The Keiretsu Forum Northern California region formed in 2000 and is comprised of the East Bay, San Francisco/North Bay, and Silicon Valley chapters. The East Bay chapter was launched in September 2000 by Randy Williams and is the founding chapter of Keiretsu Forum. It enjoys close synergies with the regional and global Keiretsu Forum angel investment network.
The Northern California region has 300 members. As of December 2011, the members of Keiretsu Forum Northern California have invested $301m in 296 ventures.
In 2012, the Keiretsu Forum Northern California members invested in 29 companies, out of which 12 are co-investments with the other chapters in our global network.
Meeting Location
The Keiretsu Forum East Bay meetings are held at:
Veterans Memorial Building
3780 Mt. Diablo Blvd.
Lafayette, CA, 94549
Team
Founder & CEO
Keiretsu Forum
(415) 493-9875
e-mail
Randy Williams
Founder & CEO
Keiretsu Forum
(415) 493-9875
info@keiretsuforum.com
Randy Williams founded Keiretsu Forum in September 2000 to provide a disciplined and structured approach to private equity investing. Randy’s passion for investing and bringing together like-minded community leaders has created a powerful and giving environment for entrepreneurs. With over 1,000 members, Keiretsu Forum is the largest angel investment community in world.
Randy has 30 years of experience in finance, real estate, and marketing. He has held over fifteen board and advisory positions in various companies. Randy was Co-Founder and Director of Diablo Valley Bank from 2003 to 2007. During its first three years the bank grew to more than $250m in assets, serving the entrepreneurial community of the San Francisco Bay Area. Heritage Bank recently acquired the bank for $70m creating a $50m increase in shareholder value realizing a 4X return on investment. Randy was President of Pacific Union Commercial Brokerage, Founder of the LaMorinda Bank, and Managing Director of Kennedy-Wilson International, an international real estate investment company.
Randy holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of California Berkeley and Masters degree from St. Mary’s College of California. He is an avid Masters swimmer, holding past Master’s World Records. He was also was an All-American Water Polo player at UC Berkeley. He lives in Orinda with his wife Maile and their two children, Ford and Summer.
Managing Director
Keiretsu Forum
(415) 573-0751
e-mail
Sonja Markova
Managing Director
Keiretsu Forum
(415) 573-0751
sonja@keiretsuforum.com
Sonja Markova is a key Keiretsu Forum team member since 2001. Sonja interfaces with the members, entrepreneurs, and Chapter Presidents on all aspects of the Keiretsu Forum process.
Sonja is a Visiting Professor at University American College Skopje, Macedonia. She has previous work experience with Tiburon Research Group, Contra Costa Software Business Incubator, ROI.works Marketing Communications, and Republic of China’s ICDF Equity Investment Fund for small and medium-sized enterprises in Macedonia.
She holds BS in Management from the University of St. Cyril and Methodius in Macedonia, MBA in Finance and New Ventures Management and Certificate in Marketing from California State University, East Bay. Sonja is an alumni Ron Brown fellow. The Ron Brown Fellowship is a U.S. Department of State program that supports young professionals from Central and Eastern Europe. She lives in San Francisco with her husband Scott.
Associate, Member Services
Northern California Region
(415) 573-0753
e-mail
Associate, Entrepreneur Services
Northern California Region
(415) 573-0755
e-mail
Maria Pitt
Associate, Entrepreneur Services
Northern California Region
(415) 573-0755
maria@keiretsuforum.com
Maria joined the Keiretsu Forum Northern California team in May 2012 as an Associate for Entrepreneur Services. Keiretsu Forum’s mission is “Great Association with Quality Deal Flow”. Maria is a key person on the team and her main responsibility is to ensure that our members have access to “… Quality Deal Flow”. Maria facilitates all aspects of the entrepreneur application process from initial submission, through screening, presentation at the Keiretsu Forum investor meetings, and due diligence. She works closely with the entrepreneurs while helping them achieve their goals through the mindshare atmosphere at Keiretsu Forum and access to capital. Maria also collaborates closely with the Keiretsu Forum global team on sharing best practices and deal flow. She is active in the San Francisco Bay Area entrepreneur eco-system and manages the Keiretsu Forum relationship with key entrepreneur partner organizations.
Maria graduated from the University of California Davis with a B.A. in Economics and a minor in History. During her four years at Davis, Maria played club soccer and many other intramural sports. Her junior year of college, Maria spent a semester abroad in Siena, Italy studying the Italian language and culture. She also was very active in volunteer programs which included: Sutter Hospital, Aegis Assisted Living and the YOLO County Children’s Alliance. After graduating, Maria spent 4 months volunteering in Swaziland, Africa as a High School math teacher.
Maria is passionate about traveling and visiting her relatives in England. She also enjoys running half marathons and playing soccer in her free time.
Associate
Northern California Region
(415) 493-9875
e-mail
Associate
Northern California Region
(415) 493-9875
e-mail
