Mr. Dans (49) started Grand River Capital in 2006 to offer clients high caliber, value-added alternative asset consulting solutions, delivered with an unmatched level of personalized service and professionality.
Through Grand River, Mr. Dans applies his unique combination of 28 years of global financial experience gained at leading investment firms and complemented by his strong entrepreneurial and operating background.
Based in Houston, Texas, Mr. Dans and his team bring Wall Street to Main Street and pride themselves on meeting client needs by providing world-class advice with a well-grounded perspective and cost-effective manner.
Grand River serves clients across the alternative asset spectrum – from PE and VC firms, hedge funds and institutional investors, to growth-stage companies and even aspiring, fellow entrepreneurs.
Grand River takes a generalist approach but has particular expertise in food and agribusiness, energy, media and securities valuation. Past international assignments have included mobile communications in the Republic of Georgia, oil exploration in Kazakhstan and franchised pizza in Russia. In the U.S., Grand River has assisted therapeutic and medical technology clients, and helped on numerous pecan and permanent crop investments, mineral and water rights opportunities and distressed debt and bankruptcy matters.
Prior to founding Grand River, Mr. Dans was a principal at two VC funds focused on Russia and Central Asia. Several of his early stage investments developed into industry leaders in the brewing, beverage, dairy and broadcast media industries, yielding highly successful cash on cash returns for the funds.
Mr. Dans is also a successful agribusiness entrepreneur. Since 2007, he has been extensively involved in the U.S. pecan business where he has helped establish over 1,800 acres of high-density, irrigated young orchards and planted over 75,000 grafted trees. Mr. Dans has successfully introduced his pecan products to over 40 industry buyers including gift companies, wholesale distributors, ingredients users and retailers including Texas’ largest grocery chain.
Earlier in his career, Mr. Dans held merchant banking and corporate finance roles at Merrill Lynch & Co., Allen & Company Incorporated and Evercore Partners, Inc.
Mr. Dans is a CFA Charterholder, the highest professional designation in the investment management industry. He was a 2015 Advanced Leadership Fellow at Harvard University and received a BA with Honors in Russian Studies and U.S. History from Brown University. He has also holds certificates from the Moscow Energy Institute and Texas A&M University.
