Daryn Kutner
CEO & Founder
Daryn has more than 20 years of Capital Markets experience and was previously the Head of European and US equity trading for Morgan Stanley. In 2009 he founded Olivetree Group and in 2013 OTAS Technologies , both of which were successfully sold to strategic investors.
Daryn has extensive relationships with Institutional trading desks and a strong understanding of the use of data analytics within the field of equity execution. He holds a BSc in Psychology and an MSc in Finance.
FRANK PALERMO
ADVISOR
Frank Palermo is currently Chief Operating Officer (COO) for NewRocket, a prominent ServiceNow partner and a leader in providing enterprise Agentic AI solutions. NewRocket is backed by Gryphon Investors, a leading middle-market private investment firm. In this role Frank is responsible for translating organizational strategy into actionable operational plans while overseeing day-to-day business functions of global delivery, office of CTO, product, resource management and capability development.
Prior to joining NewRocket, Frank held several technology and business leadership roles at Virtusa, a global engineering services firm. He was a member of the executive leadership team and was instrumental in driving growth from a start-up business to a $2B global powerhouse. Mr. Palermo’s roles included developing global technology practices in business process, data and analytics, cloud and customer experience, launching a standalone digital business, building a TMT business, and most recently building a global business consulting and technology advisory practice focused on GenAI.
Prior to Virtusa, Mr. Palermo was CTO of a document management, workflow and imaging software company that pioneered Internet-based bill presentment and was awarded product of the year. He also held several technology roles at IBM, most notably as one of the early pioneers of the PowerPC microprocessor product line.
Frank has a distinguished track record of scaling technology-driven product companies and plays a pivotal role in advising companies on their product and market vision.
LORI ANNE LO PRESTI
Advisor
Lori Anne has over two decades of experience in sales, business development, and organizational growth, particularly within early-stage and transformational enterprises. In 1991, she joined CS First Boston’s government trading floor in electronic trading, where she gained invaluable experience pioneering financial technology solutions. She later joined Tradeweb during its early days as a startup in New York City, contributing to its expansion by leading senior sales and business development efforts focused on NYC and West Coast asset managers. In 1999, Lori Anne relocated to London as Head of Sales, Marketing, and Client Services to co-establish Tradeweb Europe alongside the company’s senior leadership team. Over six years, she played a critical role in growing the business from a small startup into a prominent player in Europe’s fixed-income trading landscape. Currently, she consults with The Acceleration Project (TAP), providing strategic advice to small business owners by assessing client needs and creating structured, action-oriented plans to drive both short- and long-term growth. Lori Anne received her BS in Finance from the University of Rhode Island, with concentrations in management science and psychology. She is currently working toward her master’s in industrial/organizational psychology through the Harvard University Extension Program. Additionally, Lori Anne holds a certification in psychometrics from Hogan Assessments and is a certified Integrative Nutrition Coach.
