Brett Paschke is a Founding Investor and Managing Partner of WinForest Partners, a purpose-built and network-driven private investment firm focused on making investments in top-performing private equity managers, primarily in technology, healthcare and services, and co-investments alongside Partner Funds. WinForest and its investors are comprised of highly-accomplished c-level corporate executives and leaders from across private equity, asset management and investment banking.
Brett was at William Blair from 1997 to 2023, most recently serving as Vice Chair of Investment Banking. Brett focused on serving William Blair’s corporate clients and their financial sponsors through the value creation process by delivering the full spectrum of services, experts and resources of the firm. Brett led the Equity Capital Markets Group from 2009 to 2020 and under Brett’s leadership, Blair was an underwriter on almost 800 equity offerings raising a cumulative $200 billion. Brett chaired the Commitment Committee and Government Affairs Committee.
Brett is a policy leader on topics related to capital formation. Brett chaired the SIFMA Regional Capital Markets Committee on Policy and Regulation. He served as an expert witness at the U.S. House Financial Services SubCommittee on Capital Markets. Brett served on the IPO Task Force with the US Treasury which produced the recommendations that became the basis for the JOBS Act.
Brett serves on the Board of PRA Group (NASDAQ: PRAA), a global financial services company operating in the U.S., Canada, Brazil, Australia and throughout Europe. Brett serves on the Audit Committee and the Compensation Committee. Brett also serves on the Board of Duluth Trading (Nasdaq: DLTH) a lifestyle brand serving the self-reliant consumer and serves on the Audit Committee. Brett is a member of the National Association of Corporate Directors.
Brett is a Senior Advisor for Bravo Victor Venture Capital (BVVC), a venture fund focused on technology investing to support United States and our allies and with emphasis on the needs of the US Special Forces.
Prior to joining William Blair, Brett worked in the Investment Banking Division at Goldman Sachs and for KPMG. While at KPMG, Brett spent three years working on privatization transactions in the former Soviet Union. Brett has an A.B. from Princeton and an MBA from Harvard Business School. Brett and his family live in Lake Forest, Illinois.