"Tortoise has now crept fully out of hibernation. It is run with his co-founders Matthew Barzun, the former US ambassador in London, and Katie Vanneck-Smith, who left her post as president of Dow Jones to climb on board the Tortoise train. Barzun is well connected and wealthy, the grandson of the historian and intellectual Jacques Barzun, and his wife is part of the Jack Daniel’s whiskey dynasty."


https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/oct/22/james-harding-tortoise-rich-persons-club-journalism-problems

Fellow founder Matthew Barzun:

"Speaking at St John's Wood United Synagogue in north London, ambassador Matthew Barzun also condemned Iran as "an incredibly disruptive force in Lebanon and Syria, and a state-sponsor of terror" and said proudly: "I love Israel."

https://www.thejc.com/news/ambassador-spoils-shul-audience-with-us-debate-teugae7s#:~:text=Speaking%20at%20St%20John's%20Wood%20United%20Synagogue%20in%20north%20London,

"Backing comes from a number of like-minded wealthy people: the banker Bernie Mensah and his wife, Genevieve, and the tech investor Saul Klein, who was at St Paul’s school, London, at the same time as Harding in the 1980s. A further pair of backers remain anonymous."

Saul Klein: "...advisor to the UK Israel Tech Hub since its inception, supporting its mission to promote economic growth through tech partnership between the two countries...David Cameron appointed Saul Klein as the UK’s tech envoy to Israel.

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/prime-minister-announces-saul-klein-as-uk-tech-envoy-to-israel#:~:text=Prime%20Minister%20David%20Cameron%20today%20announced%20the%20appointment%20of%20Saul

Bernie Mensah:
Bank of America exec confident about Israel's economy

"...In the past two decades, Israel has become a world center in several technological segments, among them autotech, cyber, foodtech, cleantech, fintech, and Internet. The US market is the most important market for Israeli companies, and is critical for the continued success and growth of these companies."

Where do you see new investment opportunities? What will Israel’s next big opportunity be?

"The Israeli high-tech industry has great value, and when global growth recovers, we believe that it will become more attractive, and will generate opportunities in many areas, including in agriculture, artificial intelligence, quantum computing, fusion, cybersecurity, and cleantech."

https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-bank-of-america-exec-confident-about-israels-economy-1001453982#:~:text=Despite%20the%20uncertainty,%20at%20least%20one%20prominent%20US%20banker%20is