IN MEMORIAM: Prof. Bert Twaalfhoven, PhD
Prof. Bert Twaalfhoven, PhD, Doctor Honoris Cause and friend of University American College Skopje (UACS) passed away on November 22, 2023.
He was the cofounder of the first venture capital (VC) foundation in The Netherlands. He was a serial entrepreneur, founder of more than 54 businesses in Italy, France, Germany, Belgium, Russia, Ukraine, U.K., U.S., Singapore and China. He was the founder and president of the European Forum for Entrepreneurial Research, whose motto is: “Learn, Earn, Return!”
Twaalfhoven was born and raised in The Hague (Den Haag), the Netherlands.
In 1947 Twaalfhoven graduated from the high school Aloysius College, in The Hague. He moved to the United States of America in the summer of 1948. Twaalfhoven received a scholarship at Fordham University in New York. He was on the International Soccer team at Fordham University as well.
In 1952 Twaalfhoven graduated with a Bachelor of Science from Fordham, and was awarded a scholarship at the University of Harvard, and graduated there in 1954 with an MBA.
In 1957 Twaalfhoven worked on Wall Street, New York to gain experience in the financial industry. Through his company Indivers B.V., Twaalfhoven started 54 businesses in the countries Italy, France, Germany, Russia, Ukraine, Holland, Belgium, England, U.S.A., Singapore and China. Twaalfhoven was the co-founder of the first venture capital company in The Netherlands, known as Gilde.
In 1993 Twaalfhoven received an honorary doctorate from the Fordham University for his achievements in the area of education and as an international entrepreneur. In 2001 he received the Annual Alumni Award from Harvard Business School for his activities stimulating entrepreneurship in Eastern and Western Europe. He has been a chairman of Harvard Business School Alumni.
On December, 2014, the UACS Senate bestowed upon Bert Twaalhoven the title Doctor Honoris Causa for his exceptional contribution to the University. The official ceremony took place in April 2015.
We express our condolences to his Family.
