Leadership 100 invited three exceptional young members of the Greek-American community to share their experiences as successful entrepreneurs and innovators in important sectors of the business world on 29th Annual Leadership 100 Conference, Saturday, February 22, 2020, according to Argyris Vassiliou, president, who expressed his gratitude to the speakers for this important addition to the program.
Board Member and Audit Committee Chairman Michael Bapis will moderate a panel at Brunch on Saturday, February 22, 2020, featuring George Bousis, Founder and Executive Chairman of Raise and Owner and President of Riot Squad Esports. ; Doretta Mistras, managing director of Citigroup’s Healthcare Investment Banking division, based in New York; and Athan Stephanopoulos, president of NowThis, the leading digital media news brand known for producing and distributing short-form video news aimed at predominantly millennial and Gen Z audiences.
Leadership 100 member George Bousis began his career at the age of 14 as a professional gamer for various internationally renowned esports organizations. After retiring from competitive esports, he began working in his family business, Cermak Fresh Market, which today is one of the Midwest’s leading independent grocers. After successfully serving in various leadership positions, Bousis went on to found Raise, a leading retail payments and gift card company, which is today the largest exchange and mobile prepaid wallet in the world. world.
Since 2013, Raise has been globally recognized as one of the fastest growing and transforming e-commerce companies. Under Bousis’ leadership, Raise has generated nearly $4 billion in transactions and saved its millions of customers more than $175 million to date. Additionally, it has attracted more than $147 million in funding from leading global investors including Accel Partners, Bessemer Venture Partners, New Enterprise Associates and PayPal.
Most recently, George returned to his roots and his love for professional gaming by founding Riot Squad Esports, a professional esports organization dedicated to enabling the growth and advancement of gaming across the world.
Bousis is a member of the Young Presidents Organization (YPO), Leadership 100, a major contributor to FWD.us, a recipient of the Chicago Business 20 in their 20s, a three-time recipient of Goldman Sachs’ 100 Most Intriguing Entrepreneurs list, and an award winner estimated from the Forbes 30 Under 30 list.
Doretta Mistras, also a Leadership 100 member, is responsible for Citigroup’s Health Investment Banking division, which covers health technology and outsourcing practices. Before joining Citigroup in 2019, she spent 15 years at Goldman Sachs & Co. in their Healthcare group focused on mergers and acquisitions. At Goldman Sachs, Mistras advised on more than $200 billion in M&A transactions for healthcare companies.
Mistras graduated with a dual degree from the University of Pennsylvania, receiving both a BS in Economics and a BA in Spanish and International Studies. Mistras serves on the board of directors of the National Hellenic Society and the PanHellenic Scholarship Foundation.
Athan Stephanopoulos, as President, oversees all NowThis operations: sales and revenue, editorial and product strategy, audience data and insights, and brand partnerships.
NowThis is the world’s #1 video news publisher with a unique mission: to make news engaging and relevant to young adults by humanizing and explaining the complicated world through insightful and informative context, and delivering it directly on the social platforms where these audiences spend the most. of their time-consuming content.
Today, NowThis has over 70 million followers across social media and generates 2.5 billion monthly views with over 8 billion monthly impressions. As a pioneer of the distributed media model, NowThis has revolutionized the way information is consumed and become the trusted news source for young audiences.
Previously, Stephanopoulos was the founder and CEO of Cliptamatic, a social video distribution platform acquired by NowThis in 2014. He currently serves on the board of directors of publicly traded company Akazoo, a leading technology and streaming platform musical in the world.
Stephanopoulos also served as an assistant professor and board member at the Graduate School of Business at Fordham University in New York, where he taught courses on media entrepreneurship and social media. He resides in Manhattan with his wife and two children.