Irish Venture Capital Association Appoints New Chairperson

Nicola McClafferty, a partner in Draper Esprit has been named the chairperson of the Irish Venture Capital Association.

New Irish Venture Capital Association Chairperson History

McClafferty is the second consecutive woman taking over from the previous chairperson Gillian Buckley, an investment manager with the Western Development Commission who had completed her term of office.

McClafferty is an entrepreneur and investor, she worked in venture capital in London before confounding and heading up online retailer, Covetique, which they later sold to ASOS. She joined Draper Esprit in 2017 and was appointed partner in April of 2020.

She focuses on consumer and software as a service investment across Europe, she also heads up the Draper Esprit office in Dublin. McClafferty is on the boards of portfolio companies, like Manna, Lyst, Pollen, Roomex, and Sweepr.

Speaking on this appointment, McClafferty said, “While Ireland’s focus in the past has been on creating the environment to attract FDI investment, global pressures make it increasingly important that we look to policies that will boost local entrepreneurship and accelerate the development of the indigenous Irish tech sector.”

McClafferty is also a Dublin native and graduate of UCD in Business, Finance, and French, to learn more about her you can check out her LinkedIn.