Drew Venker

Drew Venker, CFA, currently serves as Head of Finance at Perplexity since September 2024 and is a mentor at Techstars, where the focus is on a fintech accelerator program co-sponsored by Barclays, since January 2021. Previously, Drew held the position of VP of Finance at Kruze Consulting, supporting over 800 Venture Capital-funded startups from January 2021 to August 2024. Prior experience includes a consultant role at The Glimpse Group in 2020, where an analysis of financial outlook and industry trends was generated, and an extensive tenure at Morgan Stanley from 2012 to 2020, culminating in the role of Executive Director, during which $4.9 billion was raised through IPOs and follow-on offerings. Drew also achieved top rankings as Vice President and developed a leading franchise as a Senior Associate at Lazard. Earlier in the career, roles at Merrill Lynch and Petrie Parkman included research associate positions focused on equity offerings and energy market forecasts, respectively. Drew holds a B.A. in Economics from the University of Colorado Boulder.