ROBO Global ETFs Blog

Lisa Chai

Lisa Chai brings more than 17 years of experience investing in disruptive technology companies to her role as ROBO Global’s Senior Research Analyst. Prior to joining ROBO Global, Lisa was a corporate strategy consultant at Bluemont Partners where she worked with emerging growth technology companies. She also spent 10 years at Palisade Capital Management and AG Asset Management (a subsidiary of Angelo, Gordon & Co.) where she was a sector head of technology investing in the semiconductor, software, and Internet industries. Earlier in her career, she served as a Research Analyst/Portfolio Manager at Tavistock Group and Ridgecrest Partners, a hedge fund focused on the technology and telecom sectors. Lisa is currently a member of the Empire Angels, a professional angel group investing in early stage technology ventures with a strong focus in Internet, fintech, and enterprise software. She is also a Strategic Advisor to MState.io, a Blockchain growth lab backed by Comcast Ventures, IBM and Boldstart Ventures, focused on scaling the most promising blockchain companies globally for the Enterprise sector. She graduated from Boston University Questrom School of Business.

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Nina Deka

Nina Deka brings nearly two decades of healthcare industry and investment research experience to the ROBO Global research team. Before joining ROBO Global in 2019, Nina spent six years as a research analyst on the sell-side at Piper Jaffray where she covered healthcare IT and services, focusing on themes such as telehealth and data analytics. Prior to transitioning to financial services, Nina spent 13+ years in the healthcare sector. More recently, she was a sales consultant at Becton Dickinson, where she helped some of the nation’s largest health systems improve patient outcomes and efficiency, while increasing sales for BD devices. She worked at Cardinal Health in its Financial Development Program, and held positions that spanned sales, corporate finance, and post-merger integration across Cardinal’s global manufacturing and distribution businesses. Nina received her BBA in Finance from the University of Iowa and an MBA from Cornell University. She also holds FINRA licenses series 7, 63, 86, and 87.

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ROBO Global Research Team

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Shachi Merchant

Shachi Merchant brings his expertise in ETF sales, risk management, and financial planning to his role as ROBO Global’s Vice President, Index Specialist. He began his career at Charles Schwab & Co. working with high net-worth clients as an Investment Specialist where he helped grow assets from $3.65 trillion to over $6 trillion. Shachi currently holds a Series 7 & 63 and attended Texas State University’s McCoy Business School where he received his Bachelor’s of Business Administration in Finance. In his free time, Shachi enjoys hiking, swimming, and playing the piano.

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Travis Briggs

Travis is CEO and Partner of ROBO Global. A veteran of the finance and wealth management industry, Travis is responsible for managing daily operations and executing the firm’s business strategy. Prior to joining ROBO Global in March 2014, Travis served as managing director at Smith Group Asset Management in Dallas, where he created and led the firm’s Private Client Group. Before joining Smith Group, Travis served as Chief Operating Officer and Director of Business Development at Dallas-based hedge-fund Discovery Management. Earlier in his career, Travis was the Director of Investor Relations at Triton Energy and worked as an analyst at Bank of America.

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William Studebaker

Bill Studebaker joined the ROBO Global team in 2015 after more than 20 years in capital markets and investment management. For more than a decade, he served as a portfolio manager at Apex Capital where he covered industrials and the economies of supply chain management. Earlier in his career, he held a number of positions at Merrill Lynch, including as a trader on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange and as a director in institutional equity sales, and he was an analyst in the structured finance group of Cargill. Bill received his BA in Political Science and International Relations (double major) from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

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