500 Startups Hits 16 Unicorns In Its Portfolio As It Hires Tony Wang As Managing Partner

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 27, 2019
  • 500 Startups has announced that it has hired Tony Wang as a managing partner. And 500 Startups also hit 16 unicorns in its portfolio.

Startup accelerator company 500 Startups announced that it has appointed Tony Wang as Managing Partner. Wang previously worked at Google, Twitter, and Color Genomics. While at these companies, Wang built and managed teams operated in more than 30 countries around the world and across a number of sectors like consumer tech, digital media, mobile, and healthcare.

This appointment comes at a time when 500 Startups recognizes the sixteenth company in its portfolio valued at more than $1 billion. Some of the companies from the 500 Startups portfolio that went on to hit unicorn status include Credit Karma, SendGrid, TalkDesk, Twilio, GitLab, Canva, Intercom, and several others.

Along with focusing on investments, Wang will help lead 500 Startups’ initiatives around global expansion, including work with the company’s global funds strategy and investments. And Wang is joining 500 Startups at a time where venture capital is looking towards increased global activity and investments.

Now more venture capital dollars are being deployed outside of the U.S. as the world continues to witness the rise of global entrepreneurialism. Around half of 500 Startups’ portfolio companies are international. And Wang will be integral in helping 500 Startups further its commitment to venture capital in the global market as his expertise will be key for portfolio companies looking to unlock various stages of growth.

Earlier this year, 500 Startups also hired Courtney Powell as COO. Powell was one of the founders in Batch 4 of 500 Startups in 2012. Back then, she was the co-founder and CEO of PublikDemand. And since then, she became the CEO of Agent Pronto (acquired by Fidelity National Title Group) and then served as the Head of Corporate Development at Keller Williams and liaison for Keller Capital.

“The venture capital world is undergoing a dramatic shift towards globalization where 500 Startups has been the leader and investing for the past decade,” said Wang in a statement. “There’s no question there are talented founders around the world, as proven by the number of unicorn companies in the 500 family. I’m excited to join 500’s mission to level the field of opportunity for these entrepreneurs. While there’s much more to go, I’ve long admired 500’s commitment to diversity in the founders it backs, the team behind the firm and the global operating model.”

Wang had spent his career working with companies to scale from pre-product inception stages through to building global businesses and beyond. And at Google, Wang served as Managing Counsel and part of the executive management team overseeing the Asia Pacific and Latin American regions. As the VP of Global Partnerships at Twitter, Wang developed the company’s global revenue and partnerships when Twitter was less than 100 people all the way through IPO.

“Our global mission has driven us to make bets on founders and ecosystems before they were obvious, and it has allowed 500 Startups to develop the foundation for global access. Tony will help us further execute on our vision,” added Christine Tsai, CEO and Managing Partner of 500 Startups. “His unique global experience as part of early executive management teams across the Americas, Asia Pacific, and EMEA markets will help us continue to discover and back the best founders around the world.”