Erkki Aaltonen (pictured), previously executive director of New York University Abu Dhabi’s seed investor and incubator StartAD, has moved to become director of venture investments at Norway-based food company Yara International.
He said: “I will set up and run a new fund for Yara. YaraGerminate is the name of the fund and new unit. We will also set up incubation and acceleration programs in various locations globally, first one will be in Sao Paolo.”
Aaltonen had spent two years as executive director of StartAD, which targets startups in the Middle East and North Africa region. He had joined StartAD from the Kaust Innovation Fund, owned by King Abdullah University of Science and Technology.
In total, Aaltonen said he had more than 15 years of diversified experience in various investment and corporate development roles in venture capital and telecommunication businesses, including stints in Finland for VTT Ventures and Nokia Ventures.
At StartAD, Aaltonen will be replaced by Robyn Brazzil, who has been promoted to director from assistant director, a position she had held since September 2017.
Brazzil joined StartAD in 2015 as program manager, having previously served as an associate for law firm Block, O’Toole and Murphy for four years. She holds a doctor of law from Fordham University School of Law, which she achieved in 2010.
– Image courtesy of LinkedIn. A version of this article first appeared on our sister site, Global Corporate Venturing.
