16th Annual Sohn San Francisco Investment Conference to Convene Leading Investors and Support Local Nonprofits

Including a special session with Ayesha Curry

SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 15, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- The 16th annual Sohn San Francisco Investment Conference will take place on October 28, 2025, welcoming 400+ attendees at the Hyatt Regency San Francisco. The conference brings together the Bay Area's most sophisticated investors for a full day of high-conviction investment ideas from top portfolio managers and asset allocators, and will feature a special conversation with entrepreneur and founder Ayesha Curry on strategic philanthropy and impact investing. This year's event is presented in partnership with CNBC, iConnections, CalAlts and SF Fund Week 2025. 

As part of the global Sohn Conference Foundation, this event continues the mission of bringing together successful investors to share knowledge and give back to the community.

"At The Sohn Conference, we aim to deliver more than just ideas—you'll hear alpha-generating strategies directly from some of the world's top portfolio managers," said Evan Sohn, Vice President and Co-founder of The Sohn Conference Foundation. "Attendees gain exclusive access to actionable investment opportunities, shared in a setting designed to inspire meaningful, results-driven insights."

Sohn SF Investment Conference Speakers

• Ravi Paidipaty, Deputy Chief Investment Officer, Freestone Grove Partners
• Mike Wilkins, Managing Member, Kingsford Capital Management
• Peter S. Park, Founder and Managing Member, Park West Asset Management
• Dennis Allaire, Partner and Director of Research, SoMa Equity Partners
• Chris Hansen, President and Founding Partner, Valiant Capital Management, L.P.
• Franklin Parlamis, Chief Investment Officer, Aequim Alternative Investments
• Jacob Rubin, Founder and Managing Member, Philosophy Capital Management LLC
• Blake Schaefer, Founding Partner, Environmental Commodity Partners
• Louis Chang, Founder and CIO, Gavilan Investment Partners

Next Wave Sohn SF Investment Conference, Hosted by Marex

• Jim Edwards, Managing Partner, Maestria Partners
• Gaurav Gupta, Founder & CIO, Floating Capital
• Shaun Mehra, Founder, Ishara Investments
• Jun Y. Oh, CIO, Griet Capital

Beneficiary Presentation: Investing in Our Future: Policy, Philanthropy, and Partnership
Ayesha Curry, Co-Founder of Eat. Learn. Play. Foundation and Founder of Sweet July,  shares insights on how cross-sector collaboration between government, nonprofits, and private funders is driving meaningful change for Bay Area youth.

• Ayesha Curry, Co-Founder, Eat. Learn. Play Foundation & Founder, Sweet July
  In Conversation With
• Seth Blackman, CPA, KPMG

iConnections: The Allocators Perspective
Join three of the industry's most respected Chief Investment Officers for an unfiltered discussion on how today's toughest market dynamics are reshaping capital‑allocation decisions across the alternative‑asset spectrum.

• Jim DeWolfe, Managing Member and Chief Investment Officer, Northside Capital Management
• Jackson J. Garton, CFA, Chief Investment Officer, Makena Capital Management
• Alan Zafran, CIO and Managing Partner, IEQ Capital
• Moderated by Lindsay Costigan, Managing Director, BNP Paribas.

Investing in China: Challenge and Opportunity
Two of the top global experts on China discuss long-term public and private investment strategies in the current geopolitical environment and beyond.

• Melissa J. Ma, Co-Founder and Managing Partner, Asia Alternatives
• Jeff Shen, PhD, Managing Director, Co-Chief Investment Officer and Co-Head of Systematic Active Equities, BlackRock
• Moderated by Pete Lardner, CFA, Managing Director, J.P. Morgan Private Bank.

Additional Programming:

SohnSF Leadership Forum: The Power of Mindset
A fireside chat with Keren Eldad, Executive Coach, With Enthusiasm Coaching, INC, in conversation with Lindsay Costigan, CAIA, Managing Director, BNP Paribas.

"The Big Pitch" Cal vs. Stanford The second annual student stock pitch competition, featuring undergraduate investors from UC Berkeley and Stanford University, presented live on the main stage.

"The San Francisco conference exemplifies the Bay Area's commitment to both investment excellence and community impact," said Seth Blackman, Board President of Sohn San Francisco. "We bring together the region's most talented investors for a day of actionable investment ideas while supporting organizations that transform educational opportunities for underserved youth throughout the Bay Area."

Funds raised at the conference benefit Bay Area nonprofits serving disadvantaged youth, continuing the legacy of over $3.5 million raised to date. The 2025 beneficiaries include The Posse Foundation, SMART*, and Eat. Learn. Play. 

About The Sohn Conference Foundation
The Sohn Conference Foundation brings together the most successful investors from the across the country and around the world, to connect and learn through our conferences, all of which support children's health programs and life outcomes. The Sohn Conference Foundation honors the memory of Ira Sohn, a talented Wall Street professional whose life was cut short when he passed away from cancer at the age of 29. Ira's friends and family founded The Sohn Conference Foundation in New York City in 1995. Since then, investment leaders from across the globe have been inspired to launch partner Sohn conferences and unite the financial community to support several charitable causes. To date, The Sohn Conference Foundation has raised more than $90 million. More information on The Sohn Conference Foundation is available at sohnconference.org.      

Media Contact
Adam Straus, 415-377-2327, [email protected] 

SOURCE The Sohn Conference Foundation