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Spencer Trask & Co.

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American investment firm (e. 1881)
Spencer Trask & Co.
IndustryFinancial services
HeadquartersNew York City, United States
Key peopleKevin Kimberlin (Chairman)
ServicesBuilding advanced technology companies
Websitespencertraskco.com

Spencer Trask & Co. is an American company founded in 1881 by Spencer Trask and George Foster Peabody as an investment firm. The company is headquartered in Greenwich, Connecticut, and funds early-stage ventures in technology, healthcare, and science.

History

Spencer Trask & Co. was established in 1881 by Spencer Trask, evolving from his earlier ventures, including Trask & Stone, a brokerage house founded in 1868.

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the firm played a key role in financing technological advancements. Notably, it supported Thomas Edison in the development of electric power systems. Trask was president of the New York Edison Company, the world's first electric power company, for nearly 15 years. The company became known as Consolidated Edison (ConEd). Spencer Trask was one of the first companies to be supplied with electric lamps.

Spencer Trask & Co. also provided financing for Guglielmo Marconi, whose work in radio technology laid the groundwork for today's wireless communications.

In the summer of 1896, Spencer Trask invested in Adolph S. Ochs's acquisition of the financially struggling New York Times. Trask remained a minority stockholder as Ochs rejuvenated the newspaper and placed it on a profitable basis.

Spencer Trask & Co. was an early investor in Ciena Corporation, which made significant advancements in fiber optic communications technology. Ciena first commercialized dense wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) technology. This became a core component of modern fiber-optic communications and telecommunications infrastructure.

The firm provided the first funding to Myriad Genetics, a genomics diagnostics company known for sequencing the breast cancer gene, BRCA1. This work contributed to advances in genomic medicine.

In addition, Spencer Trask & Co. invested in Health Dialog to commercialize partner Jack Wennberg's work in evidence-based medicine and informed patient-based decision-making. Health Dialog's support and research provided the analytical foundation for the Affordable Care Act (ACA).

In August 2024, Spencer Trask launched Signal12 Inc. (Signal12), a clinical-stage ocular health company.

Spencer Trask & Co. has historically backed companies in the field of genomics, healthcare, mobile technology and global communications.

References

  1. ^ "SPENCER TRASK & CO. 50 YEARS OLD TODAY". The New York Times. 1931-05-01. Retrieved 2024-11-01.
  2. "George Foster Peabody". New Georgia Encyclopedia. 2013-08-09. Retrieved 2024-11-01.
  3. "Spencer Trask & Co". Bloomberg.com. Retrieved 2024-11-01.
  4. "Yaddo records". archives.nypl.org. 2017-08-10. Retrieved 2024-11-01.
  5. ^ "Trask Marconi". Newspapers.com. 1903-11-01. Retrieved 2024-11-01.
  6. "The Edisonian, Vol. 8, Issue 1, Sept. 2011". Thomas A. Edison Papers. 2011-09-23. Retrieved 2024-11-01.
  7. "Global forex brokerage firm FxPro enters UAE". GulfNews. 2022-04-14. Retrieved 2024-11-01.
  8. "The Edison Electric Illuminating Co. of New York" (PDF). Columbia University. January 21, 1891. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
  9. ^ "An Expanding Spencer Trask & Co. Keeps Its Personal Touch; Spencer Trask Keeps Personal Touch". The New York Times. 1968-02-05. Retrieved 2024-12-13.
  10. "Spencer Trask & Co. Partners with UCLA Samueli School of Engineering to Support 50th Anniversary of the Internet Celebration". markets.businessinsider.com. 2019-10-29. Retrieved 2024-11-01.
  11. Markoff, John (1997-03-03). "Fiber-Optic Technology Draws Record Stock Value". The New York Times. Retrieved 2024-11-01.
  12. Angier, Natalie (1994-09-20). "Fierce Competition Marked Fervid Race For Cancer Gene". The New York Times. Retrieved 2024-11-01.
  13. "Health Dialog Services Corp". Venture Capital and Tech Investment Insights. 2012-09-23. Retrieved 2024-11-01.
  14. "Health Dialog company information, funding & investors". Space Tech. 2024-11-01. Retrieved 2024-11-01.
  15. Gale A (2016). "John Wennberg, MD: The Influential Doctor Who Blames Physicians and Fee-For-Service Medicine for the High Cost of Health Care. Obama Care is Based on His Research". Mo Med. 113 (3): 156–8. PMC 6140041. PMID 27443035.
  16. Fisher, Elliott S.; Wennberg, David E.; Stukel, Thrse A.; Gottlieb, Daniel J.; Lucas, F. L.; Pinder, Étoile L. (2003-02-18). "The Implications of Regional Variations in Medicare Spending. Part 1: The Content, Quality, and Accessibility of Care". Annals of Internal Medicine. 138 (4). American College of Physicians: 273. doi:10.7326/0003-4819-138-4-200302180-00006. ISSN 0003-4819.
  17. Spencer Trask &amp (2024-08-13). "Spencer Trask & Co. Launches Dry Eye Venture Signal12 with Former Aerie Pharmaceutical Executives Thomas Mitro and Marvin Garrett". PR Newswire. Retrieved 2024-12-13.
  18. "Spencer Trask Joins UNICEF and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to Support 5th Annual World Polio Day". markets.businessinsider.com. 2017-10-23. Retrieved 2024-12-13.

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