Sanem Alkan
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital (Principal Gifts SPA)
Co-Chair of Northern California Committee, 100 Women in Finance
Sanem has more than 20+ yrs in positioning ventures and building new business in investment, insurance and tech sectors. She is strategic advisor to business leaders. Sanem assumed day-to-day responsibility for transformational projects, built and maintained cross-divisional and dynamic relationships to enable team success. Sanem is specialized in investment, risk management and philanthropic platforms operating in multiple geographic locations. Sanem is also the Co-Chair of Northern California Chapter of 100 Women in Finance. Sanem received an MBA from NYU Stern School of Business and holds undergraduate degree from The University of Texas at Austin.
Lara Banks
Managing Director, Makena Capital Management
Lara Banks is a Managing Director and a member of Makena’s Management and Investment Committees. Lara is responsible for portfolio management and manager selection for Makena’s Traditional and Sustainable Natural Resources portfolios. In addition to her duties overseeing natural resources investments, Lara leads the firm’s sustainability efforts as they relate to investment diligence and oversight. Prior to joining Makena, Lara was an associate at GE Energy Financial Services, a financial division investing across the capital structure of energy assets. At GE, Lara analyzed investments in domestic and foreign oil and gas fields. Prior to GE, Lara was a power markets analyst at DC Energy, a proprietary energy trading firm. Lara earned an MBA from Harvard Business School and a B.A. in Economics and Government, magna cum laude, from Cornell University.
Jean Lu, CFA
Managing Director, CA Capital Management
Jean is a Managing Director at Cambridge Associates, a leading global investment firm that has been pioneering portfolio management solutions for more than 40 years. She focuses on discretionary (outsourced CIO) mandates for endowments, foundations, and family clients. Her team manages over $2 billion across asset classes, including hedge funds, private equity, venture capital, and real assets. Prior to joining Cambridge Associates, Jean worked at J.P. Morgan Asset Management. She received an MBA with honors from the University of California at Berkeley and holds undergraduate degrees in business and math from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Jean is a CFA charterholder.
Yao Meng
Principal, Gopher Asset Management
Yao is a Principal in Gopher Asset’s Venture Capital investment team. Gopher Asset is a $26B AUM fund headquartered in Asia. Yao’s team invested companies such as Robinhood, Addepar, Figure, Upgrade, Lending Home, Sofi and many others. Prior to working in Venture Capital, Yao was an investment banker at Jefferies based in New York. She received an MBA from Cornell University and holds undergraduate degree in finance from the University of British Columbia.
