If you recall, an In The News post on April 21, 2011, announced Plastic Jungle’s selection as a finalist in the
TiE50 Awards Program.

Sure enough, Plastic Jungle was selected as one of the web’s most enterprising technology startups, which will be announced at TiE Silicon Valley’s annual flagship event, the TiEcon 2011 conference.

Of the 1,619 companies considered, only 289 were selected by an expert panel to compete as finalists, then the field narrowed to 50 Award Winners. The program’s sponsor, TiE Silicon Valley is the world’s largest not-for-profit network of entrepreneurs and professionals dedicated to the advancement of entrepreneurship.

See the complete list of TiE50 Award Winners and an overview of the program online  >>>

“Plastic Jungle was clearly ranked amongst the best of the breed by a team of 60 highly accomplished and experienced judges. These experts included globally recognized venture capitalists, CEOs, academia, and serial entrepreneurs,” said Mr. Vish Mishra, Chairman of TiEcon 2011 and President of TiE Silicon Valley. “Being recognized as a TiE50 winner is a true testament to their entrepreneurial spirit and world class caliber,” Mr. Mishra added.

Plastic Jungle is the web’s largest secured gift card exchange, giving consumers the choice and flexibility to convert their gift cards into other forms of spending power — including cash, online balances to use for purchases at the millions of merchants that accept PayPal, Facebook Credits, and more — and to stretch their shopping dollars at their favorite merchants.  Plastic Jungle’s patent-pending marketplace and payment applications aim to safely unlock the estimated $30 billion in unredeemed gift cards trapped in the economy for the benefit of consumers and merchants alike. Based in San Jose, California, the company is privately held, with venture backing from Shasta Ventures, Redpoint Ventures, Jafco Ventures, First Round Capital, Bay Partners, Harrison Metal and Western Technology Investment.

“We are thrilled to be honored with a TiE50 Award at this year’s TiEcon,” said Bruce Bower, CEO of Plastic Jungle. “We’ve certainly seen a significant increase in consumer awareness for our secondary gift card market, and we’re very pleased to know that the TiE50 Award judges have also taken note of the value, choice and flexibility we bring to Plastic Jungle users.”

The TiEcon 2011 conference was held May 13-14th, 2011, at the Santa Clara Convention Center, in Santa Clara, California.