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Kevin P. Ryan

Kevin P. Ryan
Born (1963-10-12) October 12, 1963 (age 61)
NationalityAmerican
Alma materYale University, INSEAD
Occupation(s)Founder, CEO
Known forCEO at DoubleClick, founder of MongoDB, founder of Business Insider, founder of Gilt Groupe, founder of Zola, founder of AlleyCorp, vice chairman of Partnership for New York City, board director of Mercy Corps, director emeritus of Human Rights Watch
SpousePascaline Servan-Schreiber

Kevin P. Ryan is an American investor and entrepreneur who has founded several New York–based businesses, including Gilt Groupe, Business Insider and MongoDB. Ryan helped grow DoubleClick from 1996 to 2005, first as president and later as CEO.[1] Ryan continues to found and invest in companies through AlleyCorp, a venture capital firm he founded with Dwight Merriman in 2008. He holds a B.A. from Yale University and an M.B.A. from INSEAD.

Career

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Ryan began his career working at United Media. Ryan launched the Dilbert website, based on the popular comic strip created by Scott Adams.[2] Serving as senior VP of business and finance, he helped lead a restructuring effort that increased United Media's profits fivefold. Ryan also spent time with Euro Disney in France, and as an investment banker with Prudential Investment Corporation in the US and the UK.[3]

DoubleClick

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Ryan helped build DoubleClick from 1996 to 2005, first as president and later as CEO.  During this time, DoubleClick grew from a 20-person startup to a publicly traded company with over 1,500 employees. DoubleClick was sold in 2005 for $1.1 billion to Hellman and Friedman LLC, and Ryan stepped down as CEO shortly thereafter. DoubleClick was acquired by Google for $3.1 billion in March 2008.

TheLadders.com and HotJobs

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In 2004, Ryan became an angel investor in TheLadders.com.[4] He also was an early investor and board member of HotJobs, which was purchased by Yahoo! for $436 million in 2002.[5] During this time in career, Ryan also served on the boards of the Direct Marketing Association, the Ad Council, and HotJobs.

AlleyCorp

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After leaving DoubleClick, Ryan, along with former DoubleClick CTO and co-founder, Dwight Merriman, founded a network of three affiliated Internet companies of which he is chairman and CEO. AlleyCorp has expanded its mission to both found and invest in companies in New York City. Combined, these companies have raised more than $700 million in venture capital funding and have employed over 2,000 people.

Gilt Groupe

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Founded by Ryan and Dwight Merriman in 2007, Gilt Groupe is an online shopping site. Gilt offers fashion for women, men, and children; home decor; artisanal ingredients; hotels and travel experiences on every continent. Gilt Groupe secured over $240 million in total financing. Its investors include Matrix Partners, General Atlantic Partners, Softbank Group, New Enterprise Associates, Draper Fisher Jurvetson and Goldman Sachs.[6] In February 2014, Gilt Groupe was preparing for an IPO.[7] However, the company sold to the Hudson's Bay Company in January 2016 for $250 million.[8]

Business Insider

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Ryan and Dwight Merriman founded Business Insider in 2009 with Henry Blodget. Ryan functioned as chairman of the board through its acquisition by Axel Springer SE for $442 million.[9]

MongoDB

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Ryan and Dwight Merriman founded MongoDB Inc. in 2007. Ryan served as chairman of the board through the company's initial public offering in 2017 at a $1.18 billion valuation.[10]

Other

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Ryan has gone on to found and serve as chairman of the board for several other New York–based companies including, Zola, Coedition, Nomad Health, and Meetup.[11]

Ryan was a founding advisor and seed investor for Pearl Health, before participating in the company's Andreessen Horowitz-led Series A fundraise, alongside AlleyCorp. He currently sits on the board of Pearl Health.

Philanthropy

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Ryan has served on the boards of Mercy Corps, Partnership for New York City, Yale University, Tech:NYC, the Trust for Governors Island, the NYC Investment Fund and INSEAD. He has been named the director emeritus of Human Rights Watch as well as being on the advisory board for Doctors Without Borders. He is also a member of the Yale International Council and the Council on Foreign Relations.[12] He was one of the project chairs for NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg's review of the future of NYC's fashion industry, Fashion.NYC.2020.[13] On May 30, 2012, Yale announced that Ryan has been elected to serve a six-year term as a member of the Yale corporation, the university's governing body.

Recognitions

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In June 2009, Ryan was named Entrepreneur of the Year by Ernst & Young, LLP and In 2013 was named one of "The 100 Most Influential New Yorkers of the Past 25 Years" by the Observer.[14] Ryan was also named one of the "50 Most Influential Business People" by Crain's New York Business, and was included in Vanity Fair's "2011 New Establishment List".[15][16]

Personal

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Ryan earned his B.A. from Yale University in 1985 and his M.B.A. from INSEAD in 1990. He is a Fellow at Yale University's Trumbull College. Ryan currently lives in New York City with his wife and children. His wife is French and they spend part of the year living in France.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Meet Kevin Ryan: The Man Behind the Rise of Gilt & DoubleClick". Mashable. 6 January 2011. Retrieved 15 April 2011.
  2. ^ "Venture Voice: VV Show #45 - Kevin Ryan of Panther Express, ShopWiki and Music Nation". www.venturevoice.com.
  3. ^ "DoubleClick Names Kevin Ryan New CEO" Archived 2007-04-03 at the Wayback Machine
  4. ^ "TheLadders.com Secures Funding".
  5. ^ "Monster Buys Yahoo HotJobs For $225 Million In Cash". Business Insider. 6 January 2010. Retrieved 15 April 2010.
  6. ^ Rusli, Evelyn M. (9 May 2011). "Gilt Groupe Valued at Roughly $1 Billion". DealBook.
  7. ^ Strugatz, Rachel (13 February 2014). "Gilt IPO Puts Eyes on Flash Model". WWD. Retrieved 13 February 2014.
  8. ^ "Hudson's Bay Confirms $250 Million Acquisition of Gilt Groupe". Recode. 6 January 2016. Retrieved 15 April 2016.
  9. ^ Kafka, Peter (2015-09-29). "Sold! Axel Springer Bets Big on Digital, Buys Business Insider". Recode. Retrieved 2019-04-15.
  10. ^ Konrad, Alex. "MongoDB's IPO Gives New York Tech A Much-Needed Win As Shares Jump 25%". Forbes. Retrieved 2019-04-15.
  11. ^ Perez, Sarah (March 30, 2020). "WeWork sells off social network Meetup to AlleyCorp and other investors". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2020-03-31. "The investor groups in Meetup’s latest acquisition are led by Kevin Ryan’s AlleyCorp and also include other “mission-driven private funds” and “accomplished technology executives,” the company claims. The deal will see Ryan joining Meetup as chairman of the Board."
  12. ^ Leaders Mag, "An Entrepreneurial Culture: An Interview With Kevin P. Ryan, Founder and CEO of Gilt Groupe"
  13. ^ Strauss, Steven; Kristy Sundjaja; Eric Johnson; Meghana Gandhi; Victor Wong; Jennifer Yoo (2012). Fashion.NYC.2020. NYCEDC.
  14. ^ Notes On The Road "Internet Entrepreneur Kevin Ryan on Balancing Success & Family Life"
  15. ^ "40 Under 40 Class of 2001". Crain's New York Business. 30 July 2018. Retrieved 2019-04-15.
  16. ^ "The 2011 New Establishment List: And the Top Spot Goes to..." Vanity Fair. September 2011. Retrieved 2019-04-15.
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