Liquidnet Celebrates the First Graduating Class of the Liquidnet Family High School in Rwanda

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Liquidnet, the global institutional trading network, celebrates the first graduating class of the Liquidnet Family High School located at the Agahozo-Shalom Youth Village (ASYV) in Rwanda which took place on January 10, 2013. For the last four years, these students - many of them orphans of Rwanda’s genocide – have resided at the ASYV, a cutting edge community aimed at educating and nurturing young adults who were orphans of war, violence and disease to become the country’s leaders. Rwanda’s president, Paul Kagame attended the ceremony at the ASYV’s campus, which is located about 30 miles from the Rwandan capital of Kigali.

“When these students entered the village they had little hope and confidence and today the president of their country called them the future leaders of Rwanda. This is a testament to what a ground-breaking community like ASYV can achieve.”

While addressing the graduating students during the ceremony, President Kagame said, “You are part of the wider Rwandan family and we want to support you to reach your goals. So you should count on us who will be with you throughout the way.”

He continued, “We want you to leave this place with confidence, trust and faith, in families, the country and together with your invaluable contributions; we can shape the future of our people as we deserve and want it to be.”

About the Agahozo Shalom Youth Village

Opened in 2008 by social entrepreneur Anne Heyman, the ASYV was built to provide Rwanda’s most vulnerable youth with a place to heal and the tools to flourish so that they can invigorate their communities and launch Rwanda to a new level of social and economic success. Today, it is home to 500 Rwandan teenagers and young adults orphaned by violence and AIDS. Modeled after the youth villages Israel established after the Holocaust to help raise relocated orphans from Eastern Europe, the ASYV was founded with the belief that the people who ultimately rebuild Rwanda will come from the approximately 610,000 young people orphaned in the country. Following graduation, these young adults will return to their villages for entrepreneurial pursuits, enter university to pursue professional degrees, seek out immediate jobs or enroll in other continuing educational programs.

President Kagame noted that the ASYV “has restored hope to some of the most vulnerable children in our country. This is definitely a very good example of a partnership that works between people from across the world and our country who share a common vision for a better world for all of us. The spirit of this school is about resilience, transformation of lives and strength of character.”

About the Liquidnet Family High School

The Liquidnet Family High School was named in honor of the volunteer network of Liquidnet employees and family members who donated their time and resources over the past five years to help turn the ASYV concept into a reality. More than 60 employees and family members have travelled to Rwanda over 75 times to perform skill-based volunteer projects, including working on issues like setting up IT systems, installing a wireless network across the entire campus, installing computer labs, setting up accounting systems, and providing capacity-building leadership training. In total, Liquidnet has contributed over $7.5 million to the project and has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars through its Race4Rwanda endurance event series. The ASYV is the global charitable partner of Liquidnet For Good, the corporate impact program that leverages Liquidnet’s resources in pursuit of a better world.

“Just a few short years ago, the ASYV was simply an idea that my wife Anne came up with after hearing about the Rwandan orphan population. Through the hard work of many people including the contributions of the entire Liquidnet Family, this idea turned into a reality,” commented Seth Merrin, Founder and CEO of Liquidnet. “When these students entered the village they had little hope and confidence and today the president of their country called them the future leaders of Rwanda. This is a testament to what a ground-breaking community like ASYV can achieve.”

About Liquidnet

Liquidnet is the global institutional trading network that connects over 700 of the world’s top asset managers to large-scale equity trading opportunities across the globe — 41 markets across five continents. With an average trade size of more than 42,000 shares in the US, 65,300 in Canada, and approximately $1 million in Europe, Africa and Asia Pacific*, Liquidnet is a leader in large block trading globally. Liquidnet does this by going beyond what the retail market can provide by defending and securing the integrity and the anonymity of the block trade while continuously looking for ways to bring in new sources of safe, actionable liquidity from asset management firms, exchanges, brokers and corporations. Asset Managers rely on Liquidnet to help them protect the performance of their portfolios by allowing them to enter and exit their portfolio positions more efficiently. For more information on the Liquidnet community, its liquidity, block executions, and additional investment capabilities, visit www.liquidnet.com.

*For the year ending 12/31/12

© 2013 Liquidnet Holdings, Inc. and its subsidiaries. Liquidnet, Inc. is a member of FINRA/SIPC. Liquidnet Europe Limited is authorized and regulated by the Financial Services Authority in the UK, is licensed by the Financial Services Board in South Africa, and is a member of the London Stock Exchange and a remote member of the Warsaw Stock Exchange and SIX Swiss Exchange. Liquidnet Canada Inc. is a member of IIROC and a member of Canadian Investor Protection Fund. Liquidnet Asia Limited is regulated by the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission as a licensed dealer and a provider of automated trading services pursuant to the Securities and Futures Ordinance and is regulated by the Monetary Authority of Singapore as a Recognized Market Operator. Liquidnet Japan Inc. is regulated by the Financial Services Agency of Japan and is a member of JSDA/JIPF. Liquidnet Australia Pty Ltd. is registered with the Australian Securities and Investment Commission as an Australian Financial Services Licensee, AFSL number 312525, and is registered with the New Zealand Financial Markets Authority as a Financial Service Provider, FSP number FSP3781.