for American Management Systems (Acq'd by CGI Group). He earned his BS in Economics from U. Penn (Wharton) and his MBA from Harvard. Follow him @VentureDan
Chip Kahn
Venture Partner
Alfred ‘Chip’ Kahn IV has founded and operated four businesses in the payments and network infrastructure markets. Most recently, Chip created IP Commerce, providing a Platform-as-a-Service for commerce developers, where he currently serves as Executive Chairman. Chip also serves on the Advisory Boards of PaySimple, a SaaS billing and collections provider, and Leapset, a cloud POS company.
PORTFOLIO
We
support
entrepreneurs whose innovations are
enabling
the future of
commerce
.
BETTER
DOCTOR
THEMES: Digital-to-Physical Marketing, Ratings & Reviews
San Francisco, CA
BetterDoctor is a disruptive doctor search service that helps consumers easily find a quality doctor who accepts their insurance plan. BetterDoctor’s mission is to simplify healthcare and make doctor search more transparent.
LINQIA
THEMES: Digital & Social Marketing, Brand Engagement
San Francisco, CA
Linqia matches brands with influential community leaders who share authentic digital content and meaningful stories among targeted groups of people.
MARQETA
THEMES: Digital Gift & Loyalty, Payment Network
Emeryville, California
Marqeta is an online-to-offline commerce and payments platform that empowers large enterprises to better serve their constituents, enables merchants to capture greater customer spend and gives consumers more money for the things they buy everyday.
OwnerListens
THEME: Merchant Loyalty
Palo Alto, CA
OwnerListens empowers business owners to collect and respond to digital customer feedback in real-time. Consumers use OwnerListens to send compliments, complaints, and suggestions to any local businesses’ owner, who can then respond via text or email.
RetailNext
THEMES: In-Store Analytics, Applied Big Data
San Jose, CA
RetailNext delivers big data analytics by enabling retailers and manufacturers to collect, analyze, and visualize in-store data from video, on-shelf sensors, POS systems and other sources. The company tracks more than 400 million shoppers, collecting over 75 petabytes of data from 30,000 sensors in stores and yielding trillions of data points each year.
SavingStar
THEMES: Digital Coupons, Loyalty, Brand Marketing
Waltham, MA
SavingStar is the first national, fully digital (web and mobile), grocery eCoupon service providing exclusive eCoupons which are automatically redeemable at over 25,000 U.S. grocery and drug stores.
INVESTORS & ADVISORS
Our approach to helping company relies on our unique network of successful entrepreneurs and executives.
Anil Aggarwal
EXPERT: Payments, Financial Services & Commerce Innovation
Founder & CEO, TxVia (Now Google); Chairman, Money2020
Anil has been an innovator and leader in emerging payments and financial services for more than 12 years. Currently, he is the Founder and Chairman of Money2020 and an active member of the Google Wallet Business Development team, which Anil joined after Google acquired his previous company, TxVia. Previously, Anil served as Chairman and CEO of TxVia, an industry-leading payments processing platform. He also founded several other successful payments-related ventures, including Clarity Payment Solutions (acquired by TSYS), Prepaid Media (acquired by Informa) and the Network Branded Prepaid Card Association (NBCPA) trade group. Before his career in payments and financial services, Anil was a corporate lawyer and certified public accountant. He is a graduate of Boston University School of Law.
Lars Albright
EXPERT: Mobile, Digital Marketing & Advertising
CEO, SessionM
Lars is a proven entrepreneur with extensive experience in the mobile and digital media industries. He is currently co-founder and CEO of SessionM, Inc., a leading loyalty, rewards and advertising platform in the mobile space. Prior to co-founding SessionM, Lars was at Apple, Inc., where he was a member of the executive team of iAd, Apple's mobile advertising business unit. Before Apple, Lars was co-founder and SVP of Business Development at Quattro Wireless, a leading mobile advertising platform that was acquired by Apple in 2009 for $275 million. Prior to Quattro, Lars was VP of Business Development at m-Qube, North America's dominant mobile aggregator that was acquired by VeriSign in 2006 for $250 million. Lars was selected as one of the Most Innovative People in Massachusetts for 2013 and was honored as a top 40 under 40 business leader by Direct Marketer and the Boston Business Journal. Lars has been featured in publications like the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, New York Times, Fortune, CNBC and Bloomberg News among numerous others. Lars received an MBA from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth and his AB with honors from Harvard University.
Eduardo Castro-Wright
EXPERT: Retail, Commerce & Operations
Active Investor & Advisor
Eduardo is a retail and e-commerce veteran, having served as Vice Chairman of Wal-Mart Stores Inc., as well as CEO of Walmart US, Wal-Mart's largest business, and Walmart Global eCommerce (Walmart.com). Prior to Wal-Mart Stores Inc., Eduardo was CEO of Honeywell’s Transportation and Power Systems Worldwide, and led several of RJR Nabisco's businesses in Latin America. Eduardo earned his BS in Mechanical Engineering from Texas A&M University. Today, he is an active advisor to, investor in and board member for several innovative, early-stage businesses.
David Evans
EXPERT: Pricing, Product Design & Distribution
Founder, Market Platform Dynamics; Chairman, Global Economics Group
David is an economist, business advisor and a recognized global authority on the design and implementation of complex business strategies and business models. David has more than 25 years of experience helping companies design business strategies to overcome the “chicken and egg” problem of recruiting multiple customer groups to the same platform at the same time. With this experience, he has pioneered research of “multi-sided markets” and the economic principles that inform the unique design of business models, pricing and incentive structures, and product design for these platform-based businesses. David holds academic positions at University College London and the University of Chicago. He has a Ph.D. and undergraduate degree in economics from the University of Chicago. He also serves on the boards of several high-technology companies and is a longtime advisor to some of the largest platform-based companies in the world.
John Goldsmith
EXPERT: Data Analytics & Information Services
Active Seed Investor
John is an active early stage investor in Axial, Datalot, Gerson Lehrman Group, Intego, Kyruus, Lux Research, Sulia and a number of seed stage businesses. Through the end of 1999 John was a partner of AEA Investors Inc., a private equity firm, which he joined in 1989. He received an MBA in finance from NYU's Stern School of Business and graduated from Princeton University.
Pete Kight
EXPERT: Payments, Software, Financial Services & Financial Technology
Managing Partner, Comvest Partners
Pete is a Managing Partner at Comvest Partners, which he joined in 2010. Previously, Pete was the Founder, Chairman, and CEO of CheckFree Corporation, which he led from start-up in 1981 until December 2007 when it was sold to Fiserv (FISV) for $4.4 billion. At the time of sale, CheckFree was a primary global supplier of electronic banking technology and services, the largest provider of electronic billing and payments services, with revenues of $1.1 billion. Pete has served on several public and private company boards, including Akamai (AKAM), Cartera Commerce, CynergyData (Chairman), Fiserv (where he also served as Vice Chairman), Huntington Bancshares (HBAN) and Manhattan Associates (MANH).
Todd Krasnow
EXPERT: Consumer Marketing & Retail
Active Investor & Advisor
Todd served on the original management team of Staples, where he was instrumental in opening the world’s first office superstore and helped grow Staples to $7 billion in annual revenue by 1998. As EVP of Sales and Marketing, Todd also started and ran Staples’ catalog business. During his tenure, Todd won a gold “Clio” award for best retail advertising in the U.S. He is a Board member and advisor for many consumer and retail businesses, including Carbonite (NASDAQ:CARB), TileShop (NASDAQ :TTS), Global Customer Commerce, Linkable Networks and C&S Wholesale Grocers. Todd has also served on the Harvard Business School faculty as EIR for the 2006/2007 academic year, is a Marketing Domain Expert for the Highland Consumer Fund and is a member of Cornell University’s Alumni Council and the HBS Entrepreneurship Center Advisory Board. Todd earned an AB in Chemistry from Cornell University and an MBA from Harvard Business School.
Barry Lewis
EXPERT: Mobile & Wireless
President, Triad Communications
Barry is President of Triad Communications and its affiliated entities. Previously, he founded Triad Cellular Corporation in 1992 and ran the business until its acquisition by Western Wireless in 1997 for over $200 million. Mr. Lewis has worked in the cellular industry since its inception, starting in 1985 as the President of the Cellular Division of Communication Industries, which built and operated some of the nation's first urban cellular networks in San Diego, Atlanta, and San Francisco. When Pacific Telesis acquired Communications Industries in 1986, Mr. Lewis joined Pacific Telesis, where he served as the VP of Corporate Strategy. Prior to joining Triad, Mr. Lewis was the President and CEO of General Cellular Corporation, an independent cellular operator which was subsequently merged into Western Wireless. Mr. Lewis holds a BS in Engineering and Math from the US Naval Academy and an MBA from Stanford University.
Tom Litle
EXPERT: Payments & Multi-Channel Commerce
CEO, Litle & Co. (Now Vantiv)
Tom is the President and CEO of Litle & Co, the merchant processing platform that powers online commerce leaders such as Ancestry, Box, CafePress GoDaddy, Gilt, Overstock, Wayfair and Yext. In 2012, Vantiv (NYSE:VNTV) acquired Litle for $361 million. Prior to Litle & Co, Tom was Founder and General Partner of Industry Ventures, a pioneer in the Direct-Secondary investment industry, as well as President of OrderTrust, the first large-scale transaction processing network for order management in support of direct and multi-channel merchants. Tom serves as a director and advisor to several startups, entrepreneurs and venture investors. He earned a BA from UC Berkeley and a BFA from the Rhode Island School of Design
Scott Loftesness
EXPERT: Payments Innovation, Mobile Payments & Next-Generation Financial Services
Founding Partner, Glenbrook Partners - Menlo Park, CA
Scott has over 30 years of experience as a technologist, senior executive, board member, venture investor, consultant, advisor, and mentor. He is a Founding Partner of Glenbrook Partners, a leading strategy consultancy in the payments and financial services industries. Earlier, Scott was Group Executive at First Data Merchant Services where he was responsible for products, systems development and operations for the world's largest card acquiring business. At Visa International, he led the development of Visa's global payment systems strategies, including Visa's R&D initiatives relating to card payments, Internet payments and advanced card technologies including EMV chip card technologies. Scott began his career as a systems engineer with IBM in San Francisco after attending UC Berkeley. He co-authored the book "Payments Systems in the U.S" and many articles on Glenbrook's Payments News and Payments Views websites. He is a co-inventor on several payments-related US patents.
John Mason
EXPERT: Mobile & Wireless
VP Business Development, Triad Communications
John joined the Triad team in 1996, has directed BD initiatives for most of Triad's operating entities, and serves as VP for Triad affiliates 3G PCS, LLC, Harbor Wireless, LLC, Harbor Guardband, LLC, and Triad AWS, LLC. Mr. Mason has also overseen most of Triad' s FCC spectrum auction efforts. Prior to joining Triad, Mr. Mason worked as a systems development consultant for a variety of telecommunications firms. He holds a B.A. from Stanford University and a Master's in Public Policy from UC at Berkeley.
Frank Mastrangelo
EXPERT: Payments, Financial Services & Financial Technology
President & COO, The Bancorp Bank
Frank Mastrangelo has been the President and Chief Operating Officer of The Bancorp Bank since 1999. Frank’s extensive experience in financial services technology has enabled The Bancorp Bank to be a superior provider of internet-enabled financial services. Previously, Frank served as SVP, CTO, and Co-Chair of the Technology Committee for the former Jefferson Bank, where he was responsible for setting the overall technical strategy at Jefferson. Prior to joining Jefferson, Frank worked as a Systems Specialist for PNC Bank’s Family Wealth Management Divison and Technical Representative for ROI Computer Services, Inc. Frank also spent five years as Systems Manager to Walter H. Annenberg and The Annenberg Foundation, where developed and oversaw technology systems for the Foundation, 40 fiduciary trusts and six charitable trusts with assets totaling $3.2 billion. Frank is a member of FinTech, a Washington, DC-based oversight committee charged with crafting and reviewing legal, regulatory and public policy for technology-driven financial services companies.
Vince Passione
EXPERT: Payments, Financial Services & Financial Technology
CEO, LendKey
Vince is CEO and founder of LendKey, driving the vision and strategy for the company while overseeing the executive management team. Vince has extensive experience running financial services and high tech companies. Before founding LendKey, Vince was the COO of DealerTrack, which built the nation’s first and largest credit portal connecting automotive dealerships to banks and credit unions. DealerTrack had a successful IPO in 2005 and today processes over 35% of all auto finance loan applications in the U.S. Previously, Vince was President of Ameritrade’s Institutional Client Division and was the CEO of OnMoney.com, an online personal financial management website. Vince has also held senior level positions at Citigroup including CTO of their U.S. Consumer Bank and COO of Citi Financial Interactive. He began his career at IBM and holds a BS in computer science from Polytechnic University.
Jason Pavona
EXPERT: Payments & Multi-Channel Commerce
EVP, Litle & Co. (Now Vantiv)
Jason is Executive VP of Litle & Co. the merchant processing platform that powers online commerce leaders such as Ancestry, Box, CafePress GoDaddy, Gilt, Overstock, Wayfair and Yext - there he leads Product, Sales & Marketing strategy. In 2012, Vantiv (NYSE:VNTV) acquired Litle for $361 million. Before joining Litle, Jason served as a Partner in Enflect, LLC which helped developed several product companies in the payment, loyalty, financial services and software industries. He also helped create Wallaware, Inc., a wireless router company, where he drove the company's first U.S and International sales, raised several rounds of private equity capital and opened operations in the US and internationally. Before Wallaware, Jason was Director of Wireless and Personalization at Terra Lycos, a top three visited Internet destination. At Terra Lycos, he developed the company's pioneering Lycos Anywhere® mobile portal, eventually reaching users in 30 countries. He also managed Terra Lycos' Network Personalization products, including MyLycos®, the award winning personalization destination with 20+ million registered users. Jason received a BS in Finance and Entrepreneurial Studies from Babson College.
Rick Savard
EXPERT: Payments, Retail, Marketing & Loyalty
CEO, FSV Payment Systems
Rick has been the CEO of FSV Payment Systems since 2010, leading the company to its recent, successful acquisition by U.S. Bancorp. At FSV, Rick has set the company’s strategic direction and led its execution in the employer solutions, retail partners and commercial services lines of business. Prior to FSV, Rick was the CEO of NetSpend Corporation, a leading U.S. prepaid debit company that was recently acquired by Total Systems Services, Inc (TSYS) for $1.4 billion. Before joining NetSpend, he was SVP of Marketing for Federated Department Stores (Macy's), where he led Federated's marketing activities for private label credit cards, as well as the company's Visa® portfolio, gift cards, and loyalty program development. Earlier in his career, Rick served as VP of Membership Rewards at American Express in Canada where he led the launch of the Membership Rewards loyalty program. Rick holds a bachelor's degree in Commerce from Concordia University in Montreal, Canada.
Scott Shaw
EXPERT: Digital Marketing, Retail, Loyalty & Financial Services
Managing Director, Kessler Group
Scott is responsible for a range of corporate-wide projects at Kessler, where he develops and manages financial service partnerships and extends client capabilities into new areas, such as mobile commerce, consumer loans and risk syndication. He is also responsible for helping manage complex workout situations with Howard Kessler and the Kessler M&A team. Scott joined The Kessler Group in 1990 and was instrumental in helping Howard Kessler purchase its predecessor company and create strategic partnerships in the credit card, telecom, payment and consumer finance industries. He has also spent time as President of Aliaswire, an emerging payments company, and is an investor in several successful retail businesses. Scott holds a BS in Biochemistry from the University of New Hampshire.
Scott Thompson
EXPERT: Payments & Multi-Channel Commerce
CEO, ShopRunner
Scott is the CEO of ShopRunner, the leading provider of consumer-targeted, premium e-commerce-related services (e.g. 2-day delivery, free shipping on returns, member-only offers, etc) available at dozens of leading merchants, such as American Eagle, Babies-R-Us, Drugstore.com, FTD, PetSmart and Sports Authority. Prior to ShopRunner, Scott held several senior leadership roles in online, payments and commerce-related companies, including serving as CEO of Yahoo!, President and CTO of PayPal, EVP at Inovant (Visa) and CIO of Barclays Global Investors. He is and has been a Board member for many fast-growth, private companies, including Vertica (acq'd by HP), Splunk (NASDAQ:SPLK), Zuora, PerkStreet, Kabbage and Plastiq.
Craig Viehweg
EXPERT: Mobile & Wireless
CFO, Triad Communications
Craig serves as the Chief Financial Officer for Triad and its affiliated entities, after being on the executive team of Triad Cellular from its founding days to its successful acquisition by Western Wireless. Prior to joining Triad, Mr. Viehweg was VP of Finance for General Cellular Corporation, a Division Controller for Waste Management, Inc., and on the audit staff of Arthur Anderson & Co. in San Francisco. Mr. Viehweg is a CPA (inactive) and received a BS degree in Business Administration from the University of South Dakota.
Karen Webster
EXPERT: Marketing, Payments & Commerce
CEO, Market Platform Dynamics; President, PYMNTS.com
Karen is a thought leader in the payments and commerce industries. As CEO of Market Platform Dynamics, she regularly advises many market-leading players on how best to architect, ignite and commercialize innovation. Karen also serves as an advisor and board member for many fast-growth, private companies in the payments, technology and digital media sectors. She is a frequent industry speaker and has authored numerous articles and whitepapers on payments, mobile, social strategy, product design and loyalty. Karen was also a key contributor to Catalyst Code: The Strategies Behind the World’s Most Dynamic Companies, for which she directed the research and devised its trademarked 6-step Framework. Karen formerly served as the Managing Director of Global Marketing and Planning for PricewaterhouseCoopers’ Management Consulting Services practice and later served as COO for one of MMC’s consulting subsidiaries. Karen studied at Johns Hopkins, where she earned her Bachelors degree, Masters in Marketing and has served as an adjunct faculty member.
STRATEGIC NETWORK: Additional VCs, Industry Analysts & Executives
EXPERTS: Mobile, Retail, Payments, Digital Advertising, Commerce
In addition to the representatives listed above, the Commerce Ventures Strategic Network is extensive and purpose-built to provide unique and proprietary assistance to the companies in which we invest. The network provides not only deep expertise in our investment themes but also deal-making support, distribution access and industry market evangelism.
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