John Balen

John Balen understands entrepreneurs. Since joining Canaan in 1995, John has worked with some of the smartest people in the technology industry to build high-performance companies such as Commerce One, which brought B2B ecommerce to the masses, eStamp, the pioneer of Internet postage, Intraware the leading provider of electronic license delivery and management, and Rightpoint, a real-time customer analytics software provider, acquired by Epiphany.

At Canaan, John focuses on investments in communications & mobility, and next-generation enterprise technology companies that are disrupting the balance of traditional markets. His portfolio includes Dexterra, which is helping enterprises reap the benefits of a mobile workforce with innovative tools and software; and ID Analytics, which offers the nation’s only real-time fraud prevention system for enterprises. He also invests in digital media companies that empower the consumer through web-based services, such as Blurb.com, a revolutionary company changing the face of publishing by letting anyone easily create and sell bookstore-quality books.

Before joining Canaan Partners, John held a variety of operational and financial roles, where he learned both how to build companies from the ground up and how to fund them. He served as a Managing Director of Horsley Bridge Partners, a multi-billion dollar private equity firm in San Francisco. During his nine-year tenure at Horsley Bridge, John was responsible for a wide spectrum of investments in technology companies, as well as many venture capital and buyout partnerships. Earlier in his career, John was a sales applications engineer at fiber communications startup Codenoll Technology Corp. and an engineer at Digital Equipment Corp.

John currently serves on the boards of innovative digital media firms Blurb, Cardlytics, Casabi and Silicon Optix, mobile companies Command Audio and Dexterra, and enterprise technology firms Echopass, EZRez, ID Analytics and SOASTA.

John received a BS in electrical engineering and an MBA from Cornell University. A firm believer in the value of education, John is the Chair of the Strategic Planning Committee, and as a board member serves on the Executive Committee of his children’s school.  John frequently donates time and money to educational causes.

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