Blair Simpson

Virginia Retirement Systems (VRS) is a state-owned pension fund management firm headquartered in Richmond, Virginia. Founded in 1942, VRS administers pension plans and other benefits for Virginia's public sector employees through sound financial stewardship and superior customer service. Members include public school teachers, political subdivision employees (cities, towns, special authorities and commissions), state agency employees, public college and university personnel, state police, Virginia law officers and the judiciary. They also administer an optional retirement plan for political appointees and the Virginia Sickness and Disability Program for state employees.

Seaport Global Securities LLC is a full service investment bank, capital markets advisory and research platform headquartered in New York City with offices across the US and in Europe. They are a subsidiary of Seaport Global Holdings LLC. The firm offers access to a broad selection of fixed income and equity products, as well as the market intelligence to provide insight to dynamic opportunities for its clients. Seaport Global Securities provides clients access to innovative trading solutions, competitive rates, quality execution, and superior service. Their equity trading team focuses on identifying liquidity in US, Canadian and European markets. The fixed income distribution platform covers all areas of the credit spectrum.

Prolacta Bioscience, Inc. provides specialty formulations of human milk for the nutritional needs of premature and critically ill infants. Its products include Prolact+ H2MF, Prolact+4, Prolact+6, Prolact+8, Prolact+10 and Neo20. The company was founded by Elena Taggart Medo in1999 and is headquartered in Duarte, CA.

NinthDecimal, Inc. engages in the development of mobile audience intelligence platform. It specializes in the 9D solutions, television (TV) solutions, visit stream, programmatic, and data licensing. The company was founded by Kevin McKenzie and Nihad Hafiz in 2003 and is headquartered in San Francisco, CA.

Eleven Wireless, Inc. provides software solutions for broadband networks. It offers ElevenOS, a cloud-based platform that manages guest services online and Eleven Business Center, a guest computer and printer solution that delivers a desktop experience, including Web surfing, email, and a suite of Microsoft Office applications. The company was founded by Andrew C. Yorra, Josh Blank and Josh Friedman in 2002 and is headquartered in Portland, OR.

Alternative Investment Partners Absolute Return Fund is a closed investment fund. It engages in seeking capital appreciation through investing in investment funds managed by third party investment managers who employ a return investment strategies in pursuit of attractive risk-adjusted returns consistent with the preservation of capital. The company was founded on May 12, 2005 and is headquartered in West Conshohocken, PA.

Alternative Investment Partners Absolute Return Fund STS is a closed-end, non-diversified management investment company, which invests substantially all its assets in private investment funds, commonly referred to as hedge funds that are managed by a select group of alternative managers. The company was founded on October 31, 2005 and is headquartered in West Conshohocken, PA.

Buyology, Inc. operates as a market research company. It serves the financial services, media, and pharmaceuticals and technology. The company was founded by Gary Singer, Martin Lindstrom, and Donna Sturgess in 2008 and is headquartered in New York, NY.

Zadspace, Inc. provides advertising technology solutions. Its technology and methodology allows users to place hyper-targeted messages direct to consumer packages sent by etailers and catalogs. The company was founded by James Chen-Hwa Ho and Todd Avery Outten in January 2006 and is headquartered in Norwalk, CT.

Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC is a registered broker-dealer subsidiary of Morgan Stanley Domestic Holdings, Inc., ultimately owned by Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) in the US. Headquartered in New York City, the firm was founded in 1987 and provides debt and equity services including underwriting, M&A advice, securities dealing and brokerage and trade execution. Their client base ranges from large global institutional investors to hedge funds at the cutting edge of innovation in the industry.

SRI International provides contract research and development services. It is an independent, nonprofit research institute conducting client-sponsored research and development for government agencies, commercial businesses, foundations, and other organizations. The company was founded in 1946 and is headquartered in Menlo Park, CA.

Harvard University engages in the provision of teaching and research. It has twelve degree-granting Schools in addition to the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study, offering a global education. The university was founded in 1636 and is headquartered in Cambridge, MA.

Finance One U.S., Inc. provides security and commodity brokerage services. The private company is based in Los Angeles, CA.

Leerink Partners LLC is a full-service brokerage and investment banking firm headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts. The firm was founded by Jeffrey Leerink in 1995 and formerly known as SVB Securities LLC. They rebranded as Leerink Partners in 2023. The firm is a subsidiary of SVB Securities LLC. Leerink Partners provides institutional sales, equity research, institutional trading, and corporate finance and asset management services to the healthcare and technology industries. They offer superior execution capabilities in common stock, convertibles and derivatives with a singular focus on healthcare and a knowledge-led approach.

BB&T Securities LLC, doing business as BB&T Capital Markets, is the broker/dealer subsidiary of BB&T Corp. (NYSE: BBT). The firm is headquartered in Richmond, Virginia. They offer a full array of investment, trading and execution services to middle-market companies. BB&T Capital Markets' sales and trading arm is comprised of 2 groups: Debt Securities Sales & Trading and Equity Sales & Trading. The Debt Securities Sales & Trading group focuses on: (1) Government and agency securities (2) corporate bonds (3) municipal bonds (4) asset-backed securities (5) mortgage-backed securities (6) preferred securities and (7) money market desk (short-term securities including BB&T funding). The Equity Sales & Trading group focuses on: (1) institutional block execution services (2) institutional distribution of proprietary research (3) providing proprietary access to industry leading conferences and management teams (4) serving as a NASDAQ market maker for over 250 securities (5) stock buybacks including 10b-18 and 10b5-1 trading plans and (6) 144 stock sales, individual 10b5-1 trading plans (buy and sell) and employee cashless stock option programs. BB&T Capital Markets provides research coverage of the communications, defense and government services, energy, financial services, furnishings and consumer durables, healthcare, industrial services, retail/consumer durables and transportation services sectors.

SmartRG, Inc. provides broadband solutions. The firm provides engineers, sells and supports advanced customer premise equipment and home networking services. The company was founded in 2012 and is headquartered in Vancouver, WA.

Touchdown Ventures, Inc. (Touchdown Ventures) is a venture capital firm founded in 2014 by David B. Horowitz, Scott Lenet and Rich M. Grant. The firm is headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

The Catlin Gabel School operates as independent school. The company was founded by Ruth Catlin and Ruth Catlin in 1859 and is headquartered in Portland, OR.

Gideon Hixon Ventures (Gideon Hixon) is an venture capital firm founded in 1990 by Eric Hixon. The firm is headquartered in Summerland, California.

The Oregon Entrepreneurs Network provides investment assistance. The non-profit company is based in Portland, OR and has subsidiaries in the United States.

The Oregon Symphony offers various ticket options and packages for students, seniors, and those who qualify for Arts for All. The symphony is located in Salem and is the oldest orchestra west of the Mississippi. Visitors can learn about the history of the orchestra, including its conductors and famous concerts. The website also provides a ticket FAQ and other helpful concert information.

Thompson Davis & Co., Inc. (Investment Management), do-business-as Thompson Davis Asset Management (TDAM), is the investment management division of Thompson Davis & Co., Inc., a broker/dealer firm headquartered in Richmond, Virginia. TDAM was founded in 2002 and provides discretionary investment supervisory and management services to individuals, corporations or other business entities, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, and retirement plans.

Founded in 1958, Merrill Lynch Piece Fenner & Smith, Inc. is an SEC registered broker/dealer located in New York City. The firm is a subsidiary of BAC North America Holding Co. and their ultimate parent is Bank of America Corp. (NYSE BAC).

Capybara Ventures LLC is Venture Capital firm founded in 2004 by Eric J. Rosenfeld and Bob Ward. Headquartered is in Portland.US.

Sapien Capital Partners Ltd. Is a venture capital firm founded in 1996 by Roger Allen and Roger G. Buckeridge. It is headquartered in Sydney, Australia.