Our Team
Dave Blivin – Managing Partner
Dave has extensive experience working with national labs and research universities in NM at the leadership and research heads levels. Prior to co-founding Cottonwood Technology Fund, Dave founded and served as Managing Director of Southeast Interactive, the first and largest information technology-focused fund based in the Southeast. While at Southeast Interactive Dave helped raise three funds totaling over $175 million.
He was directly involved in fund raising and exit transaction events totaling in excess of $1 billion across the portfolio and generated cash on cash returns on his directed investments of approximately 4X. Dave molds a MBA from the Fuqua School of Business at Duke University. Dave enjoys the outdoors of Northern NM, golfing and spending time with his family.
Beto Pallares – Managing Partner
Beto has extensive domestic and international start-up experience as an entrepreneur and seasoned in conducting due diligence for both start-ups and late stage companies. 
His experience includes stints with FMCLA (telecom), CapitalIQ (banking software), Dalmex Business Technology Partners (software), Stax, Inc. (due diligence consulting), AT Kearney (strategy consulting), and as Executive Director of the TransPecos/El Paso Regional Center of Innovation and Commercialization (TPEP RCIC).
Under his tenure at the TPEP RCIC, he helped raised start-up funding for the NGO, as well as assisted four entities in securing funding from the Texas Emerging Technology Fund. Beto holds a Bachelors of Arts in Economics from Brandeis University, a MBA from the University of Texas at El Paso, and is on track to defend his doctoral dissertation in International Business Strategy from UTEP. Beto is married, and enjoys fatherhood. When not watching his kids while his wife, a professional photographer, is on assignment, Beto engages in reading, writing and community service.
Edgar Soto - Associate
Edgar Soto joined Cottonwood in January 2011. He obtained a MBA in Entrepreneurship from Acton School of 
Business in May 2010. Together with the Austin Entrepreneurs Network, Edgar provided business development and funding support to start-ups in Texas during 2010. Prior to attending Acton, he held the position of Derivative Products Specialist and represented Vector Casa de Bolsa at the Mexican Derivatives Exchange to support a client portfolio valued at US$7.2 billion. Edgar Soto held a Sales and Trading position at Banco Monex, managing a US$120 million portfolio to hedge exchange rates risk exposure from organizations in Monterrey. He holds a Masters in Finance from EGADE, Graduate School of Business and Leadership (ITESM) and a B.A. Economics from Instituto Tecnologico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey.
Miguel Duhalt - Associate
Miguel Duhalt joined Cottonwood in August 2011. He obtained a MBA from the Fuqua School of 
Business at Duke University. Prior to his MBA, Miguel worked across many different industries as a professional and as an entrepreneur. At Gillette, he helped to optimize a new supply chain for Mexico. At J&J, he worked in the Leadership Rotational Program, where he added value to many different projects for several different countries. He worked in the financial industry for more than six years transforming ideas into business opportunities. At ICAP, he worked in the design and led the implementation of the largest electronic trading platform for fixed income securities in Mexico. Later at GBM Investment Bank, he worked in the Fixed Income sales and trading department, where he developed and led several IT projects. From the entrepreneurial side, he has been involved in many startup businesses; Introducing a complete line of organic products into major supermarkets in Mexico, building a men’s personal care product company and developing innovative electronic trading platforms.
