DFJ Gotham Ventures Recruits Top Entrepreneur and Operator, Jed Katz
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
PR Contact:
JoAnn Malejko
(212) 279-3980
info@dfjgotham.com
DFJ GOTHAM VENTURES RECRUITS
TOP ENTREPRENEUR AND OPERATOR, JED KATZ
Hiring Marks Important Expansion
of DFJ Gotham Investment Team
January 20, 2006 (NEW YORK, NY) – Draper Fisher Jurvetson Gotham Ventures, an early-stage technology venture capital fund based in New York, today announced the addition of entrepreneur and operator, Jed Katz, to the DFJ Gotham investment team. Katz joins DFJ Gotham as a Venture Partner and is expected to become a Managing Director of DFJ Gotham as the firm grows its capital base.
Katz will work with DFJ Gotham Co-founders Ross Goldstein and Danny Schultz to identify, evaluate, invest in and build great entrepreneurial technology companies. He will be leading deals and sitting on boards and is close to completing his first transaction at the firm.
“I am honored and delighted to join DFJ Gotham,” commented Katz. “Ross and Danny have done a tremendous job putting together a winning portfolio in the firm’s first fund, and I am eager to leverage my entrepreneurial and operational background to help find, fund and guide the next great businesses. I feel fortunate to have joined such a great firm.”
Katz was one of the pioneers of Internet commerce and has spent the last thirteen years as an entrepreneur, building, advising and investing in early-stage technology ventures. He was the Co-founder and COO of Rent Net (http://www.rent.net) the Internet’s first and most-visited rental and relocation guide. There he grew the company from 2 to over 160 people and into one of the first profitable Internet companies. Rent Net was acquired by Cendant (NYSE: CD), and Katz and the team utilized the platform to then form the core of Move.com (http://www.move.com), the Internet’s 2nd largest real estate and relocation site ultimately acquired by Homestore (NASDAQ: HOMS) for over $900 million. Since then, Katz has been investing in and advising various start-ups, however, he had recently returned to an operating role as the COO of Yamcon (http://www.yamcon.com), a technology-based consumer products company and the inventor of the acclaimed SkyScoutTM. Katz received his B.A. in Business Economics from UCLA and his M.B.A. from University of California at Berkeley.
“We’re thrilled to have Jed on board. He has a proven ability to build successful companies from the ground up and knows how to spot winners,” according to Schultz. “Jed brings an invaluable entrepreneurial background and a perspective that entrepreneurs will find refreshing. He is a superb addition to our team,” added Goldstein.
Managing Directors Ross Goldstein and Danny Schultz founded DFJ Gotham Ventures in 1999. Since then the group has invested in a wide range of early-stage technology companies mostly in and around the New York tri-state area and the East Coast in general including ContextWeb, Lumeta, Magnolia Broadband, Massive, Mimeo.com, XOsoft and others and has also realized several successful exits.
About Draper Fisher Jurvetson Gotham Ventures:
Draper Fisher Jurvetson Gotham Ventures is an early-stage information technology venture capital firm with approximately $100 million of capital under management, focused on investment opportunities in New York and the surrounding regions. The Fund is an affiliate of Draper Fisher Jurvetson, the leading venture capital firm in Silicon Valley. For more information about Draper Fisher Jurvetson Gotham Ventures see www.dfjgotham.com.
About Draper Fisher Jurvetson:
Draper Fisher Jurvetson is the leader in seed and early-stage venture capital worldwide. It is the only venture capital firm with global presence through a network of affiliated funds, with offices in more than 30 cities around the world and more than $3 billion in capital commitments. DFJ’s mission is to identify, provide capital for, and serve extraordinary entrepreneurs located anywhere, who seek to change the world. Over the past twenty years, DFJ has been proud to back approximately 300 companies across a myriad of sectors including such industry changing catalysts as Hotmail (acquired by MFST), Baidu (BIDU), Skype (acquired by EBAY), United Online (UNTD), Overture (acquired by YHOO), Interwoven (IWOV) and others. For more information about Draper Fisher Jurvetson see www.dfj.com.