Impact

War Costs — And Sales — Mount For PA Companies With Ukraine Ties A Year After Russia Invaded

March 1, 2023

When Russia attacked Ukraine last February, investors such as Pennsylvania’s state pension funds rushed to dump their Russian investments, horrified at the prospect of profiting from the unprovoked invasion. And firms with Russian and Ukrainian operations, like the Newtown, Bucks County-based EPAM — an information technology outsourcing firm which counted more than 20,000 staff in […]

CollX Raises $5.5M Seed Round, Nears Top Of Charts For Sports Apps

February 23, 2023

CollX has closed on a $5.5 million seed round as the sports trading card startup nears the top of the charts among all sports apps. The round was led by Austin-based Brand Foundry Ventures, with participation from Next Coast Ventures, FJ Labs, 114 Ventures, Ben Franklin Technology Partners and Morrison Seger Venture Capital Partners. Angel […]

CampusESP Helps Families Stay Engaged In Students’ Education At UCM

January 27, 2023

Understanding the valuable role parents and family members play in student success, the University of Central Missouri have announced the establishment of CampusESP as a new, customized web platform to help them stay connected with UCM. The free platform, launched on Jan. 18, is geared to the families of current and prospective students. It serves […]

‘A Little Company With A Big Vision’: Temple Spinout Advancing New Way To Treat Autoimmune Disorders

January 12, 2023

A Temple University spinout working on a new way to treat autoimmune disorders has been approved to begin human testing of a potential treatment for an inflammatory liver disease. SFA Therapeutics of Jenkintown received Food and Drug Administration clearance to begin a Phase 1 clinical trial of the company’s new drug candidate SFA-001N, which it […]

Startups To Watch

January 6, 2023

13 Philadelphia-area startups ready to reach new heights in 2023 Despite a somewhat tumultuous 2022, Greater Philadelphia’s startup ecosystem has continued to flourish. This past year, startups and their founders adapted after a record-setting 2021 that saw the region post its largest annual funding total to date. The first half of 2022 was almost equally […]

‘Complacency Can Not Be An Option’: Lessons These 10 Orgs Are Carrying Into 2023

December 20, 2022

As we approach the end of the year, there’s a natural inclination to pause, look back and prepare for what’s next. 2022 contained much tumult and transition, and nearly no individual or organization was spared from the world’s chaotic compressions. This was a year to adapt and evolve, to react to rapidly shifting conditions and […]

Sports Sponsorship Company LeagueSide Has Been Acquired By TeamSnap

November 28, 2022

The deal widens both companies’ footprints to 40,000 sports organizations and 11 million families. Sportstech company LeagueSide, which planted its Philly roots when cofounders Evan Brandoff and Zubin Teherani met at training camp for Venture for America, is expanding its reach via an acquisition by sports software company TeamSnap. The 2015-founded, Center City-headquartered company matches youth sports leagues across the country with brands that […]

Mentorship Program In Philly Is Working To Make The Entrepreneurial Journey Less Lonely

October 18, 2022

Behind a successful entrepreneur is often another seasoned entrepreneur that has served as a guide. In Philadelphia, industry leaders are putting this into practice through a mentorship program for the city’s founder ecosystem. Ben Franklin Technology Partners and Philadelphia Alliance for Capital and Technologies (PACT) have joined forces to create Mentor Connect, a program that partners entrepreneurs with teams […]

App + AMEX = Millions For Good

October 12, 2022

Keith Leaphart’s Philanthropi has partnered with American Express to let 25,000 members round up their purchases to give to charity. Keith Leaphart has a big dream for Philanthropi, the doctor/entrepreneur’s four-year-old company that works to turn everyday people into individual foundations: He wants a nonprofit from every zip code in the U.S. to have received a donation […]

A Bold Effort To Cure HIV—Using Crispr

October 11, 2022

An experiment tests whether the gene-editing technology can stop the virus from replicating, which would ultimately wipe out the infection. IN JULY, AN HIV-positive man became the first volunteer in a clinical trial aimed at using Crispr gene editing to snip the AIDS-causing virus out of his cells. For an hour, he was hooked up to […]