Issue link: https://nebusinessmedia.uberflip.com/i/1383836
PANELISTS: Jacqueline Bennett, Managing Partner, Highlands Venture Partners Jacqueline began working with cannabis companies in 2018, investing in and advising dozens of companies in the industry and at the intersection of cannabis, including beauty and technology. Jacqueline was previously a Director at Sands Lane Capital, a venture capital firm, and prior to this launched the East Coast arm of ELLO Capital, a cannabis investment bank and affiliate of Macias Gini and O'Connell, where she built and led a team to source several transactions. Jacqueline spent six years on Wall Street where she executed transactions valued in excess of $20 billion. She worked at J.P. Morgan Investment Bank in New York advising consumer, retail, private equity and early-stage disruptive companies on M&A, leveraged buyouts, IPOs and private placements, including Rent the Runway's $125 million Series F financing and Peloton's $550 million Series F financing. During her time at J.P. Morgan. Prior to this, she spent two years at Credit Suisse in private equity coverage and started her career in Sydney as an equity capital markets analyst at Babcock & Brown, a leading merchant bank. Jacqueline spent three years in San Francisco working in an operating capacity at Viator, a venture funded high growth tech travel company. At Viator she led strategic and finance efforts including M&A. Viator was acquired by TripAdvisor in 2014. Jacqueline is the CFO of Speedwell Partners Acquisition Corp.; Board Director at LENUS Biosciences SPAC; Council Member at NationSwell and Advisory Board Member at Last Prisoner Project. She earned her MBA from New York University's Stern School of Business where she was a Teacher Fellow and Student Board Member. She also earned an MBA from London Business School and her B.S. in Commerce and a Business Law Minor from the University of Western Australia where she graduated with Distinction. Jeanne M. Sullivan, CIO, Arcview Ventures Jeanne has been a member of the Arcview team for several years, an eleven year old company that saw, before most, that investors would want to convene and meet dynamic cannabis business owners and entrepreneurs. Jeanne is an investor, advisor and sought-after speaker in the cannabis sector leveraging 25 years of tech investing. She is the Chief Investment Officer of Arcview Ventures and co-founder of the Arcview Collective Fund. Formerly, Sullivan was a General Partner and co- founder of a NYC-based venture capital fund with $400 million under management. Jeanne has been a member of the Women's Leadership Board at the Harvard Kennedy School and is an Athena Entrepreneur Fellow for Barnard College. She also serves on the Global Board of Trustees of Astia, funding high- growth women entrepreneurs. Forbes cited Sullivan as "one of the women VCs changing the world. The New York Hall of Science honored Jeanne for her work inspiring girls and women in science, technology (STEM) sectors. Jeanne also serves on its Board of Trustees. Francy Wade, Founder, ChatterBoss Communications Francy Wade, a Massachusetts native, has been working in TV, radio and communications since she was five years-old. After attending New York University, Francy transitioned to news and was nominated for an Emmy Award for an investigative report with WNBC. Returning to Massachusetts as a producer at WBZ News, Francy later became the spokesperson for the Massachusetts State Treasury and all its departments including the Lottery and School Building Authority. She is also a two-time winning ballot campaign spokesperson: One included her successfully protecting the state's affordable housing law; The other legalized the adult use of marijuana in Massachusetts. In 2018, Francy launched her own PR, marketing and communications company ChatterBoss Communications, and has had dozens of clients in industries including cannabis, retail, politics and education. Francy was named a Rising Star by the Boston Business Journal. Francy has three children, two dogs and is married to her anchor and best friend, David Wade of WBZ News. Kyle York, Controller, New England Craft Cultivators Kyle York has joined the cannabis sector after transitioning out of commercial real estate with over sixteen years of finance and accounting experience. A graduate of Purdue University, Kyle has relied on his deep understanding of established markets and financial practices as an investor in and the Controller for a cannabis startup (NECC) that currently has two retail licenses and a partially owned subsidiary that has an outdoor grow.