ADVISORY BOARD

Fred Beste
Founding Partner, Mid-Atlantic Venture Funds (MAVF)

Fred is a highly regarded venture capitalist in the mid-Atlantic region with a successful 20+ year track record investing in mid-Atlantic early stage companies. As a founding partner of MAVF, he is an ideal advisor to the Principals, who seek to repeat what Fred has done for the past twenty years.

Fred began his career in 1968 with Greater Washington Investors, Inc., a publicly held venture capital firm, where he was Vice President and Treasurer. He then joined Kentucky Highlands Investment Corporation, a private venture capital development firm, where he was Vice President and, ultimately, President and Chief Executive Officer. He formed MAVF in 1984, as the founding President and Chief Executive Officer of its first general partner.

During the course of his career, Fred has served on the boards of directors of dozens of companies and has advised and worked with thousands of entrepreneurs. He has been widely published on the subjects of venture capital and entrepreneurship and has done extensive public speaking on both subjects as well.

Fred was the Chairman of the 1994 Mid-Atlantic Venture Fair, the largest such event in the industry, and the recipient of both the Greater Philadelphia Venture Group's 1995 Blair L. Thompson Memorial Award for career achievement and the inaugural (2001) Early Stage East/Sal Buccieri Award for regional early stage VC impact.

Fred received his BA in Economics from Stetson University and is an adjunct professor of entrepreneurial studies at Cornell University’s graduate business school.

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