Bio of John M. Probandt

Over the years, Mr. Probandt has completed billions of dollars in transactions on a global basis. From Fortune 100 companies to startups, he has coordinated IPO's, Debt financings, Going Public, Mergers & Acquisitions, and all types of fund raising. Being an investor gives him an edge over others. He and his team of experienced professionals have invested in high tech, education, sports, bio tech, real estate, energy, manufacturing, retail, entertainment, health care, cross border transactions, and many other sectors. He has built a business bridge spanning from America to Asia while amassing a financial track record of significant proportions.

Mr. Probandt graduated from college with a degree in Business Administration/Accounting and started his prolific career working for a Certified Public Accountant firm. He moved on to become the youngest Senior Vice President at the prestigious San Francisco investment company, Dean Witter Reynolds (later bought out by Morgan Stanley). Eventually, Mr. Probandt departed to start a money management company that produced extraordinary returns year after year and consistently surpassed the market and his peers. He then chose to explore the international markets and teamed up with a Chinese enterprise, The CITIC Group, and moved to Beijing, China, with the initial project of bringing Marvel Entertainment to Asia (film, merchandising, tourism developments).

Mr. Probandt has over thirty (30) years of experience, investing in the fitness, health, nutrition, diet and bioscience industries. Through various funds he has been a member, responsible for the completion with investing of over three hundred million USD (300,000,000.00), in privately held enterprises. In addition, he has been responsible for the deployment of well over two and a half billion dollars USD (2,500,000,000.00) in publicly traded health sector opportunities. Mr. Probandt has been an owner, investor and innovator within health, nutrition, diet and fitness industry for over three decades.

At one point, Mr. Probandt owned a chain of gyms,“Imperial Fitness”. The clubs primarily focused on exercise, dieting and supplements. At this time Mr. Probandt realized that relying on membership fees alone was not enough to enhance the profitability of the fitness chain. He did two things to address this need: 1) Launch a line of vitamin supplements. He was involved in every phase of the development and 2) Mr. Probandt's clubs were among the first to offer members personal trainers in America. It is now normal in every club in the world, but at the time it was a novel idea.

Through another fund, of which Mr. Probandt was a partner a large proportion was acquired in a publicly traded supplement company. The original idea was to acquire controlling stakes in the company, and then to expand it to other parts of the world, including China. That brand did expand in China and other places due to Mr. Probandt's influence, but the proportion was eventually sold due to conflicts with top management.

Mr. Probandt understands the diet, nutrition and fitness industry, as it is one of his hobbies and passions. He is an avid reader on the subject and in the past has been a speaker at many health conferences.

Mr. Probandt is the co-founder of the Private Equity (PE) enterprise, Checkmate Investing, which continues its legacy of making and sustaining successful investments. Mr. Probandt believes in teaming up with larger partners to assure pipeline and success. The Checkmate team is comprised of top tier experts in the financial world. Mr. Probandt's book Checkmate Investing is published by China Law Press. Checkmate has a silo“verticals”approach to investing with funds in: Entertainment Tech/Immersive Entertainment, Biotech, Tourism Real Estate, Agriculture Tech and Energy.