AXA Strategic Ventures (ASV), a global €230 million ($260 million) venture capital fund, announces today the appointments of Imran Akram, former Partner at DN Capital, and Alex Scherbakovsky, former Principal at New Enterprise Associates, as General Partners.
They will be in charge of the management of ASV Capital, the growth stage strategy of ASV.
Stéphane Marrache joins ASV as Partner & Chief Operating Officer.
AXA Strategic Ventures reinforces its team and accelerates on its development through the launch of its growth stage strategy, which will complement its early stage strategy, already managed by Minh Q.Tran in Europe and Manish Agarwal in the US, under the leadership of Francois Robinet, Managing Partner.
Imran Akram and Alex Scherbakovsky will be managing the growth stage strategy of AXA Strategic Ventures together with Managing Partner Francois Robinet and they will be based in London and San Francisco, respectively. Their appointment allows ASV to extend its reach to equity investments of up to €15 million ($17 million), as an addition to the existing early stage strategy. Both strategies will focus on technologies relevant to insurance and asset management such as enterprise software, fintech, and in particular Insurtech, as well as consumer technologies and marketplaces in life and savings, health, auto, property and travel, as well as asset management related businesses.
"On behalf of the ASV team, I am extremely happy to welcome Imran and Alex as our newest General Partners. They are both experienced investors and have led several successful transactions. They have shown deep interest in the visions of AXA and AXA Strategic Ventures. They are also proven leaders who will make the ASV team stronger and will significantly contribute to its development as we continue to grow,” commented François Robinet.
”Through the conversation with the AXA management team it became clear how much excitement there was to become involved with the innovation in the industry and use it to strengthen AXA strategically. The insurance and asset management industries offer a broad scope for us to find some great companies transforming their industries and AXA is an ideal platform for building a fund that can support those companies,” said Imran Akram.
”AXA’s leadership’s visionary commitment to innovation created an investment platform that offers a compelling value proposition to rapidly growing companies. AXA Strategic Ventures provides entrepreneurs with access to AXA’s global network that includes 105 million customers and 160.000 employees in 56 countries, as well as expertise and distribution capabilities in insurance and asset management. As a dedicated vehicle, fully leveraging the resources of the AXA Group, AXA Strategic Ventures can move swiftly and be a true partner to best-in-class companies,” added Alex Scherbakovsky.
Stéphane Marrache, previously at Sofinnova Partners, is appointed Partner & Chief Operating Officer of AXA Strategic Ventures responsible for the financial and operational management of ASV. “I am pleased to welcome Stéphane whose significant venture capital and international experience will help AXA reach the next level of its development,” commented François Robinet.
“I am delighted to be joining AXA Strategic Ventures. Its global coverage, its talents and the possibility to leverage the AXA ecosystem are key differentiators that will allow AXA Strategic Ventures to attract and support the entrepreneurs shaping the future of the insurance and asset management industries,” said Stéphane Marrache.