Ryan Phipps

Managing Director

Ryan's Bio

Ryan advises Software and Ecommerce companies on M&A and strategic financing transactions. He brings over 10 years of successful investment banking experience, including over 50 capital raise and M&A engagements, to the firm’s clients. With extensive transaction experience in software, internet, e-commerce, and technology-enabled services, Ryan is able to provide best-in-class insights and advice to each company he engages with. Notable transactions he has participated in include the sale of LogoMix to Deluxe (NYSE: DLX), the sale of Rental History Reports to MRI Software, and the recapitalization of Wham-O.

Prior to joining WCP, Ryan led the Western region for Neptune Financial (NepFin), a venture-backed and tech-enabled investment platform. Before joining Neptune Financial, Ryan spent seven years as an investment banker, most recently with Vista Point Advisors where he focused on advising software, internet, and tech-enabled services companies on M&A and capital raises. Earlier in his career, Ryan was based in London as an analyst with Deutsche Bank. Ryan earned a Bachelor of Science from the University of Pittsburgh.

Ryan's Media

Ryan's Thought Leadership

WCP Q3 Insights Newsletter

99 Startups Poised for Growth : Prospering Amidst Pandemic

Getting Comfortable with Being Uncomfortable – The Tech Ecosystem and The Pandemic – What We Expect

WCP Insights Blog: The Amazon Re:MARS Conference – What We Learned by Kelly Porter

WCP Proudly Releases The Top Acquirers in Artificial Intelligence Report

WCP Releases the Next Segment of The 2-Minute M&A Advisor: What Should You Look For In An Investment Banker?

WCP’s Kelly Porter and Ron Heller Speak On “Doing Business With Buyers And Investors In China”

WCP Proudly Releases The Top Acquirers in Artificial Intelligence Report

Palo Alto, CA – April 03, 2018 – To obtain a copy of the full report please click here.

WCP is proud to share The Top Acquirers in Artificial Intelligence Report by our Managing Partner and Managing Director, Kelly Porter.

Transactions

WCP acted as exclusive financial advisor to KRT Marketing in its acquisition by Recruitics. KRT Marketing is a West Coast based data-driven recruitment marketing agency. Recruitics is an East Coast based agency the makes it easy for leading brands to attract and hire great talent. As pioneers in the space, Recruitics revolutionized recruitment advertising in 2012 by introducing the first recruitment marketing analytics and optimization platform. By acquiring another rapidly growing and innovative agency, Recruitics strengthened its position as the leading provider of talent attraction solutions to the Fortune 100.

Valencell, the leading innovator in wearable biometric sensor technology, and Sonion, the global leader in micro acoustic and micro mechanical technologies and solutions for hearing instruments and specialty earphones, today announced a strategic partnership that will expand the boundaries for the use of biometric sensors in the ear. As part of the partnership, Sonion has made a strategic investment in Valencell, making Sonion a significant shareholder in Valencell Inc. WCP acted as exclusive advisor to Valencell for this transaction.

Content Delivery Network and App Delivery Platform Provider XDN has been acquired by Fortinet, in a bid to strengthen its own software abilities in cloud management, said John Maddison, Fortinet's VP of technical marketing. This deal should help Fortinet integrate security and WAN optimization services with content acceleration software from XDN, providing a distributed, cloud-based approach to adapt effectively to disruptive attack traffic.

Badgeville, a provider of gamification and social engagement solutions, was acquired by CallidusCloud to bolster its own solutions around cloud-based sales, marketing, learning and customer experience. CallidusCloud was subsequently acquired by SAP for its sales performance management (SPM) and configure-price-quote (CPQ) solutions in a $2.4 billion deal.

LiftIgniter, a provider of on-site and in-app content recommendations across hundreds of leading digital properties worldwide, was acquired by Maven, a media coalition of professional content destinations, operating exclusively on a shared digital publishing, advertising and distribution platform. The transaction bolsters Maven’s content with LiftIgniter’s recommendation technology, providing consumers with a personalized and more enriched online experience.

WCP is proud to announce that it acted as Exclusive Financial Advisor to Cuberg on its acquisition by Northvolt, a company positioning to be Europe’s largest supplier of batteries for Electric Vehicles. Cuberg specializes in high-energy-density lithium metal battery design and production. This deal comes close behind the EU’s goal of 30 million EVs by 2030, as Northvolt builds one battery factory in Sweden and one in Germany to scale up production and satisfy rising EV demand.