KENNETH RIND

1935 - 2022

RIND--Kenneth W., PhD: Kenneth W. Rind, PhD: Early Prominent Venture Capitalist Who Changed The History of Technology and Biotech. August 12, 1935 to August 15, 2022. When Kenneth Rind awoke one morning in 1945, he learned of the atomic bomb's existence. He keenly observed how the bomb would lead to the end of WWII. Soon after, Ken decided on science as a career. Rind received a bachelor's degree in Chemistry from Cornell with distinction and honors, and not long after this was funded by the Atomic Energy Commission to obtain his Ph.D. in Nuclear Chemistry from Columbia University. He quickly became one of the first American and global venture capitalists. With his specialty in technology and biotech, Rind helped change the face and history of this nascent field. Over the course of his career, Rind served on the board of Baillie Gifford's High Technology Fund, was portfolio manager of the publicly-traded, record-breaking Samson Fund, and was a board member of 30 technology companies devoted to software, telecommunications (equipment, software, services), electronics, medical device/equipment, minicomputers, and SAAS. The venture/private equity funds that he founded invested in countries all over the world. In 1980, Rind formed the first Oxford Venture Fund and then three more funds under the management of Oxford Partners. He helped create the Oxford Bioscience Funds (there were six, totaling $1.2B, with the last fund in partnership with Korea and Seoul), and then initiated venture activities in Israel. He co- founded Nitzamin with $12M from investors and $8M from the Israeli government, in the form of a loan that was returned with interest. The limited partnership investors made fifteen times their money. The individuals that Oxford Partners recruited and trained launched the first on- shore venture fund in China with investment from the China Development Bank, and created 22 venture funds with Chinese cities, raising $1.5B. Rind also co-founded FIMI, the largest Israeli mezzanine fund, with $2B AUM. Along the way, Dr. Rind was selected by the U.S. Defense Department to launch venture capital activities in Russia; by NIST to launch technology collaborations with Israel; by the U.S. Commerce Department to advise the U.S. Trade Representative; and by industry colleagues to be a founding director of the NVCA, president of the Connecticut Venture Group, and a director of NYVCA. Dr. Rind has served as a director of dozens of corporations, including 15 that were public and over 30 that he acquired. He has been a member of NYSSA, the CFA Institute, the Electronic Analysts Society, and the Communications Technology Analysts Association, and received a SEC Series 7 license (FINRA). He has written extensively on Exiting through Public Offerings and Mergers, and Corporate Strategic Investing. He has given talks at the United Nations, Harvard Business School, Arthur D. Little, Gartner Group, Wilkerson Group, BIO, Businessweek, the New York and Boston Societies of Security Analysts, and the New York, Connecticut, Long Island, and Greater Delaware Venture Groups, the NVCA, NYVG, NYVCA, and VIANY, at conferences in England, Japan and Switzerland, as well as government-sponsored meetings in Israel, Singapore, Russia, Ukraine, Holland, and Belgium. Dr. Rind organized two symposia on "Venture Capital" and co- organized one on "Venture Capital in New Media/Internet" for the NYSSA. He initiated the IBF Conference "Corporate Venturing" and the National Conference on Biotechnology Ventures, which continue to hold annual conferences. As a venture capitalist, Dr. Rind financed technology companies for 10 funds as well as for two firms as an investment banker. From 1961 onwards, he also worked as a corporate strategic investor, corporate development executive, and a mutual fund portfolio manager. Other notable investees of Rind include: Craig Venter/Human Genome Science (genome sequencing), Galileo/Maxwell (networking chips), Wave Access/Lucent (wireless LANs), Martek/DSM (algal nutrients), ESC Medical (medical/aesthetic lasers), Bio/Physics Systems/J&J (flow cytometry), Radiation Dynamics (cancer treatment), Vitesse (GaAs semiconductors), Inselek (Silicon-on-Sapphire), ProActivity/ EMC (planning software), Applied Data Research (first independent software vendor), Supply Science/Retalix/NCR (Data Analytics). Additional investors have included government entities of Israel, Holland, Kuwait, China (Infinity Group) and Korea (KSLSF). Dr. Rind's service to the U.S. government includes work for the U.S.-Israel Science and Technology Foundation (USISTF) that was funded by Clinton/Rabin to encourage collaborations, and focused on biotech, neuroscience, space, etc.; the Civilian R&D Foundation (CRDF), chartered by Congress to grant funding to weapons scientists in the former Soviet Union, which provided $400M to 30,000 researchers; and the Advisory Council to the U.S. Trade Representative (Hills/Kantor). Kenneth Rind is survived by his wife of 29 years, Linda Chester, his children Pat Rind and David Rind, and his three granddaughters, Rachel, Karen Helen and Alena. Kenneth and Linda lived in La Jolla, CA for the last 14 years, in NYC, NY for the previous 15 years.