LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Pepperdine Graziadio Business School announced its first annual Most Fundable Companies List at a campus event Thursday, with South Carolina-based company, Soteria Battery Innovation Group, taking the top spot. Thousands of early-stage U.S. companies with less than $10 million in annual revenue participated in the Most Fundable Companies initiative, which is designed to bridge the gap between startups and the capital they need to succeed.
In addition to announcing the 15 Most Fundable Companies, the Graziadio School recognizes five Highly Promising startups, firms with particularly strong business plans and near-term growth projections. Honorees on the inaugural list are located across the country and come from a variety of industries including telecommunications, blockchain, and construction.
“Recognizing that competition for funding is getting tighter we developed the Most Fundable Companies initiative to assist angel and venture capital investors in identifying early-stage startups that are worthy of investment,” said Craig Everett, assistant professor of finance and director of the Pepperdine Private Capital Markets Project. “We are thrilled to recognize these Best for the World entrepreneurs who have developed a strong business model to capitalize on unique market opportunities.”
The Most Fundable Companies assessment evaluates several company variables, including financial projections, market opportunity, intellectual property, and the strength of the management team, all of which are used to produce a fundability score for every company that participates. The top 15 companies were selected in partnership with The Venture Alliance (TVA).
To learn more about the List winners and find out how to participate in the 2019 Most Fundable Companies initiative, visit here.
Pepperdine Graziadio Most Fundable Companies List
#1: Soteria Battery Innovation Group
The Soteria Battery Innovation Group is working to develop and promote materials for lithium ion batteries that reduce weight, improve safety, and decrease cost.
- Founders: Brian Morin and Carl Hu
- Location: Greenville, SC
- Industry: Electronic Devices
#2: Tango Networks
Tango Networks takes enterprise communications from the office to the mobile increasing productivity and empowering a company’s mobile, distributed workforce.
- Founders: Douglas Bartek and Andrew Silver
- Location: Frisco, TX
- Industry: Telecommunications
#3: Beyond Brands Group, LLC
Beyond Brands Group, LLC provides an experiential shopping experience for traditionally-southern and modern-south curated collections through its Southern Living retail stores and website.
- Founders: William Love, Beau Green, and Richard Gudzan
- Location: Memphis, TN
- Industry: Consumer Retail
#4: System Surveyor
System Surveyor is the “Digital Map for the Internet of Things”, a revolutionary cloud-based digital floor plan tool used to plan, install, and maintain electronic security and other devices.
- Founders: Christopher Hugman and Maureen Carlson
- Location: Austin, TX
- Industry: B2B Software as a Service (SaaS)
#5: ALLPUR Nutrition
ALLPUR Nutrition is an innovator in the consumer health and wellness beverage space creating new nutritious dairy-based brands from milk.
- Founders: Mary Ann Clark, RN and George Clark
- Location: Statesville, NC
- Industry: Food/Beverage
#6: Dynamic Extrusion
Dynamic Extrusion has re-invented the wet grain dehydrating process to produce nutritionally superior feed supplements for livestock and game.
- Founder: Bill McMeans
- Location: Austin, TX
- Industry: Animal Feed
#7: Neuvokas
Neuvokas manufactures low-cost Fiber Reinforced Polymer Rebar (FRP rebar), that is faster to install than steel rebar, and 7x lighter.
- Founders: Erik Kiilunen and Kenneth Keranen
- Location: Ahmeek, MI
- Industry: Construction
#8: Company: VFT Solutions
VFT Solutions helps content owners, broadcasters and law enforcement fight and monetize piracy as well as fight online crime.
- Founders: Wayne Lonstein and Julie Lonstein
- Location: Ellenville, NY
- Industry: Cybersecurity – Broadcast Media
#9: Sagewise
Sagewise bridges blockchain technology and legal reality through its safety net for smart contracts.
- Founders: Amy Wan and Daniel Rice
- Location: Los Angeles, CA
- Industry: Blockchain Technology
#10: EV Safe Charge
EV Safe Charge makes it easy to purchase and install an electric vehicle charging station at your home or business and rent EV chargers for your events.
- Founder: Caradoc Ehrenhalt
- Location: Los Angeles, CA
- Industry: Automotive - Transportation
#11: nēdl
nēdl lets users discover and start live radio broadcasts that are searchable by keywords. Find them featured in the App Store and on Alexa.
- Founders: Ayinde Alakoye and Jason Medeiros
- Location: Santa Monica, CA
- Industry: Media
#12: Big Ass® Brands
Big Ass® Brands sets their sights on changing America’s beer and wine culture with innovative, easy-to-drink beer and wine concepts.
- Founders: Ray Horwath and Anita Horwath
- Location: Fairfield, CA
- Industry: Beverages
#13: POPS! Diabetes Care
POPS! Diabetes Care simplifies diabetes self-management by reducing the friction points of today’s products through a novel digital health platform.
- Founders: Lonny Stormo, Dan Davis, and Curt Christensen
- Location: Minneapolis, MN
- Industry: Medical Devices
#14: Nila
Nila designs and manufactures LED products that have lit concerts, sports stadiums, TV studios, ski slopes, crash testing, and the U.S. Congress.
- Founders: Jim Sanfilippo
- Location: Altadena, CA
- Industry: Lighting Design
#15: UnicusID
UnicusID helps government employees, companies and individuals prove who they say they are in order to protect their personal identity online.
- Founders: Patrick Taylor, Scott Pierce, Keith Deason, and Jeff Baldwin
- Location: Birmingham, AL
- Industry: Biometrics
Top 5 Highly Promising Companies
Disclaimers: The Pepperdine Graziadio Most Fundable Companies List does not represent an offer to sell securities. It does not constitute investment advice, nor is it an endorsement of any particular product or service. Pepperdine University and The Venture Alliance (TVA) are not broker-dealers and do not perform services provided by a broker-dealer, including but not limited to any financial or investment advising.
About the Pepperdine University Graziadio Business School
Anchored in the core values of integrity and innovation, the Pepperdine Graziadio Business School challenges individuals to think boldly and drive meaningful change that positively impacts their organizations and communities. With an entrepreneurial spirit, the Graziadio School advances experiential learning in small classes that deepen connections and stimulate critical thinking. Through our wide continuum of MBA, MS and executive degree programs offered across six California campuses, Graziadio faculty inspire full-time students and working professionals to realize their greatest potential as values-centered, Best for the World Leaders. Follow Pepperdine Graziadio on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.
