February 3, 2021 Article

West Coast Economic Outlook: Family Offices and Silicon Valley are Striving and Adapting to the New Normal through the Pandemic

The Ivy Family Office Network (IVYFON) recently held an online event called the West Coast Family Office 2021 Outlook Forum last January 12 to 13, 2021. With over 300 guests, the online forum focused on the economic outlook on Silicon Valley/West Coast area for 2021. The IVYFON online forum adhered to strict COVID-19 guidelines as it utilized the Zoom webinar technology and the event was broadcasted worldwide.

Silicon Valley Point of View

For over 17 years, Ivy Family Office Network has been organizing forums and events that feature other family offices and institutional investors from different parts of the world. Their most recent online event, the West Coast Family Office 2021 Outlook Forum, reflected how global events have shifted towards the “new normal” setting brought about by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

The online forum primarily focused on the West Coast area where speakers and the attendees were able to take a glimpse of the economic market, the ecosystem of Silicon Valley, and the other leading industries in the region.

David Drake, the founder and chairman of LDJ Capital and The Soho Loft Media Group, participated as one of the speakers in this event along with Dan Morehead of Pantera Capital, Bryce Gilleland of Coincident Capital, and more. Drake has been a familiar figure in the family office scene for the past 20 years. David Drake spoke at the forum and discussed the latest news on cryptocurrencies and the forecast for the space this 2021.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has affected the global market and the industries in such huge proportions. For the past year, the crypto market has made progress as people and businesses turn to alternative means of investments and financial transactions as we are living in quarantine during the pandemic. 2021 looks to be a promising year of growth for bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies and for the whole digital assets space not just in the West Coast but also across Asia, Europe, and more,” Drake explained.

He noted that this progress for cryptocurrencies is a positive indication that market investments are starting to turn around despite the ongoing pandemic. Drake recently shared his crypto predictions for 2021. In his forecast, he expects bitcoin price to hit $133,300 in the latter half of 2021. “There will be plenty of investment opportunities for the space in 2021. I hope we can see better days ahead,” Drake added.

Other topics discussed in the webinar include investment opportunities in real estate for 2021, best business practices for family offices, the state of healthcare and its transformation caused by the pandemic, and investment options and strategies for venture capital.

Aside from the esteemed panel of speakers, some of the attendees in this online forum included Pat Soldano of Family Enterprise USA, Heather Potters of PharmaJet Inc., Gwen Cheni of Fusion Fund, Fred Nazem of Nazem & Company, Robert Butler of Butler Advisory Services, Jeff Lerman of Lerman Family Office, Alan Snyder of Shinnecock Partners, Brad Ozturk of March Capital, and Michael Mescher of Gammon Capital.

The Ivy Family Office will have another online forum session based in Boston, happening on February 16, 2021. Click here to register for the upcoming online event.