Janine Firpo is the Co-founder of Invest for Better and author of Activate Your Money: Invest to Grow Your Wealth and Build a Better World. 

From the early years of Apple Computer to senior positions with Hewlett-Packard, the World Bank, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Janine has always found herself making an impact. In 2017 she left a successful 35+ year career in technology and international development to focus on how women can create a more just and equitable society through their financial investments. She published her book in May 2021 and later that year, co-founded Invest for Better, a nonprofit that is catalyzing a movement in which millions of professional women are educated, enabled, and empowered to activate the power of their money for themselves and for the world.

Janine is also a lead investor in Next Wave Impact, a venture fund designed to help more women become angel investors. In 2024, Forbes named Janine one of “50 Over 50” female leaders who continue to make impact later in life. 

SIGN UP FOR OUR NEWSLETTER at www.venturef.com/newsletter to get curated news and information about growing your wealth and investing in women delivered to your in-box every week.

FOLLOW US @VENTUREFPODCAST Insta / X / YouTube / LinkedIn

DISCLAIMER: The information on this podcast is made available solely for general information purposes, is not tailored to the individual needs of a specific person or group, contains only disinterested commentary and analysis, and is not promotional material or an offer or solicitation to buy or sell securities. Venture:F does not warrant the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness the information in this podcast. Any reliance you place on such information is strictly at your own risk. Venture:F does not offer any investment advice, we are not a broker-dealer or financial advisor, and this podcast does not constitute any form of legal, tax, or securities advice and may not be relied upon when making any investment decision. Investing entails risk, including the possible loss of principal, and past performance is not predictive of future results.

Steph Wagner is a nationally recognized thought leader in women’s wealth and financial empowerment. Today, she serves as National Director of Women & Wealth at Northern Trust, where she leads the firm’s advisory practice for women and its Elevating Women platform—a national program focused on building financial literacy and helping women use their wealth to create meaningful impact in their families, businesses, and communities. Before joining Northern Trust, Steph spent years advising high-net-worth women navigating major life transitions. She also built a national consulting practice for wealth management firms seeking to better serve female clients and founded WomenWealthyWise, a platform dedicated to advancing financial literacy and empowerment for women. A frequent media contributor, Steph’s insights have been featured in The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Entrepreneur, Barron’s, Bloomberg, MarketWatch, Kiplinger, Yahoo Finance, and more. Steph lives just outside of Austin, Texas, and is the proud mom of three grown sons.

SIGN UP FOR OUR NEWSLETTER at www.venturef.com/newsletter to get curated news and information about growing your wealth and investing in women delivered to your in-box every week.

FOLLOW US @VENTUREFPODCAST Insta / X / YouTube / LinkedIn

DISCLAIMER: The information on this podcast is made available solely for general information purposes, is not tailored to the individual needs of a specific person or group, contains only disinterested commentary and analysis, and is not promotional material or an offer or solicitation to buy or sell securities. Venture:F does not warrant the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness the information in this podcast. Any reliance you place on such information is strictly at your own risk. Venture:F does not offer any investment advice, we are not a broker-dealer or financial advisor, and this podcast does not constitute any form of legal, tax, or securities advice and may not be relied upon when making any investment decision. Investing entails risk, including the possible loss of principal, and past performance is not predictive of future results.

Alicia Hanf, Head of Institutional Partnerships, Ecosystem Development. LG Nova where she leads efforts to forge strategic institutional partnerships and expand a dynamic ecosystem for innovation. 

Prior to joining LG Nova, Alicia founded Dear Mama Ventures a platform dedicated to improving access to capital for underrepresented entrepreneurs. Dear Mama’s  industry-agnostic investment approach focused on diverse founders tackling global challenges, reflecting Alicia’s commitment to inclusive progress and systemic change. 

Alicia has an extensive resume in venture. She built and managed a global pipeline of 5,000+ startups and 40 partners across three continents;  led the development of corporate venture arms for two Fortune 500 companies, contributing to investment theses and overseeing $300M+ in deployed capital across 30+ deals, and played a pivotal role in raising over $50M for high-impact startups. Alicia has been featured in Forbes, Yahoo Finance, and The Washington Post and is a sought-after speaker including her recent talk on Emotional Intelligence + AI Fluency at We Make Future Summit and her  TEDX Talk The Last Known Point- Veterans' Edge in Navigating the Business World. She was recently awarded the 2025 Women in Leadership Award from Fiona Ma, California’s 34th State Treasurer.

SIGN UP FOR OUR NEWSLETTER at www.venturef.com/newsletter to get curated news and information about growing your wealth and investing in women delivered to your in-box every week.

FOLLOW US @VENTUREFPODCAST Insta / X / YouTube / LinkedIn

DISCLAIMER: The information on this podcast is made available solely for general information purposes, is not tailored to the individual needs of a specific person or group, contains only disinterested commentary and analysis, and is not promotional material or an offer or solicitation to buy or sell securities. Venture:F does not warrant the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness the information in this podcast. Any reliance you place on such information is strictly at your own risk. Venture:F does not offer any investment advice, we are not a broker-dealer or financial advisor, and this podcast does not constitute any form of legal, tax, or securities advice and may not be relied upon when making any investment decision. Investing entails risk, including the possible loss of principal, and past performance is not predictive of future results.

Kerry Rupp is a General Partner at True Wealth Ventures, an early-stage venture capital fund investing in women-led businesses that improve human and/or environmental health. She is a board director for True Wealth Ventures’ portfolio companies Partum Health, Rosy and RubyWell, and a board observer for Atlantic Sea Farms. She previously served as board director for BrainCheck, Flourish, reHarvest Provisions and VidaFuel.

She has also taught as a nationally-certified instructor for the National Science Foundation’s Innovation Corps (I-Corps) program, helping university-based teams to commercialize their science and technology research. She is an active startup coach who is asked to judge at startup competitions nationwide and is a frequent speaker on entrepreneurship, innovation and early-stage investing. She has served as a mentor at Capital Factory, on the Advisory Panel of the Texas Health Catalyst program at Dell Medical School, on the Advisory Board at Jon Brumley Texas Venture Labs at UT Austin, and on the Founding Steering Committee for Beam, an organization focused on making Austin the best place to be a woman entrepreneur.

Previously, Kerry was CEO at DreamIt, a Top Ten US startup accelerator and early-stage venture fund, where she was directly involved with the launch of over 150 companies. During her 5-year tenure with DreamIt, she grew its programs to five cities, raised a $20M follow-on fund, and initiated the DreamIt Access (minority entrepreneur), DreamIt Athena (female entrepreneur), and DreamIt Health programs.

Before DreamIt, Kerry was herself the founder of an online travel service, Holiday Golightly, which organized unique group travel excursions for women. She has also advised senior executives at Allrecipes.com, ReadersDigest, LexisNexis, Payscale, and Taleo on stategy, business development and marketing. She has held Vice President level positions at AllRecipes.com, Jobster, Classmates.com and LexisNexis. Kerry began her career as a consultant with McKinsey and Andersen Consulting (now Accenture).

Kerry holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and a BA in Biology from Duke University. In addition to her startup ecosystem service, she serves on the board of the Ascension Seton Foundation and on the Innovation Roundtable for the Office of Innovation and Entrepreneurship at the Dell Medical School. She previously served as Board Chair for the Texas 4000 for Cancer, was a Member of the Austin Area Research Organization (AARO), and served on the Host Committee for the Austin Community Foundation’s Women’s Fund Keyholder event for several years. She is an avid adventurer that has visited over 50 countries and all 50 US states. 

For more details, see www.linkedin.com/in/kerryrupp or www.kerryrupp.com 

SIGN UP FOR OUR NEWSLETTER at www.venturef.com/newsletter to get curated news and information about growing your wealth and investing in women delivered to your in-box every week.

FOLLOW US @VENTUREFPODCAST Insta / X / YouTube / LinkedIn

DISCLAIMER: The information on this podcast is made available solely for general information purposes, is not tailored to the individual needs of a specific person or group, contains only disinterested commentary and analysis, and is not promotional material or an offer or solicitation to buy or sell securities. Venture:F does not warrant the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness the information in this podcast. Any reliance you place on such information is strictly at your own risk. Venture:F does not offer any investment advice, we are not a broker-dealer or financial advisor, and this podcast does not constitute any form of legal, tax, or securities advice and may not be relied upon when making any investment decision. Investing entails risk, including the possible loss of principal, and past performance is not predictive of future results.

Today we welcome to the podcast Syama Bunten, transformational wealth leader, Co-Founder of the Wealth Catalyst Summit, host of the Getting Rich Together podcast, and creator of The Wealth Catalyst Substack. Through events in San Francisco, New York City, and nationwide salons, she empowers women to speak openly about money, take control of their financial futures, and bridge the money-confidence gap. With women on track to inherit over $30 trillion in wealth by 2030, Syama is catalyzing access, networks, and wealth-building education in the places where it matters most. Syama is a serial entrepreneur, an award-winning podcaster, and has been featured in NY Times, Inc., and Forbes magazines.

SIGN UP FOR OUR NEWSLETTER at www.venturef.com/newsletter to get curated news and information about growing your wealth and investing in women delivered to your in-box every week.

FOLLOW US @VENTUREFPODCAST Insta / X / YouTube / LinkedIn

DISCLAIMER: The information on this podcast is made available solely for general information purposes, is not tailored to the individual needs of a specific person or group, contains only disinterested commentary and analysis, and is not promotional material or an offer or solicitation to buy or sell securities. Venture:F does not warrant the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness the information in this podcast. Any reliance you place on such information is strictly at your own risk. Venture:F does not offer any investment advice, we are not a broker-dealer or financial advisor, and this podcast does not constitute any form of legal, tax, or securities advice and may not be relied upon when making any investment decision. Investing entails risk, including the possible loss of principal, and past performance is not predictive of future results.

Annie Belanger, is the co-founder of the Abundance Collective a community that empowers women to participate in the flow of money and increase their investing acumen.

Annie has lived many lives, from her tenure in the hedge fund world as a Female Founder and angel investor, to her most important role, the mother of 3 children.

She previously worked in finance at Conquest Capital, a CTA hedge fund, and at the Park Hill Group, a division of Blackstone where she was overseeing the marketing of third-party managers in the alternative space. During her time at those firms, Annie realized many women lack the knowledge and familiarity to understand various financial maneuvers.

Since then, Annie has adopted this simple philosophy: women should be pilots, not passengers, in their financial decisions. In that spirit, she founded the Abundance Collective to empower women to become better investors through education.

SIGN UP FOR OUR NEWSLETTER at www.venturef.com/newsletter to get curated news and information about growing your wealth and investing in women delivered to your in-box every week.

FOLLOW US @VENTUREFPODCAST Insta / X / YouTube / LinkedIn

DISCLAIMER: The information on this podcast is made available solely for general information purposes, is not tailored to the individual needs of a specific person or group, contains only disinterested commentary and analysis, and is not promotional material or an offer or solicitation to buy or sell securities. Venture:F does not warrant the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness the information in this podcast. Any reliance you place on such information is strictly at your own risk. Venture:F does not offer any investment advice, we are not a broker-dealer or financial advisor, and this podcast does not constitute any form of legal, tax, or securities advice and may not be relied upon when making any investment decision. Investing entails risk, including the possible loss of principal, and past performance is not predictive of future results.

This week we bring to you a special year-end wrap-up joint episode where I’m joined by my friend and fellow podcast host Marcia Dawood of the Angel Next Door Podcast.

We had a great conversation reflecting on everything 2024 had to offer, the inspiring guests, the lessons learned, and the topics that resonated with our listeners. From game-changing conversations with leading experts, investors, founders and change-makers to surprising behind the scenes stories. We’ve pulled back the curtain on what it really takes to create and sustain a weekly podcast.

2024 was a big year for Venture:F, we launched in January with a mission to help women invest in women. We’ve reached thousands of women who have told us that our bite-sized, easy to digest podcast episodes and our weekly newsletters that provide a skim of the latest financial and investing news have really educated them on building wealth, investing, and why invest in women.

I hope you enjoy this episode as we look back on the year, share a few laughs, and offer a glimpse of what we have In store for 2025.

SIGN UP FOR OUR NEWSLETTER at www.venturef.com/newsletter to get curated news and information about growing your wealth and investing in women delivered to your in-box every week.

FOLLOW US @VENTUREFPODCAST Insta / X / YouTube / LinkedIn

DISCLAIMER: The information on this podcast is made available solely for general information purposes, is not tailored to the individual needs of a specific person or group, contains only disinterested commentary and analysis, and is not promotional material or an offer or solicitation to buy or sell securities. Venture:F does not warrant the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness the information in this podcast. Any reliance you place on such information is strictly at your own risk. Venture:F does not offer any investment advice, we are not a broker-dealer or financial advisor, and this podcast does not constitute any form of legal, tax, or securities advice and may not be relied upon when making any investment decision. Investing entails risk, including the possible loss of principal, and past performance is not predictive of future results.

Halle Kaplan-Allen is the Director of Growth at Sydecar an innovative platform that helps you start and run your investment vehicles — so you can focus on making deals, not spreadsheets. In this conversation we talk about Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVS), how to angel invest alongside other women, how SPVS help founders add more angels to the cap table while managing the investor relations aspects, and Sydecar’s solutions for founders and fund managers.

SIGN UP FOR OUR NEWSLETTER at www.venturef.com/newsletter to get curated news and information about growing your wealth and investing in women delivered to your in-box every week.

FOLLOW US @VENTUREFPODCAST Insta / X / YouTube / LinkedIn

DISCLAIMER: The information on this podcast is made available solely for general information purposes, is not tailored to the individual needs of a specific person or group, contains only disinterested commentary and analysis, and is not promotional material or an offer or solicitation to buy or sell securities. Venture:F does not warrant the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness the information in this podcast. Any reliance you place on such information is strictly at your own risk. Venture:F does not offer any investment advice, we are not a broker-dealer or financial advisor, and this podcast does not constitute any form of legal, tax, or securities advice and may not be relied upon when making any investment decision. Investing entails risk, including the possible loss of principal, and past performance is not predictive of future results.

Kimberly Smith is the Chief Capital Formation Officer of Andalusian Credit Partners a solutions-oriented middle market direct lending platform. In this conversation we discuss private capital versus private equity, building opportunity and access to dealflow, women in private capital and finance, and why diverse leadership is important in finance.

Kimberly was previously the Chief Capital Formation Officer at Techstars, where she led the strategy and execution of fundraising, deal sourcing, and investor relations for the global network of entrepreneurs and mentors. Prior to her role at Techstars, Kimberly was a Partner and the Director of Marketing and Investor Relations at Owl Creek Investment Management, where she managed the communication and relationships with existing and prospective investors, as well as the firm's branding and marketing initiatives. She also previously held roles at Davidson Kempner Capital Management and ABN AMRO Bank.

Kimberly serves as an Honorary Trustee of the Ethical Culture Fieldston School after completing a five-year term as Chair of the Board. She is also a trustee of the Bridge Golf Foundation and Group for the East End, and serves on the advisory board of MeshEd, an EdTech company based in New York.

SIGN UP FOR OUR NEWSLETTER at www.venturef.com/newsletter to get curated news and information about growing your wealth and investing in women delivered to your in-box every week.

FOLLOW US @VENTUREFPODCAST Insta / X / YouTube / LinkedIn

DISCLAIMER: The information on this podcast is made available solely for general information purposes, is not tailored to the individual needs of a specific person or group, contains only disinterested commentary and analysis, and is not promotional material or an offer or solicitation to buy or sell securities. Venture:F does not warrant the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness the information in this podcast. Any reliance you place on such information is strictly at your own risk. Venture:F does not offer any investment advice, we are not a broker-dealer or financial advisor, and this podcast does not constitute any form of legal, tax, or securities advice and may not be relied upon when making any investment decision. Investing entails risk, including the possible loss of principal, and past performance is not predictive of future results.

Marisa Warren is the Founder & Managing Partner of ALIAVIA Ventures and Founder of ELEVACAO. Marisa invests in female-founded tech startups across the U.S. and Australia.

Beginning her career in enterprise software sales in 2001, Marisa went on to build the Microsoft Partner Development Centre for Australia and Southeast Asia. Marisa's efforts resulted in customer acquisition targets exceeding 230% and as a result she received the Microsoft Global Best-Practice award.

At SAP Australia, Marisa conceptualized and built the SAP Partner Sales Academy, a program supporting partners to source, train and deploy SAP-qualified and revenue-ready salespeople into the channel. Marisa's efforts resulted in receiving an Innovation Excellence Award for developing the SAP Sales Academy program, growing the customer base from 140 to 850 in 3 years and a 100% Sales Club Award.

Marisa left big corporate in 2015 to pursue her passion for early-stage businesses. She founded ELEVACAO a global pre-accelerator for women tech founders. Fast forward to today and ELEVACAO has empowered 175 women across the U.S. and Australia, who have raised $120m+ and produced 5 Exits.

In 2020, Marisa co-founded ALIAVIA Ventures, a California-based venture capital firm investing in early-stage female founders building world-changing technology companies in the United States and Australia.

SIGN UP FOR OUR NEWSLETTER at www.venturef.com/newsletter to get curated news and information about growing your wealth and investing in women delivered to your in-box every week.

FOLLOW US @VENTUREFPODCAST Insta / X / YouTube / LinkedIn

DISCLAIMER: The information on this podcast is made available solely for general information purposes, is not tailored to the individual needs of a specific person or group, contains only disinterested commentary and analysis, and is not promotional material or an offer or solicitation to buy or sell securities. Venture:F does not warrant the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness the information in this podcast. Any reliance you place on such information is strictly at your own risk. Venture:F does not offer any investment advice, we are not a broker-dealer or financial advisor, and this podcast does not constitute any form of legal, tax, or securities advice and may not be relied upon when making any investment decision. Investing entails risk, including the possible loss of principal, and past performance is not predictive of future results.