Meet the Team
They say you never work a day after you find what you love. It's fair to say, all of these folks can agree. Want to join the crew? Email us here. Wanna pitch them your big idea? Do that here.
Ryan Holmes, Co-Founder & General Partner
Ryan is the founder of Hootsuite. He started the company in 2008 and has helped grow it from a startup idea into the world’s most widely used social relationship platform, with 18 million-plus users. A serial entrepreneur who started his first business in high school, Ryan supports youth entrepreneurship through his charity, League of Innovators. Ryan is the author of Saving Social: The Dysfunctional Past and Promising Future of Social Media, as well as the Amazon-best-selling guide to social media for leaders, The $4 Billion Tweet. He shares his insights in Forbes, Fast Company and Inc. and ranks as a global influencer on LinkedIn.
Manny Padda, Co-Founder & Managing Director
Manny is an entrepreneur, angel investor, and philanthropist. He is the Founder and Managing Director of New Avenue Capital, a global investment firm providing capital to growing businesses through debt and equity investments. With more than 50 investments in 8 countries, New Avenue Capital supports a portfolio of investments spanning education, recruitment, real estate, technology, and mining. When he met Ryan Holmes in 2017, they realized they were both doing similar things with their charities. Both were eager to scale youth entrepreneurship in Canada and focused on eliminating barriers to make that happen. In December of 2021, Manny and Ryan teamed up to launch the LOI Venture Fund.
Zen, Head of Research & AI
Zen's not your average team member. She doesn’t eat, sleep, or drink oat milk, but she does crush thousands of pitch decks before your morning coffee. Trained on decades of venture data and dripped out in her signature founder-vest, Zen is the brain behind LOI Venture's speedy deal review process, our latest hire that connects the right startups with the right investors in microseconds. She's got perfect memory, zero bias, and actually replies to emails. Just don't ask her to go outside, she's more of a homebody.
Elaina Tosoff, Operations Manager
Elaina has spent the past decade working in banking, finance, and private capital, supporting executives and teams in both administrative and operational roles. Originally from Arizona, she now calls Canada home and draws on a science background from the University of British Columbia to bring a thoughtful, organized approach to everything she does. She’s known for keeping things running smoothly behind the scenes, no matter how complex the environment. In other words, if she's on vacation, we're in big trouble.
Arjun Panju, Investment Analyst
Arjun supports deal sourcing, founder relationships, and investment diligence across the portfolio. He focuses on identifying early-stage startups with strong traction and helping founders refine their storytelling and fundraising strategies. He is currently pursuing a business degree at Simon Fraser University, with concentrations in finance and accounting. Outside of venture, Arjun is a longtime youth basketball coach and an avid golfer, bringing energy and a team-first mindset. If you ever want to get on the court or hit the links, he’s always game. Based in Vancouver, Arjun is passionate about supporting ambitious entrepreneurs across North America.
Joel Hansen, Head of Marketing
Joel is a recognized marketing advisor, community builder, and growth specialist. He's worked with a range of clients, including high-growth tech startups to publicly traded international companies. Within his role at LOI Venture, he leads the marketing, PR and investor relations for the VC firm. He also supports the growing list of portfolio companies that LOI VC invests in and helps as a coordinator for introductions to LOI's investors, advisors, demo days and accelerator partnerships. Joel's based in Vancouver and loves running, visiting coffee shops, and travelling.
Wanna pitch them your big idea? Do that here.
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