Larry Cheng Joins Fidelity Ventures As Principal
New Appointment Follow Recent Closing of $250 Million Venture Fund And Appointments of Thomas Burkardt as Venture Partner, and Frank Panaccio and Jonathan Tower as Associates
February 16, 2005
Fidelity Ventures, an early-stage venture capital firm investing private equity in the information technology and communications sectors, today announced the appointment of Larry Cheng as principal.
In this new position, Cheng will lead new investment opportunities in the software, information services and consumer technologies sectors. He also will play an active role in supporting the firm’s portfolio companies with their “go-to-market” strategies.
“Larry brings an established track record of successful venture investing and a wealth of industry sector knowledge to our team,” said Rob Ketterson, managing partner, Fidelity Ventures. “He will play an important role in helping us identify and invest in the next generation of category-leading IT and communications companies. His experience and relationships complement our focus of working with early-stage companies to accelerate growth at one of the most critical times in a company’s life cycle—the ‘go-to-market’ stage.”
Prior to joining Fidelity Ventures, Cheng was a senior associate at Battery Ventures, where he was an early investor in OpenNetwork Technologies, Ruckus Network, and Ximian which was acquired by Novell (Nasdaq: NOVL). From 1998 to 2000, Cheng was an associate for Bessemer Venture Partners where he focused on software investments. Prior to Bessemer, he was an associate consultant at Corporate Decisions, Inc. Cheng earned a B.A. in Psychology from Harvard College.
The appointment of Cheng follows key developments in Fidelity Ventures’ business over the past couple of months including the closing of Fidelity Ventures IV, L.P., a $250 million venture fund, and the appointments of Thomas Burkardt as venture partner and Frank Panaccio and Jonathan Tower as associates. Fidelity Ventures now has a team of 10 investment professionals and total capital commitments of more than $650 million.
“The past year represented one of the most active and successful periods in our more than 30 year history,” said Ketterson, “We have significantly expanded our investment team, opened our fourth fund, and have had exciting developments for our portfolio companies including Cisco’s agreement to acquire Airespace and Iron Mountain’s acquisition of Connected.”
About Fidelity Ventures
Founded in 1969, Fidelity Ventures invests private equity in entrepreneurial companies preparing to “go-to-market” in the information technology and communications sectors. By combining a collaborative partnership with a global network, Fidelity Ventures enables its portfolio companies to accelerate their market entrance and become leaders in their respective fields. During the last three decades, the firm has contributed to the success of such industry leaders as GeoTel Communications (IPO subsequently acquired by Cisco), Teleport (IPO subsequently acquired by AT&T) and COLT Telecom (NASDAQ: COLTY). Recent investments include ONI Systems (IPO subsequently acquired by Ciena), WaveSmith (acquired by Ciena), and Connected (acquired by Iron Mountain). Fidelity Ventures currently manages more than $650 million in venture capital, and invests in U.S.-based companies out of its Boston office, and in European companies out of its London office. For more information, visit www.fidelityventures.com.
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