Lunch & Learn on Investing and Divesting across the Atlantic | European Women in VC

​Together with Laura Gonzalez-Estefani, founder & CEO of TheVentureCity, Geri Kirilova, Partner at Laconia and moderator Iwona Cymerman, Founding Partner at FundingBox Deep Tech Fund, and EWVC member, we’ll discuss Investing and Divesting across the Atlantic

​​Details:
🗓️ Date: 5 September 2025
⏰ Time: 13:00 GMT+2

​If you have any questions, please feel free to contact the team via info@europeanwomenvc.org.

See you there!
EWVC

​About the speakers:

Laura Gonzalez-Estefani is the founder & CEO of TheVentureCity, a global early-stage venture fund, investing in product-centric startups across the US, Europe, and Latam. With a proven track record, Laura has been at the helm since the fund's inception, bringing to the table not only her leadership prowess but also a wealth of experience gained from leading product and growth teams at Facebook. Her extensive network within the tech industry, coupled with her hands-on experience, uniquely positions her to drive TheVentureCity's mission of empowering and transforming startups on a global scale.

​An early employee of Facebook, Laura spearheaded international growth in Silicon Valley, and throughout Europe and Latam. Prior to Facebook, Laura held management roles at eBay and Siemens, and co-founded a tourism digital platform in 2000.

​Determined to transform VC from the inside, Laura is an active equal rights advocate, enthusiastic about giving founders and innovation leaders the resources and support they deserve. Most recently, she has been named to the 2022 Henry Crown fellowship class of the Aspen Institute, to help mobilize a new breed of business leaders.

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​Geri Kirilova is a Partner at Laconia, a NYC-based venture capital firm backing serious founders building must-have B2B software for mission-critical industries. With an anti-chaos investment strategy, Laconia brings systematic order and human partnership to early-stage. Founded in 2015, Laconia is currently deploying its 3rd boutique fund, writing $250K-$1M checks. 

​Before joining Laconia in 2016, Geri started her career at Techstars (NYC), Credo Ventures (Prague), and LAUNCHub Ventures (Sofia). Geri is a graduate of New York University Stern School of Business (Summa Cum Laude). She was recognized for her venture capital industry leadership on the Forbes 30 Under 30: Venture Capital list. 

​Originally from Bulgaria and having recently relocated from NYC to Zurich, she is diving back into the European startup ecosystem, leveraging her experience to support local founders solving global problems.

​About the host:

​​​Iwona Cymerman is a scientist turned entrepreneur and VC deep tech fund manager with a strong commitment to supporting high-impact companies. Passionate about fostering meaningful connections, embracing curiosity, and continuous learning. Dedicated to driving diversity and inclusion in the VC landscape. Iwona is also member of EWVC.

​​European Women in VC is the most powerful network of female-led and co-led VC funds in the region. We work towards increasing the number of women in VC management roles by giving access to reputable LPs and pushing policy and advocacy work with stakeholders including annual research publications.

​​​​Our recent Flagship 2024 Report on "Beyond returns: Venture and Growth Investing Fueling Sustainability and Societal Change". in collaboration with Founders Forum.

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