Alessandro Biral's successful operating and technology experience includes a thorough understanding of the global media industry, hardware and software technologies enabling broadband entertainment and services, and multiple-media convergence. He is a seasoned corporate executive with a unique and diversified background in management, strategic finance and venture capital, and has worked both in the U.S. and Europe at leading U.S. and European corporations.
Mr. Biral is a founder and principal of KeyNote Ventures. He led the firm’s investments in Loadstar Sensors, Center’d and Platial, where he is on the board of directors. He was also an observer on the board of Valere Power, which was sold to Eltek Energy (Norway) in June 2007.
Mr. Biral joined Dali, Hook Partners, the predecessor firm of KeyNote Ventures, in September 2003, from the Fininvest Group (the "Group") of Italy (owned by the Berlusconi family), where Alessandro was head of Corporate Finance, Corporate Development and Technology Investments, reporting directly to the CEO, and a member of the Executive Management Committee. Fininvest is one of the largest multi-media and communications groups in the world, with leadership positions both in commercial television and publishing, and movie production and distribution. It also operates in insurance and financial services. Since early 2001, he has been living in the Silicon Valley, where he built the venture business unit of the Group with investments both in venture capital funds and in U.S. private companies, including Digital Persona and Point BioMedical, where he was a board observer. Mr. Biral has tapped into his European industry connections to the benefit of his U.S. portfolio companies, helping them in their European expansion and bringing European financing in later-stage rounds.
From 1994 to 1999, he was an investment banker at Morgan Stanley in London, in the M&A and Restructuring Division. He completed more than $80 billion of strategic transactions, in complex mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures and equity financing deals (IPOs) of the highest profile. These included the largest European M&A transaction (Astra-Zeneca), the unwinding of the Astra-Merck joint venture in the U.S., and the STMicroelectronics IPO. From 1990 to 1993, he was a Senior Consultant at Bain & Co. in Milan and London.
Mr. Biral graduated with distinction in finance (MBA) at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania in 1995 and has an undergraduate degree in engineering (magna cum laude) from the Politecnico of Milan, Italy, where he graduated at the top of his class.