Tom Vanhoutte is founder and managing partner of imec.xpand, an independently managed early stage and growth fund that invests in start-ups where imec knowledge, expertise, network and/or infrastructure plays a differentiating role in the success of the company. Tom has almost 20 years experiences in private equity and venture capital. Prior to founding imec.xpand in 2016, Tom spent the first 12 years of his career at PwC in New York where he provided audit and advisory services to some of the largest and most reputed hedge and private equity funds in the world. In 2011 he joined Capricorn Venture Partners as CFO and member of the management committee. Tom holds a master’s degree in business engineering from the Catholic University of Leuven. He is often asked as a guest speaker or panelist at start-up events.