[Webinar] Meet the VC: Lisa Xu of FirstMark

May 13, 2022

Lisa Xu

FirstMark

Meet the VC is a monthly panel event hosted by Escalon and its partners. This month, we had an engaging discussion with Lisa Xu of FirstMark to discuss fundraising, investment thesis, the current investment climate and more. with our partners First Republic Bank and Vensure.

About Lisa Xu

Lisa is a Principal at FirstMark Capital, where she sources and evaluates new investments for the firm. Lisa joined the investment team in 2018 and focuses on consumer technology and consumer-facing Web3 applications and platforms. She also works closely with and supports FirstMark’s portfolio companies, including Workit Health, Loop Returns, and Simplist, as a Board Observer.

Prior to joining FirstMark Capital, Lisa was a Product Manager at NYC-based venture-backed startups Handy (acquired by ANGI Homeservices) and Peloton (NASDAQ: PTON). Previously, Lisa was a Senior Associate Consultant at Bain & Company, where she performed due diligence for private equity firms and advised Fortune 500 companies on corporate strategy.

Lisa graduated summa cum laude from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania with a B.S. in Finance and Management. She serves as a Mentor for Techstars, NYU Entrepreneurship, and BLCK VC.

About FirstMark Capital

Established in 2011, Varana Capital, LLC originally was intended to serve as a family office, managing the personal wealth of its two founders, Philip Broenniman and Ezra Gardner. Over the years, however, demand for access to their portfolio from wealthy friends, other successful professionals, and word- of-mouth caused our mission to evolve into the development of a platform of synergistic, adjacent, and complementary investment products, which build on the excellent performance and successful partnerships of Varana Capital Focused (VCFLP), our flagship fund.

Watch the replay of the event above, or here.

About Escalon

Escalon offers all the essential business services needed to maintain a company. A single, trusted resource for everything from part-time CFO services and HR, to accounting, tax, payroll, and insurance.

Experience the peace of mind of having all your company’s back-office needs running seamlessly in the background. Escalon is centered around the idea of making life easier for serial entrepreneurs and savvy CEO’s.

We’re with you at every stage. Our strategic advice and efficient services in finance & people-related matters enable us to escort early stage companies through transformation into large enterprises or successful exits.

Meet our partners

First Republic Bank

First Republic Bank (NYSE: FRC) was founded in 1985 with one mission: to deliver exceptional, personalized service to each and every client. Today, First Republic has grown to become the 14th largest bank in the United States thanks to our truly differentiated service culture, the longevity of our client relationships and a Net Promoter Score that’s two times higher than the U.S. banking industry average.

First Republic is a full-service financial institution specializing in private banking, private business banking and real estate lending. In addition, our wealth management affiliates offer investment, trust and wealth management services. We deliver personalized solutions to help both individuals and businesses meet their financial goals, with over 80 Preferred Banking Offices located primarily in urban coastal markets, including San Francisco, New York, Boston and Los Angeles.

https://www.firstrepublic.com/

Vensure

As the nation’s fastest-growing professional employer organization (PEO), Vensure Employer Services uses industry-leading technology to offer complete, end-to-end solutions for outsourced payroll, human resources, benefits, risk management, and workers’ compensation services. Available to businesses of all sizes, Vensure has the ability to design flexible and economical packages to satisfy even the most complex company missions. In the end, Vensure Employer Services gets businesses back to focusing on what matters most: revenue and growth.

https://www.vensure.com/