Allyson Johnson
Head of Investor Relations, Gateway Partners
Allyson Johnson, based in San Francisco, is the Head of Investor Relations at Gateway Partners, a $1.3bn emerging markets investment manager. In her role, she leads marketing and fundraising, with a focus on the US institutional landscape. Prior to joining Gateway, Allyson worked in Singapore for Saga Tree Capital Advisors, a boutique hedge fund manager, leading investor relations and business development, and serving as interim COO. She began her career at Standard Chartered Bank, where she worked in New York, Singapore and Dubai. Her roles at the bank spanned investment banking, relationship management, and business planning. Allyson graduated from Duke University with a BA in Mathematics. She is a CAIA charterholder and has passed the CFA Level II examination. As a longtime volunteer for 100 Women in Finance, Allyson served as the Deputy Chair of the Global FundWomen Week 2021 conference, and will Chair the event in 2022. She is also a member of the 100WF Northern California Education Committee and previously co-chaired the 100WF Singapore Education Committee.
Kathryn Cavanaugh
Founder and Managing Partner, Capstar Ventures
Kathryn Cavanaugh is the Founder and Managing Partner of Capstar Ventures, an early stage venture capital firm that invests in the next generation of innovative consumer companies. She has been investing in and advising in early stage companies across healthcare, technology and consumer for the last sixteen years with roles at leading venture capital and private equity firms. Prior to Capstar Ventures, Kathryn was a Partner at Grace Beauty Capital, a family office in New York City, where she invested in early stage consumer companies including Rothy’s, Parachute, Primary, Supergoop!, ThirdLove, Vengo and Pixlee. From 2011-2014, she worked for Mainsail Partners, a $750M growth equity firm in San Francisco, as their VP of Talent and a Board Director for The Bar Method, Inc., a Mainsail portfolio company. Kathryn also served as an interim Senior Executive at The Bar Method, Inc. where she led franchise strategy, operations and sales. From 2005-2010, Kathryn worked for De Novo Ventures, a top quartile $650 million healthcare fund in Palo Alto, where she evaluated, executed, and supported over $350 million of equity investments in early to late stage healthcare companies. Kathryn began her career as a Senior Process Engineer with Merck & Co., Inc., working in the US, Europe and Asia from 1997-2003. Kathryn has dual B.S. degrees in Chemical Engineering and Biochemistry from the University of Notre Dame and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School. She currently serves on the Board of Directors for Bravo Sierra, Eterneva, St. Frank, Museum of Ice Cream and FlowerBX. Kathryn also sits on the Advisory Boards for Capstar SPAC (NYSE: CPSR) and Capital Creek Partners, a multi-family office based in Austin, TX.
Jamie Kramer
Head of Alternatives Solutions Group, J.P. Morgan Asset Management
Jamie Kramer is the Global Head of the Alternatives Solutions Group for J.P. Morgan Asset Management. In this role, she leads hedge fund, alternative credit and multi-alternative investment solutions businesses totaling $15 billion in assets under management. She is a member of the Global Alternatives Operating Committee and the Asset Wealth Management Investment Committee, and is the founder of the Sustainable Investment Leadership Team. She also chairs the Investment Committee for Project Spark which provides proprietary JPMAM capital to third party funds managed by diverse, emerging Alternative managers. Previously, she was JPMAM’s Global Head of Strategic Product Management where she led innovation and ongoing product management across all asset classes and distribution channels. Earlier, she was the CIO and creator of the firm’s Thematic Advisory Program, providing Global Wealth Management clients with innovative solutions while growing the program to $20 billion in assets under management. For nearly a decade, she also served as JPMAM’s Global Head of Manager Selection, overseeing $200 billion. She holds a B.A. from The University of Pennsylvania, an M.B.A. from The Wharton School and is a CFA charter holder. She is on the executive committee of the Trustees Council of Penn Women. Jamie enjoys golf, animal adventures, and dogs.
Ashmi Mehrotra
Co-Head of the Private Equity Group, J.P. Morgan Asset Management
Ashmi Mehrotra, Managing Director, Portfolio Manager, joined the Private Equity Group in 2003. She is Co-Head of the Private Equity Group, which manages $27 billion in private equity investments on behalf of institutional and private investors. The business comprises a global team (Hong Kong, London, New York) managing partnerships, co-investments, and secondary investments across industry and stage. The team currently manages commingled funds and separate accounts primarily focused on venture capital, growth equity and buyout investments. Currently, Ms. Mehrotra serves on numerous private equity fund advisory committees and as an observer on certain portfolio company boards of directors. She also serves on the Investment Committee for the Funds managed by Beijing Equity Investment Development Management Co. Ltd (BEIDM). Prior to joining the Private Equity Group, Ms. Mehrotra was an investment analyst for the J.P. Morgan Private Bank, where she focused on investment portfolios for high net worth clients. An employee of the firm since 1999, Ms. Mehrotra also worked in J.P. Morgan’s Internal Consulting Group, where she was responsible for Six Sigma projects and process improvement initiatives. Ms. Mehrotra earned her BA in Economics, International Relations and Spanish from Tufts University.
Lori Wachs
Partner, Springboard Growth Capital
Lori Wachs is a venture capitalist, fund manager and consumer analyst, with over 30 years of investment experience. She is a Partner at Springboard Growth Capital, a venture capital firm that invests in women-led growth stage companies in the consumer sector. Through her 17 years at Delaware Investments, where she helped oversee the investment of $4 billion in various institutional and mutual fund products in the consumer sector, and her own fund, Cross Ledge Investments, she has demonstrated a record of identifying companies that transformed their industries by capitalizing on emerging trends, and supporting these companies' growth into dominant industry players. Active in marketing the investment products she manages, Lori has been featured regularly on ABC Good Morning America, ABC World News Tonight, CNBC, Bloomberg News and Fox News Channel as an expert on retail and consumer investments, fashion trends, buying behavior and retailing best practices. Lori is a Magna Cum Laude graduate and a Benjamin Franklin Scholar from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, where she majored in finance, and minored in East Asian studies. She graduated with honors and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa.
