United States

Shahid Chishty, Chief Investment Officer, Portola Valley Partners, has been appointed as Senator at the Grand Assembly of the World Business Angels Investment Forum. Senator Chishty will represent Silicon Valley in the Global Startup Committee of the Grand Assembly.

Shahid.Chishty@wbaforum.org
I am a German citizen (US Permanent Resident) with 30 years of global investment banking, venture capital / private equity, strategic advisory, entrepreneurial / startup and not-for-profit experience.  I am currently working with cutting-edge international startups in Silicon Valley (including AI/ML, AR/VR, IoT, Robotics, etc) as well as on global impact and sustainability projects and have worked with international corporations, management teams, investors – including many of the leading VCs & Private Equity firms – and governmental organisations on numerous investments, mergers, acquisitions, disposals and corporate restructurings as well as on international growth, business development, fundraising, group strategy and the whole spectrum of corporate finance transactions.  I have worked at highly respected institutions including Deutsche Bank and Merrill Lynch, and have enjoyed investment and entrepreneurial experience and interests in wholesale and retail as well as finance, technology and real estate businesses internationally.  In terms of institutional mergers and acquisitions, I have led and mentored teams of expert bankers undertaking every stage in the advisory and acquisition process from market research and analysis to identification of acquisition candidates, valuation, transaction negotiation and due diligence as well as acquisition and corporate financing and fundraising.  I have exceptional data and financial analysis skills and have worked on the most complex and highly sophisticated financial products and models.  I have advised both private and publicly listed corporations on more than a dozen M&A and principal finance transactions valued in US$ multi-billions and on fundraising, capital increases and IPOs valued at over US$ 500million.  In addition, having managed a Euro 2 billion multi-currency, multi-nation, securitised products vehicle, Rhein-Main Securitisation group, and having advised publicly listed corporations, I have in depth experience and knowledge of fund management, global treasury, regulatory and management reporting functions as well as public accounting issues and requirements.  Furthermore, I have gained significant experience in corporate and business development having actively developed, implemented and managed cross-functional strategic business initiatives for companies including Merrill Lynch, in coordination with EMEA Executive Management, the Global Heads of Strategy and the top Group Executive Management of Merrill Lynch.  On an organisational level, my experience includes business development and organisational structuring, client / customer relationship management, personnel training and mentoring, marketing, systems implementation, strategy development and implementation and turnaround management, including with companies that I have personally owned.  I have senior level contacts among corporations, management teams, investors and governmental organisations around the world.  I have also lived and worked in Nigeria (born), the United Kingdom, Germany, South Africa and the United States and have travelled extensively all over the world.  I completed the majority of my education at leading institutions in the United Kingdom including Merchant Taylors’ School, Northwood and the University of Southampton where I gained a Joint Honours Degree in Business Economics and Accounting.