Dan Ward

HSBC Global Asset Management (USA), Inc. (AMUS) is the US-based wholly-owned investment advisory and fund management subsidiary of HSBC USA, Inc., and is indirectly owned by HSBC Holdings Plc (LON: HSBA, NYSE: HBC) in Great Britain. The firm was founded in 1986 and is headquartered in New York City. AMUS provides discretionary and non-discretionary advisory services to clients in several major markets and is a multi-product provider of investment and fund management services. For institutions, the firm provides active and tailored portfolio management on a global, regional, asset-class and country specific basis. They also serve as investment adviser to US registered investment companies. AMUS is a signatory to the UN-supported Principles of responsible Investment (UNPRI).

TIAA-CREF Investment Management LLC (TCIM) is a registered investment advisor headquartered in New York City. The firm was founded in 1997 and is a wholly-owned subsidiary of TIAA-CREF Asset Management LLC, ultimately owned by TIAA Board of Governors. TCIM provides investment management and certain administrative services necessary for the operation of the College Retirement Equities Fund (CREF), a diversified open-end registered investment management company that consists of eight accounts, that issues individual, group and tax-deferred variable annuity contracts.

Raymond James & Associates, Inc. (RJA) is a registered broker-dealer headquartered in St. Petersburg, Florida. The firm was founded in 1962 and is a subsidiary of Raymond James Financial, Inc. (NYSE: RJF), a diversified holding company. RJA offers a full array of capital markets services, strategic advice and planning for institutional investors.

PricewaterhouseCoopers LLC provides assurance, tax and advisory services. Its services include audit and assurance, consulting, deals, human resources, legal, tax, and family business. The firm also offers accountability, risk management, structuring, mergers and acquisitions, and performance and process improvement. The company was founded in 1998 and is headquartered in Buffalo, NY.

Michigan Ross Zell Lurie Institute / Venture Capital/ (Zell Lurie Institute) is a venture capital subsidiary of Zell Lurie Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies Studies founded in 1997 by Samuel Zell, Ann Lurie and Robert H. Lurie. The firm is headquartered in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Virginia Tech Applied Research Corp. provides applied research and development solutions. It offers solutions to problems commonly associated with research and development, focusing on intelligence, cyber and information technology, defence and security, health, and energy areas. The company was founded in 2011 and is headquartered in Arlington, VA.

JPMorgan Securities LLC (JPMS) is a securities brokerage firm headquartered in New York City. The firm was founded in 1985 and is a subsidiary of JPMorgan Broker-Dealer Holdings, Inc., ultimately held by JPMorgan Chase & Co., Inc. (NYSE: JPM). JPMS provides research on fixed income, credit, derivatives, emerging markets, foreign exchange, structured finance, technical analysis and bond indices. Their equity analysts cover equities throughout North America, EMEA, Asia/Pacific and the emerging markets. The firm's fixed income team formulates trading and portfolio recommendations for investors in global bonds and other fixed-income markets based on valuations, analytics and market dynamics.

Barclays Capital, Inc. is a registered broker/dealer headquartered in New York City. The firm was founded in 1997 and is a subsidiary of Barclays Group US, Inc., ultimately owned by Barclays plc (LON: BARC) in Great Britain. Barclays Capital provides large corporate, government and institutional clients a full spectrum of prime brokerage services which includes equities and fixed income financing, OTC Clearing, Futures and Foreign Exchange Prime Brokerage and access to industry insights and analytics from their Strategic Consulting team.

Virginia Tech Intellectual Properties, Inc. handles, protects and licenses technologies developed by the faculty, staff and students. It facilitates the licensing of technology to companies, encourages new faculty startup ventures, works with publishers and distributors of software, and supports the transfer of research and knowledge to other universities, research institutes and companies. The company was founded in 1985 and is headquartered in Blacksburg, VA.

Nuveen Asset Management LLC (NAM) is a SEC-registered investment advisor headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. The firm was founded in 2011 and is a subsidiary of Nuveen Fund Advisors LLC, which is ultimately owned by TIAA Board of Governors. NAM provides investment advisory and sub-advisory services to a broad range of individual and institutional clients, such as open-end and closed-end investment companies and other pooled investment vehicles.

The Virginia Chamber of Commerce is a Chamber of Commerce organization. The non-profit company is based in Richmond, VA. Barry DuVal has been the CEO of the company since 2010.

Roanoke Regional Airport Commission owns and operates regional airport. The company was founded in 1987 and is headquartered in Roanoke, VA.

Investor Group Services LLC provides strategic consulting services. Its services include company diligence studies, market strategy reviews, and strategic planning process. The company was founded by Mindy Berman in 1998 and is headquartered in Boston, MA.

OnForce, Inc. provides online information technology for on-site tech talent in field services. The firm offers online work platform, talent exchange, preferred talent pools, freelancer management system, consumer electronics and information technology. The company was founded by Jeffrey P. Leventhal, Mark L. Friedman and Gabe Miano in February 2003 and is headquartered in Lexington, MA.

Center for Strategic & International Studies, Inc. provides strategic insights & policy solutions to decision makers in government, international institutions, the private sector, and civil society. Its projects focus on areas such as AIDS, arms control, conflict resolution, NATO, the environment, immigration, intelligence, trade, health care, OPEC, space policy, and terrorism. The company was founded in 1962 by David M. Abshire and Admiral Arleigh Burke and is headquartered in Washington, DC.

Applause APP Quality, Inc. provides software testing services. It utilizes a roster of testers from various countries and territories to provide testing of web, desktop and mobile applications in development. The company was founded by Doron Reuveni and Roy Solomon in 2007 and is headquartered in Framingham, MA.

Point72 Asset Management LP (Point72) is a SEC-registered investment advisor and hedge fund manager headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut. The firm was founded in 2014 and formerly known as Stamford Harbor Capital LP. They are a subsidiary of Point72 LP, which is owned by Point72 Capital Holdings LP. Point72 provides investment management services to the Point72 Funds.

PetroCap LLC (PetroCap) is a private equity firm founded in 1992 by Doug Evans. The firm is headquartered in Dallas, Texas.

Bain & Co., Inc. provides management consulting services. It offers advisory services to the companies on their critical issues and opportunities: strategy, marketing, organization, operations, technology and mergers and acquisitions, across all industries and geographies. The company was founded in 1973 and is headquartered in Boston, MA.

Vedanta Capital LLC (Vedanta Capital) is a venture capital firm founded in 2006 by Parag Phoolchand Saxena, Alessandro A. Piol and Howard E. Goldstein. The firm is headquartered in New York.

Nikko Asset Management Americas, Inc. (Nikko AMA) is a SEC-registered investment advisor headquartered in New York City. The firm was founded in 1981 and is a subsidiary of Nikko AM Americas Holding Co., Inc., ultimately held by Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings, Inc. (TYO: 8309) in Japan. Nikko AMA provides investment advisory services to institutional investors, such as corporations, pension funds, trust banks, charitable organizations, government agencies and funds, supranational organizations, as well as pooled investment vehicles that includes Japanese Investment Trusts and Nikko AMA group affiliates.

Nomura Securities International, Inc. (NSI) is a registered broker/dealer headquartered in New York City and was founded in 1969. The firm is a division of Nomura Holding America, Inc. and their ultimate parent is Nomura Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: NMR, TYO: 8604, AMS: 8604). NSI provides securities brokerage services, as well as asset management, domestic retail, global markets, global investment banking and global merchant banking services. The firm's fixed-income business consists of bond sales and trading, origination and product supply for securitization deals and real estate-focused asset finance operations (in cooperation with Investment Banking). In the equity markets, NSI offers sales and trading of domestic and foreign stocks on a global basis, primarily for institutional investors.

The Nigerian Bar Association operates professional associations.