Gary F. Bengier

Gary Bengier capped a business career focused on technology companies by building and leading the financial team in the early formative years at eBay. He was eBay’s chief financial officer from 1997 to 2001, during which time he led the company’s initial and secondary public offerings which raised $1.5 billion in equity. Deeply involved with the company’s strategy, he helped grow eBay to over $9 billion in gross traded merchandise sales. While at eBay, he also served as S.V.P. for strategic planning. Gary served on the board of directors of Logitech, Inc., a computer peripherals manufacturer, where he was lead independent director and chair of the audit committee, and on the board of Cobalt Networks, a maker of computer server appliances, before retiring after 29 years in business. 

Prior to eBay, Gary worked in financial and strategy roles for a variety of high tech companies, engaged in technologies in semiconductor chip design, video and the Internet, computer peripherals, scientific instrumentation, and biotechnology. In 1997, Gary was vice president and chief financial officer of VXtreme, Inc., a developer of Internet video-streaming products. From 1993 through 1996, Gary was corporate controller at Compass Design Automation, a publisher of electronic circuit design software. He also held senior financial positions at Qume Corporation and Bio-Rad Laboratories and spent several years as a management consultant for Touche Ross & Co. 

Mr. Bengier holds an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School and a B.B.A., summa cum laude, in computer science and operations research from Kent State University. He more recently completed his M.A. degree in philosophy at San Francisco State University. 

In addition to the Santa Fe Institute, Mr. Bengier serves on the board of trustees of the Exploratorium, dedicated to science education for children, where he serves on the committee on directors and the finance committee. He is also chairman of the Bengier Foundation. 

He remains involved in the business world as an active investor, and he mentors some young entrepreneurs engaged in technology startups. He also spends his time on philanthropy, board and committee activities, his family, travel, and on the study of philosophy, mathematics, and astrophysics.