SAP Ventures Appoints Rami Branitzky Managing Director of Market Development

PALO ALTO, Calif., March 11, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- SAP Ventures, the independent venture capital firm affiliated with SAP AG (NYSE: SAP), today announced that it has named Rami Branitzky as managing director to lead the global market development team. With more than US$1.4 billion under management, SAP Ventures invests in innovative and disruptive expansion-stage companies, as well as early-stage venture capital funds, across the information technology landscape. Branitzky will oversee the firm's efforts to enable its direct and indirect portfolio companies to leverage the unmatched capabilities and expertise of one of the world's largest enterprise IT ecosystems through its limited partner, SAP AG.

With close to 20 years of experience, Branitzky is a veteran of building and growing best-in-class enterprise software companies. Most recently, he was CEO of Grok Solutions (formerly Numenta).

"At SAP Ventures, we are committed to empowering startups with the resources and expertise they need to grow and scale," said Nino Marakovic, CEO and managing director, SAP Ventures. "With the addition of Rami, a proven leader with an exceptional track record and an extensive network, SAP Ventures will be in a unique position to deliver tremendous value to our portfolio companies, as well as the broader SAP ecosystem."

"We are excited to work with SAP Ventures because it means we get tremendous access to a vast global ecosystem, which is critical to executing our aggressive growth strategy," said Dheeraj Pandey, CEO of Nutanix. "We believe that collaborating closely with such a dedicated and competent team will allow us to strengthen our service delivery capabilities and accelerate our international expansion efforts."

Prior to Grok Solutions, Branitzky served as managing director at SAP Labs North America, where he was responsible for strategy and operations of SAP Labs across the region. Previously, Branitzky served as senior vice president in charge of SAP Global Software Solution Partnerships. In these positions, he was instrumental in driving SAP ecosystem strategy and partnering practices. Branitzky joined SAP AG following the acquisition of TopTier Software, where he held multiple field and product leadership positions.

The market development team, which encompasses business development and marketing, works closely with SAP Ventures' direct and indirect portfolio companies to connect them with customers, go-to-market partners, and technology and industry experts in the enterprise ecosystem. The goal is to give entrepreneurs and startups access to multiple strategic revenue channels available through SAP AG, which counts more than 13,000 partners and 250,000 customers worldwide.

"In the few months that we've partnered with SAP Ventures, the team has helped us to initiate and elevate a number of strategic conversations with SAP AG and provided us with invaluable opportunities to expand our customer base," said Patrick Quinlan, CEO of Convercent. "We continue to be highly impressed by the knowledge, expertise, and commitment that SAP Ventures brings to the table. The team's holistic market development offering has the potential to be game-changing for Convercent's ongoing growth and success."

The announcement comes on the heels of a record year for SAP Ventures, with 13 initial public offering (IPO) and merger and acquisition (M&A) events in 2013.

About SAP Ventures
SAP Ventures, with more than US$1.4 billion under management, is an investment firm that seeks to partner with outstanding entrepreneurs and leading venture firms worldwide to build industry-leading businesses. SAP Ventures is an independent investment organization affiliated with SAP AG, the leading global enterprise software company. SAP Ventures leverages its relationship with SAP and its ecosystem for the benefit of its portfolio companies and underlying fund managers. SAP Ventures was founded in 1997 and has invested in more than 125 companies across five continents.

For more information, visit www.sapventures.com. Follow SAP Ventures on Twitter at @SAP_Ventures.

About SAP
As market leader in enterprise application software, SAP (NYSE: SAP) helps companies of all sizes and industries run better. From back office to boardroom, warehouse to storefront, desktop to mobile device – SAP empowers people and organizations to work together more efficiently and use business insight more effectively to stay ahead of the competition. SAP applications and services enable more than 253,500 customers to operate profitably, adapt continuously, and grow sustainably. For more information, visit www.sap.com.

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Scott Behles, SAP, +1 (917) 494-2009, [email protected], PDT

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SOURCE SAP AG