Antonio Gracias

Antonio is the Founder, Managing Partner, and Chief Investment Officer of Valor. Antonio founded Valor in 2001. He has over twenty years of experience in private equity investing. Antonio currently serves as Lead Independent Director at Tesla Motors and is a director of several Valor portfolio companies, including Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX), Marathon Pharmaceuticals, Solar City, and Porch.com.

Antonio is actively involved in philanthropic activities. He is a trustee of The Aspen Institute, a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago, a member of the board of directors of World Business Chicago, a member of the board of visitors of the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service, and a member of the board of visitors of the University of Chicago Law School. Additionally, he is a past member of the board of directors of The Economic Club of Chicago, a past member of the board of directors of Clean Energy Trust, and a past trustee of the Field Museum.

In 2008, Antonio received the Immigrant & Refugee Contributions Award for Entrepreneurial & Business Leadership from Changing Worlds, an educational arts non-profit organization. He is a 2009 Henry Crown Fellow, an Aspen Institute program designed to engage the next generation of leaders in the challenge of community spirited leadership. In 2015, Antonio was appointed to the Presidential Ambassadors for Global Entrepreneurship (PAGE) Program, chaired by U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker. The program is a first-of-kind collaboration among the White House, entrepreneurs, the Department of Commerce, the Department of State, and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) partners.

Prior to founding Valor, Antonio was the Founder and Managing Member of MG Capital where he acquired and acted as CEO for a number of manufacturing and technology related companies. At MG Capital, together with the team that is still together at Valor today, he developed the operational skills that Valor uses to help its portfolio companies achieve scale and enhance their value. Prior to MG Capital he was at Goldman, Sachs & Co.

Antonio holds a joint B.S. and M.S.F.S. (honors degree) in International Finance and Economics from the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service. He also studied corporate structures and economic development at Waseda University in Tokyo. Prior to completing his Masters, Antonio returned to Japan as a Nikko Securities Fellow. Antonio holds a J.D. from the University of Chicago Law School. Antonio is a Henry Crown Fellow of the Aspen Institute.