KARIM GILLANI
General Partner
Karim
Gillani
Karim has an extensive background in fintech, mobile tech, engineering, finance and strategy. Prior to co-founding Luge, Karim led Corporate Development and M&A activities for PayPal in Canada. Before that, Karim started the Corporate Development practice at Xoom, a leading cross-border remittance company that was publicly-listed on the NASDAQ in 2013 and subsequently acquired by PayPal in 2015 for USD $890M. Prior to Xoom, Karim led M&A and strategic investments for BlackBerry in Silicon Valley. Karim was also responsible for establishing BlackBerry’s largest partnerships, and he developed the company’s overall strategy for mobile payments and commerce, including NFC payments, P2P and App World. Karim spent several years working for Redknee Solutions in the UK where he designed telecom network infrastructures, including mobile money solutions, for operators in East Africa and Western Europe.
Karim has a BASc in Systems Design Engineering from the University of Waterloo, an MSc in Finance and Economic Policy from the University of London and an LLM Master of Laws from the University of Toronto. Karim is a Kauffman Fellow, a Charter Member of the C100, a Board Advisor for Village Capital and a member of the Fintech Advisory Committee for the Ontario Securities Commission.
Read Karim’s story: The Path from Coder to Investor.
Follow Karim:
“Be so good
they can’t
ignore you”
– Steve Martin
3 things about Karim
Why am I in the VC industry?
Two reasons:
1. I’m a naturally curious person and I enjoy taking a wide-angle view of the world;
2. I have some unusual experiences that can help support founders
What excites me about the Fintech industry?
Even though financial services account for 20% of the GDP in the US and Canada, the industry is still stuck in the dark ages. Fintech companies are pushing the industry forward.
Fun facts about me:
I was born in Canada to British parents, who were originally from East Africa, living in Saudi Arabia. Since then, I’ve lived in 9 countries.
My first car was a 1989 red Honda CRX with a manual transmission. I paid $500 for it.
Investments
