Kathy Smith

Renaissance Capital LLC is an independent, SEC-registered investment advisor headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut. The firm was founded in 1991 by Linda Killian, Kathy Smith and William (Bill) Smith. Renaissance Capital provides IPO Intelligence, a pre-IPO research and IPO market analytics service, to institutional investors, which include mutual funds, hedge funds, asset managers, pension plans, underwriters and advisory firms. The firm also provides IPO Pro, an IPO tracking service, to investors, advisors and professionals. Renaissance Capital serves as the Adviser to the Renaissance IPO ETF and the Renaissance International IPO ETF.

In 1915 Charles Edward Merrill founded Merrill Lynch & Co. (NYSE: MER) with Edmund C. Lynch in Baltimore, Maryland. The modern Merrill Lynch was formed in 1940 through mergers with E.A. Pierce & Cassatt and, soon after, Fenner & Beane. In 1973, Merrill Lynch adopted a holding company format, with Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. as the parent and Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith as the operating subsidiary. Merrill Lynch Asset Management, Inc. (MLAM) was created as an integral business unit in the Merrill Lynch family in 1976. Fund Asset Management, doing business as Mercury Asset Management, was acquired in December 1997. In 2000, MLAM and Mercury were combined under the name Merrill Lynch Investment Managers. MLAM manages the Merrill Lynch family of mutual funds, as and acts as sub-advisor to other mutual funds.