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Based in Greenville, South Carolina, and Prague, Czech Republic, Bakala Capital manages a portfolio of public and private investments spanning all institutional asset classes including global equities, credit, hedged strategies, buyouts, venture capital, real assets, and distressed.

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Zdenek Bakala is an investor and philanthropist.
 
Zdenek began a career in investment banking with Drexel Burnham Lambert, Bank of America, and later, Credit Suisse First Boston. In the early 90’s he returned to his native Czechoslovakia to play a part in its emerging free-market economy. He helped establish Credit Suisse First Boston’s Prague subsidiary and co-founded the Czech Republic’s first private investment bank, Patria Finance. He was also a co-founder of the Prague Stock Exchange. Since then, he has invested in a range of sectors including natural resources, real estate, transport, publishing, gaming, and sports.

Zdenek owns the Economia media house in Prague which publishes many award-winning independent newspapers and magazines. He is also a passionate cyclist and the majority shareholder in Soudal–Quick-Step, the Belgian UCI WorldTeam cycling team.

Profoundly aware of the opportunities they have been so fortunate to have, Zdenek and his wife Michaela are committed to supporting education and free speech. Their family foundation aims to enable access to education, as well as strengthen democratic values, human rights, freedom, and critical thinking. Besides their active support of many leading organizations, Zdenek is a member of the Board of Overseers at Tuck School of Business of Dartmouth College.

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