NZVC Portfolio Day

Amos drives corporate strategy, building dairy proteins via plant-based molecular farming and partnerships across the alt-protein ecosystem. His extensive international networks and outstanding ability to build and maintain relationships enable Amos to open doors, establish and complete core partnerships key to our efficient B2B business model.

Anna has over 20 years’ experience in marketing and communications across B2C and B2B. She’s led global campaigns from 100% Pure New Zealand to serving as CMO at Les Mills International. Now as CEO of consumer testing platform Stickybeak, she helps FMCG marketers worldwide make smarter, data-driven decisions.

Ben Scales is the Co-Founder and CEO of KiwiFibre, a New Zealand-based startup developing high-performance natural fiber composites. With a background in sustainable materials and innovation, he is leading the charge to replace carbon-intensive materials with lightweight, eco-friendly alternatives.

Brad has been an early-stage investor and entrepreneur since 1987. Before co-founding Foundry Group, he co-founded Mobius Venture Capital and, before that, founded Intensity Ventures. Brad is also a co-founder of Techstars.

Bradley So is an Immigration Law Specialist with a focus on business and investment migration. Over the past two years, he has assisted clients in investing more than $500 million in New Zealand. Passionate about business growth and workforce development, Bradley has helped numerous companies expand their migrant workforce and frequently presents at seminars and New Zealand law conferences on a wide range of immigration topics.

David Yu, a 27-year veteran of the games and collectibles industry, founded Games R Us at 17 and later co-founded VeVe in 2018 — now the world leader in digital collectibles with over 9 million sales.

Under his leadership, VeVe has partnered with top global brands like Disney, Marvel, DC, and Star Wars, offering an immersive AR-based collecting experience through its app and marketplace.

Dermot Butterfield is the Founder & CEO of Wych, a New Zealand-based open financial data platform. Originally from Limerick, Ireland, he relocated to Auckland and in 2018 launched Wych to simplify and secure the way organizations access customer-permissioned financial data. Under his leadership, Wych has integrated with over 140 CDR (Consumer Data Right) data providers and operates in both Australia and New Zealand.

Erika Palmer is a co-founder of Cupla, a relationship app designed to help couples manage shared schedules, communicate, and plan quality time. Before Cupla, she founded Synthony, a music concept and stage show business, and held roles in finance and analytics (e.g. FP&A at Movio). Erika holds degrees in accounting and management and is a Chartered Accountant.

Hendrik's venture journey began in Europe, leading the expansion of Founders Intelligence before its acquisition by Accenture. At Merantix, he helped build Europe's leading AI venture studio and co-founded AI House Davos. Now based in Australia, he's passionate about scaling ANZ startups globally.

Jacques is an Investment Director responsible for managing our Aspire fund. Jacques obtained experience in consulting engineering in the UK and South Africa before joining a development finance institution. He spent five years in venture capital and industry development roles, pursuing the economic growth and industrial development objectives of the bank.

Jamie France is a seasoned engineering and manufacturing leader with extensive experience taking cutting-edge prototypes to production. Passionate about developing people and teams, he focuses on enabling efficient and purposeful execution. Jamie seeks to work with ambitious companies that aim to make a positive impact on the world and view their staff as their most valuable asset.

Janine co-founded Easy Crypto, New Zealand's leading cryptocurrency trading platform, established in 2017. She is a member of the Executive Council for FinTechNZ and recognised as a Women of Web3 Top 10 Changemaker, the Blockchain New Zealand Stand-Out Individual and Entrepreneur of the Year, and winner of the 2023 IBM Hi-Tech Awards for Inspiring Individual.

Jeremy Bryant is an experienced AgTech software leader and strategist. He founded Aimer Farming, the company behind AIMER, an AI-enabled digital assistant for pastoral farms, and AIMER Vision, a smartphone-based pasture measurement tool.

He has deep expertise in machine learning and simulation, with extensive experience applying both supervised and unsupervised learning methods, as well as developing process-based and hybrid analytical simulation models.

Jovan is a veteran founder with a track record of building and scaling businesses across New Zealand and the UK. He’s currently Co-founder of Emerge, a challenger to the banking status quo with the goal of reshaping the way Kiwi businesses manage money, and SquareOne, a financial app helping equip the next generation with modern money skills. Before launching in fintech, Jovan founded and exited Forest Group. He grew the London-based agency from scratch to a 25-person team and seven-figure revenue, navigating investment rounds, a management buyout, and an eventual acquisition. 
 

Lane is a veteran blockchain developer and researcher, currently Head of Research at NEAR Foundation and a core contributor to Spacemesh. Formerly an Ethereum Core Developer at the Ethereum Foundation, he writes and speaks on open protocols, crypto governance, metadata privacy, sci-fi and ultra distance running.

He began his investment journey at age 17, running a small investment club, before moving into banking and product management roles.

Under his leadership, Sharesies has grown rapidly — serving over half a million users in NZ, expanding into Australia, and emphasizing ease of access, education, and inclusion in investing.

Mark is a serial entrepreneur who exited his first company, Piper, after raising $15 million from top-tier investors. He arrived in New Zealand as an Edmund Hillary Fellow just before the 2020 lockdown and saw an opportunity to empower Kiwi founders with global ambition.

Nicole Freed is the Co-Founder of Daisy Lab, a New Zealand startup pioneering precision fermentation for dairy protein production. New Zealand is the world’s largest exporter of dairy proteins, but traditional production comes at a cost to the environment, polluting waterways and generating significant greenhouse gas emissions. Daisy Lab is working to change that—using precision fermentation to create identical dairy proteins without harming land, rivers, or animals.

Penelope Barton is an EdTech leader and a self-described magpie for productivity tools. She builds and scales organizations at the intersection of technology, impact, and people. Believing that ideas are easy but execution is hard, Penelope focuses on reducing complexity, developing high-performing teams, and designing systems that empower people to focus on what truly matters.

Philip is a design and product leader who’s shaped digital experiences for more than 25 years. A Co-founder of Xero and now Co-CEO of Upstock, he’s helped build iconic brands and advised top startups across product, growth and strategy.

With over 17 years of experience working in payments across the UK, USA, Australia and New Zealand, Shaun has built and led high-growth payment companies from startups to publicly listed organisations. He is a seasoned financial services entrepreneur with expertise in building and scaling regulated and unregulated solutions for enterprise and early-stage startups. Shaun has a passion for unlocking revenue with seamless customer experiences.

Steph Kennard is a self-taught designer and web/app engineer, and the CEO & founder of Charlie & Co, a creative agency known for building industry-leading digital products. Her latest venture, Bonnet, is a groundbreaking vehicle service platform connecting car owners and dealerships through an intuitive app and desktop system. Within three weeks of launch, Bonnet became New Zealand’s #1 app and now manages over 60,000 vehicles nationwide.

Steven Zinsli is the Founder & CEO of Extraordinary (formerly HealthNow), a company revolutionizing how organizations manage non-payroll employee benefits. Under his leadership, Extraordinary issues a specialized employee card that lets staff access benefits—such as health, transport, or wellness—without reimbursements or gift cards.