Tight complementary mix of experience
Technology is in our DNA. Born out of successful careers in corporate venturing, few others have been exposed to the scale and diversity of companies and technologies than the Bloc team. The team has an inimitable mix of technical, commercial and financial expertise but with a common background of engineering education. David and Bruce come out of two of the leading global technology companies’ that have shaped the future of technology, Vodafone and ARM, and Andrew from global investment bank Merrill Lynch.
David Leftley
Co-Founder and CTO
David Leftley
Co-Founder and CTO
David was Chief Engineer for Technology Evaluation and led Vodafone’s corporate venture team in Europe during his 14 years at Vodafone. In this time the fund was ranked in the top 5 CVCs, David was included in Wired Magazine’s top 100 innovators’ list and he was named as one of the most influential CVCs in the Global Corporate Venturing Powerlist 100. He knows how to spot a commercial technology and test to ensure that it is defensible and disruptive. Starting in the defence industry he learned that with the right people and the right money anything is possible. He brings this invaluable expertise to Bloc and knows how to dig deep and personally look under the bonnet while understanding the commercial ramification of industry dynamics.
Bruce Beckloff
Co-Founder and CEO
Bruce Beckloff
Co-Founder and CEO
Bruce understands the concept of creating customer pull rather than relying on technology push after spending 12 years at ARM, masters in this field. He employs the same strategy at Bloc and with its investments by bringing in larger industry players, including Bloc shareholders, to work with our partner companies. He is instrumental in helping Bloc’s partner companies align their strategies to scale commercially and quickly. Bruce’s tech expertise and commercial acumen led him to own the overall corporate strategy for ARM and, as part of this, create ARM’s investment activity. He was named one of the most influential CVCs in the Global Corporate Venturing Powerlist 100.
Andrew Griffin
CFO
Andrew Griffin
CFO
Andrew has worked with public and private technology companies to raise money and improve their operating models, assisting them in explaining their businesses to outside investors, and in many instances to themselves – a role he continues with the Bloc portfolio. Andrew understands the importance of rigorous financial management for all companies, an area which most start-ups either do not have the time, money or inclination to implement properly. Andrew spent 17 years in investment banking where he was a highly respected technology equity analyst, recognised as a No1 ranked semiconductor analyst in Europe, and was managing director of Merrill Lynch’s European technology research team.
Dimitris Stoimenou
Investment Director
Dimitris Stoimenou
Investment Director
Dimitris has hands-on experience of driving commercial and technology innovation across the telecommunications sector, gained through a wide variety of operational and strategic roles in mobile, fixed and satellite operators Vodafone, Colt and Inmarsat. While at Vodafone he was named on two telecommunications patent applications. He understands what it takes for a technology start-up to succeed in the enterprise space from a product and a commercial perspective, which he applies both during the investment identification process and in the subsequent post investment scaling phase. Dimitris has an M.Eng in Electrical and Electronic Engineering from Imperial College London, and an MBA from London Business School.
Magda Theodorou
Office Manager
Magda Theodorou
Office Manager
Magda has worked with Bloc since 2016 and joined the team full-time in 2019. She is responsible for managing the day-to-day operations and administration of the Bloc office including accounting, invoicing and facilities management, organising events, and she acts as a exec assistant to the investment team. She was previously office manager at Bloc portfolio company Marmalade Game Studios, and at Investit, now part of the Accenture investment management insights business. Magda has a Masters and Engineering degrees in Environmental Protection (Natural Resources) and post graduate study in Health and Safety in a work place.
Valentina Sponza
Finance Analyst
Valentina Sponza
Finance Analyst
Valentina comes with a strong background in financial analysis, following up a Management degree at the University of Warwick with a Masters in Financial Analysis from the London Business School. She spent two years as an equity research analyst on the consumer team at Morgan Stanley in London. She joined Bloc in 2020 and predominantly works on Day-2 activities supporting the portfolio and actively working with the executive teams on financial modelling, fundraising, setting KPIs and improving the efficiency of finance operations.
Board of Directors
Bloc’s influential global network, many of whom have become shareholders, has been carefully curated over the years and Bloc draws on these key players as appropriate. Bloc’s Board and foundation investors are highly respected industry influencers who bring knowledge and access to further industry connections in all sectors.
Paul Roy
Non Executive Chairman
Paul Roy
Non Executive Chairman
Paul has over 40 years’ experience in the Banking, Brokerage and Asset Management industries. Having started his career at the stockbroking firm Kemp Gee he subsequently became Senior Partner following the merger with Scrimgeour Vickers and Citibank. In 1988, he joined Smith New Court as CEO, and merged the business with Merrill Lynch in 1995 after which he became EVP and President of Merrill Lynch Global Markets and Investment banking. He left Merrill in 2003 to found NewSmith Capital Partners, subsequently acquired by Man Group in 2015. He is former Chairman of New River Retail plc and Sky Bet. He is currently serving as a non-executive director of S4 Capital, a new age/new era digital multi-national advertising and marketing services company. He is also senior advisor to Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank, Japan’s largest fiduciary and asset management company. He has a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) degree in Economics and an Honorary Doctorate of Law from Liverpool University.
Stephen Catlin
Non Executive Director
Stephen Catlin
Non Executive Director
Stephen has over 40 years’ experience in the Insurance industry. Having begun his insurance career in 1973 joining BL Evens & Others on Syndicate 264 at Lloyd’s, he founded Catlin Underwriting Agencies Limited in 1984, which later became part of Catlin Group Limited. Stephen served as the Catlin Group’s Chief Executive throughout its history and also served as the active underwriter of Lloyd’s Syndicate 1003 and later Syndicate 2003 until May 2003. He assumed the position of Executive Deputy Chairman of XL Group Ltd from May 2015 (upon the completion of XL’s acquisition of Catlin Group Limited) until May 2017. He was selected as Ernst & Young’s UK Entrepreneur of the Year in October 2011. Stephen was inducted into the International Insurance Society Insurance Hall of Fame in June 2015. He is Chair of the Insurance Development Forum. Stephen is a Visiting Fellow at the Oxford University Centre for Corporate Reputation.
Sam Wren
Non Executive Director
Sam Wren
Non Executive Director
Samantha (Sam) Wren, CEO of IPGL, has joined the Board. Before IPGL, Sam was Group CFO and COO of NEX Group Plc, the electronic FX and government bond markets and post trade operator where she also served in a variety of roles including Group Chief Commercial Officer, Divisional CFO/COO and Group Treasurer. She also held senior finance positions at the gaming company Rank Group Plc and business services group Rentokil Initial plc. Sam is a chartered management accountant, holds a degree in economics and is a non-executive director of both the UK equity income fund City of London Investment Trust plc and English winemaker Chapel Down Group plc as well as a number of other non-quoted companies in her capacity as IPGL’s CEO.
Bloc’s technical knowledge and high-level of industry fluency helps to develop an immediate, empathetic and valuable connection with founders and removes their need to ‘dumb down’ pitches. Founders are drawn to Bloc because they know from the first meeting that Bloc understand their technology and can help through the application of ‘smart’ money.
