Raphael Arndt
Chief Investment Officer
FUTURE FUND
Raphael Arndt was appointed as the Chief Investment Officer of the Future Fund in 2014.
He leads a multi-disciplinary investment team, managing A$160 billion, making investments across all asset classes and geographies.
In particular he focusses on the Fund’s “joined up” investment process, bringing together top down macro views and bottom up sector opportunities to construct the best overall portfolio.
This involves managing investments for Australia’s sovereign wealth fund, the Future Fund, and four additional funds, including the Medical Research Future Fund, which will be one of the largest medical research funds in the world when fully funded.
Raphael was previously the Fund's Head of Infrastructure and Timberland where he was responsible for establishing both the Timberland and Infrastructure investment programs.
Raphael is also Chairman of the Investment Committee and a Board Member of the Melbourne Lord Mayor’s Charitable Foundation, Australia’s largest community foundation.
Raphael started his career as an Engineer working with Ove Arup & Partners in Melbourne and London.
He holds Engineering and Economics degrees and a PhD from the University of Melbourne which focused on risk allocation in Public Private Partnerships.
Mike Baird
Former NSW Premier
Mike Baird was appointed to the role of Chief Customer Officer – Corporate and Institutional Banking at National Australia Bank (NAB) in April 2017.
Prior to joining NAB, Mr. Baird was the 44th Premier of New South Wales, representing the electoral district of Manly in the NSW Legislative Assembly.
In 1989, Mr. Baird started his career as a NAB graduate in Sydney. He went on to hold senior roles in NAB’s Corporate and Institutional Banking team in Australia and London, including Global Relationship Manager and Head of Debt Capital Markets Originations based in London.
He was a Senior Corporate Finance Manager at Deutsche Bank and Head of Corporate and Institutional Banking at HSBC in Australia and New Zealand.
Mr. Baird entered NSW state politics in 2007. He held a number of shadow ministries before serving as Treasurer from 2011 to 2014 and then Premier from 2014 to January 2017, when he retired from politics.
Mr. Baird holds a Bachelor of Arts (Economics) from the University of Sydney and has completed executive management courses at Harvard and Duke University.
Adriana Ballard
Senior Investment Officer
EMPLOYEES RETIREMENT SYSTEM OF TEXAS (ERS)
Adriana Ballard is a Senior Investment Officer at Employees Retirement System of Texas (ERS) and has been with ERS for the last ten years. Previously, she worked at Goldman Sachs as a Senior Client Analyst for Private Wealth Management, serving Latin American clients on a variety of investment strategies including Alternative Assets. Mrs. Ballard began her career at Citibank Worldwide Security Services implementing custody and institutional services to international investors. She has a Bachelor of Science from Universidad de Los Andes (Bogota), a PgDip for Universidad del Rosario (Bogota) in International Business and is currently completing the Global Executive MBA program at IE Business School.
Graeme Bibby
Chief Investment Officer
MUTUAL TRUST
Graeme Bibby has over 20 years’ experience in investment management, most recently as Chief Investment Officer at AIA Australia, a global leader in life insurance.
He has extensive experience in portfolio management and asset consulting, with expertise across macroeconomic analysis, strategic asset allocation, investment policy, risk management and implementation of multi asset class portfolios.
Career History
2009 – 2016: AIA Australia – Chief Investment Officer.
2007 – 2009: Russell Investments – Senior Consultant – asset allocation across fixed income, equities, private equity, infrastructure, hedge funds
2003 – 2007: Mercer Investment Consulting – Consultant – Australian equities focus
2000 – 2003: Alliance Capital Management – Quantitative Analyst – fixed income focus
1996 – 2000: BHP – Investment Analyst
1990 – 1996: BHP Steel – Process Engineer
1989 – 1989: Fletcher Titanium Products – Process Engineer
Mr. Bibby leads the investment team to provide a comprehensive and integrated investment offering across all major asset classes, including cash, fixed income, Australian and international equities, alternatives and property.
Mr. Bibby will work closely with the investment advisory team and their clients to develop and implement appropriate long term investment strategies to help them achieve their investment objectives.
Steve Byrom
Head of Private Equity
FUTURE FUND
Steve Byrom is Head of Private Equity at Future Fund, the $105 billion sovereign wealth fund of Australia. Mr. Byrom is responsible for managing $15 billion of capital that has been committed to private equity funds, co-investments and other direct investment opportunities globally.
He has over 20 years' of private equity and corporate finance experience across Europe, Australia and New Zealand. His previous experience includes establishing a private equity program at the New Zealand Superannuation Fund, Co-Head of ANZ Private Equity, financial sponsors with SG Hambros in London and corporate finance at Ernst & Young in London and Auckland.
Mr. Byrom holds a Bachelor of Commerce (Accounting and Finance) and a Masters of Commerce (Finance) from the University of Auckland.
Mark De Ambrosis
Managing Director
ARMITAGE ASSOCIATES
Mark De Ambrosis has over 10 years’ experience as a management consultant and private equity investor. Mr. De Ambrosis is currently the Managing Director of Armitage Associates, a lower-middle market growth equity investor. Mr. De Ambrosis co-founded Armitage Associates in 2016 in partnership with the Schwartz family. Armitage is an active, long-term investor alongside owners and operators of small and medium sized growing businesses, providing family office capital to family owned businesses.
Mr. De Ambrosis started his career as a consultant with McKinsey & Co in Sydney. In 2009 he founded Longreach Capital in Chicago, a search fund backed by a group of investors including U.S. venture capitalist Bill Egan and private equity fund Prairie Capital. Mr. De Ambrosis returned to Australia in 2011 where he spent over 5 years leading the investment team at M. H. Carnegie & Co as the firm’s Investment Director and Partner.
Mr. De Ambrosis is currently a Non-Executive Director of Iron Capital, Sentral Education, BlueFit Group, Nuix, and an advisory board member of Message Media. Mr. De Ambrosis was a Baker Scholar at Harvard Business School and holds a Degree in Commerce (Finance and Accounting) and Economics from the University of Queensland.
Jon Freeman
Partner
COLLER CAPITAL
Jon Freeman is a Risk Partner responsible for the oversight of the firm’s investment analysis and portfolio management. Mr. Freeman is based in the firm’s London office.
Mr. Freeman started as Coller Capital’s first investment analyst and has held numerous roles within the investment team, working on transactions in all of the Coller funds.
Prior to joining Coller Capital in 1996, Mr. Freeman began his career with Arthur Andersen before moving on to working in the tax departments of Dowell Schlumberger and McDermott Engineering.
Mr. Freeman has a BSc (Hons) in Banking and International Finance from Cass Business School, London, and is a UK Chartered Management Accountant.
Alicia Gregory
Head of Private Equity
MLC
Alicia Gregory has worked within the PE program for the last 11 years and brings with her significant experience as an investor and leader. Alicia returned to Australia in January this year having spent three years in London as Head of European PE.
Alicia has over 17 years' experience in the financial services sector. This career includes investment research with the ThreeSixty Investment Strategy & Research team and prior to that she worked at the Commonwealth Bank of Australia in various research and credit related roles. Alicia holds a Bachelor of Business from University of Technology, Sydney, is a CFA charterholder and has completed the General Management Programme at INSEAD.
James Lilico
Investment Manager - Private Markets
SUNSUPER
James Lilico is an Investment Manager in the Private Markets team at Sunsuper, a $34 billion profit-for-members superannuation fund. His role encompasses portfolio construction, investment research, selection and execution and ongoing review and reporting across the private capital and property asset classes.
The private capital portfolio is a programme of over $2 billion, which consists of primary and secondary fund investments and co-investments across the buyout, venture, distressed, natural resources and real estate areas. James represents Sunsuper on various advisory boards in Australia and overseas.
James has been with Sunsuper for 5 years. Prior to this, he was at RMB Capital Partners and Grant Samuel. James has a Bachelor of Science in Finance and a Master of Science in Decision and Information Sciences from the University of Florida.
Will MacAulay
Investment Manager - Unlisted Assets
HESTA
Will MacAulay is an Investment Manager – Unlisted Assets with HESTA, and is responsible for HESTA’s Infrastructure, Private Equity, and Opportunistic Growth portfolios. Prior to HESTA Will has held similar roles with Wilshire Private Markets and MLC Private Equity. Will holds a Bachelor of Commerce and a Bachelor of Science from the University of Melbourne, and is a Chartered Financial Analyst.
Hemal Mirani
Managing Director
HARBOURVEST PARTNERS (ASIA)
Hemal Mirani rejoined HarbourVest's senior management team in Asia in 2015 to focus on investments and investor relations across the Asia Pacific region.
Hemal first joined HarbourVest in 1997 and spent eleven years developing relationships with leading Asian private equity managers and working with our investors and consultants across the region to advance and optimize their private market investment programs. She rejoined HarbourVest after six years with CVC Capital Partners in Hong Kong, where she was head of investor relations in Asia and Chief Administrative Officer.
Hemal received a BA in Commerce from Sydenham College (Bombay) in 1989, an MA in International Studies with a Japanese language concentration from the Joseph H. Lauder Institute, and an MBA in Finance from the Wharton School in 1997. The latter two were part of a joint degree program at the University of Pennsylvania. Hemal speaks fluent Japanese.
Jenny Newmarch
Portfolio Manager - Growth Assets
FIRST STATE SUPER
Jenny Newmarch is a Portfolio Manager for Growth Assets as First State Super which includes the management of public and private equities accessed through both funds, co-investments and selective direct investments. Ms. Newmarch has worked in the investment industry for 13 years, predominantly managing private equity investments on behalf of Australian Superannuation funds. Prior to First State Super, Ms. Newmarch was an Investment Director with Asia pacific private equity advisor, ROC Partners.
Raju Ruparelia
Director, Private Capital
ONTARIO TEACHERS' PENSION PLAN (ASIA) LIMITED
Raju Ruparelia joined Ontario Teachers' in 2008 and has over 13 years of combined experience in private equity and corporate finance. Raju is a founding member of Ontario Teachers' Hong Kong office and is currently responsible for direct and co-investing activities across the Asia-Pacific region. He has worked in both Toronto and London for Ontario Teachers' and has been involved in a number of its direct investments, including the acquisitions of EXAL Group, INC Research, Coway, DTZ and Cushman & Wakefield. Raju currently sits on the board of Cushman & Wakefield and is an observer on the board of Coway. Prior to joining Ontario Teachers', Raju worked in investment banking at Credit Suisse in New York, in investments at Cadillac Fairview (Ontario Teachers' wholly owned real estate subsidiary) and in the corporate finance group at Deloitte.
Raju holds a BA from Wilfrid Laurier University and an MBA from the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto.
Marcus Simpson
Global Head of Private Equity
QIC
Marcus Simpson founded and manages QIC's private equity program of $5.0bn AUM globally in funds, co-investments, directs and direct secondary fund interests. He is at the forefront of a new private equity investment model reflected in a 2015 paper co-authored by Josh Lerner and Hugh MacArthur: The Next Generation Private Equity Investor.
Prior to founding QIC's program in 2005, Marcus was Chief Executive, North America, Altius Associates Ltd, with US$27 billion (as of Q2 2015) under management or advice. He established Altius' US operation in 2000 and participated in the global management, investment strategy and execution, and client acquisition.
From 1996 to 2000 Marcus worked for the Virginia Retirement System ("VRS"), a US public pension plan with assets of US$62 billion. Marcus founded its non-US portfolio and then became Head of Private Equity.
From 1990 to 1995 he worked in the London office of the Bankers Trust Company where he structured a number of buy-out financings and worked on corporate restructurings.
Marcus is Chairman Emeritus of the Institutional Investors Roundtable, an international community of large, long-term institutional investors seeking to collaborate on private market investment.
Cameron Sinclair
Director, Private Equity
FUTURE FUND
Cameron Sinclair is a Director in the Private Equity team at Future Fund and helps manage A$22bn of capital that has been committed to private equity funds, co-investments and other direct investment opportunities globally. Prior to joining Future Fund in 2010, Mr. Sinclair worked for Macquarie Capital in Seoul, South Korea, for Macquarie Funds throughout Asia. Prior to that, he was based in Melbourne, Australia, in Macquarie’s Investment Banking Group. Mr. Sinclair holds a Bachelor of Laws (Honours) and Bachelor of Commerce from The University of Melbourne.
Wen Tan
Co- Head of Private Equity Asia Pacific
ABERDEEN STANDARD INVESTMENTS
Wen Tan oversees Aberdeen Standard Investments’ Asia Pacific private equity strategy and is also a member of its investment committee. Mr. Tan was a Partner at FLAG prior to joining Aberdeen via the firm’s acquisition in 2015. Prior to joining FLAG in 2012 upon the firm's acquisition of Squadron Capital, he served as a Managing Director at Squadron and a member of the investment committee. Prior to joining Search Investment Group (Squadron Capital's former parent) in 2004, Mr. Tan was with Ernst & Young's China M&A group, focusing on cross-border transactions. He also served as an M&A investment banker with Lazard in London, initially as an execution specialist across a range of sectors, including a number of transactions involving private equity houses, and subsequently as a specialist in the financial institutions group. He was also a chartered accountant with KPMG's financial services division in London where he worked primarily with Asia Pacific banking groups including HSBC and Standard Chartered. Mr. Tan speaks Cantonese and Mandarin Chinese as well as Bahasa Malaysia/Indonesia. Mr. Tan holds a BA from Cambridge University.
Michael Weaver
Manager, Private Markets
SUNSUPER PTY LTD
Michael Weaver is the Manager, Private Markets at Sunsuper, a $50 billion profit-for-members superannuation fund. This role includes management of the property, infrastructure and private capital asset classes. Responsibilities include portfolio construction, investment research and selection and ongoing review and reporting.
The private capital portfolio is a total programme of over $2.8 billion, which consists of primary and secondary fund investments and co-investments across the buyout, venture, distressed, natural resources and real estate areas. Mr. Weaver represents Sunsuper on various advisory boards in Australia and overseas.
Mr. Weaver has been with Sunsuper for over 11 years and prior to this was at Mercer for 9 years as a superannuation consultant providing advice to large corporate clients. Mr. Weaver has a Bachelor of Business (Finance & Accounting) from the University of Technology, Sydney, a Graduate Certificate of Management (International Business) from the University of New England and a Masters of Applied Finance & Investment from FINSIA.
Rick Baker
Co-Founder
BLACKBIRD VENTURES
Rick Baker is a co-founder of Blackbird Ventures, a venture capital firm in Australia. Blackbird invests in world class Internet and software companies forming in Australia. It has been built around a group of Australia's most successful tech founders, combined with close ties to Silicon Valley.
Prior to Blackbird, Mr. Baker was responsible for MLC’s venture capital portfolio with investments and commitments of over half a billion dollars. At MLC, Mr. Baker built a portfolio of venture fund investments alongside a group of the most successful venture capital funds in Silicon Valley and globally. Mr. Baker also invested directly into tech companies, both from Australia and the US.
Prior to MLC, Mr. Baker co-founded two successful software companies.
Byron Beath
Managing Director
OAKTREE
Byron Beath leads the team’s efforts in Australia having joined Oaktree in 2016. Prior to joining Oaktree, he spent fifteen years with Macquarie Bank Limited. There, Mr. Beath was most recently a division director in the Corporate and Asset Finance division. He was responsible for originating, assessing and executing investments in senior, subordinated and mezzanine debt, distressed credit, special situation opportunities and private equity opportunities. Mr. Beath began his career at Bankers Trust, where he was an analyst in the Fixed Income, Currencies and Commodities division, before moving on to senior manager and director roles at Macquarie. Mr. Beath currently serves on the board of DDH1, and formerly served on the board of RMS. He has a Bachelor of Commerce degree from Macquarie University in Sydney and has completed the Certified Practicing Accountant program.
Craig Blair
Co-Founder and Managing Partner
AIRTREE VENTURES
Craig Blair is a co-founder and managing partner at AirTree Ventures, an early and growth stage venture firm that is backing world-class entrepreneurs who are building the exceptional companies of tomorrow. Mr. Blair has been a principle in two venture capital funds for over 10 years and he has been involved in building some of the leading software businesses in Australia and the UK.
Mr. Blair’s experience includes five years as Executive Director of netus, a Venture Fund that delivered top decile returns to investors, two years as founding CEO & Executive Chairman of Beamly, four years as Chairman of PetCircle and four years as Founder/Director of Travelselect, one of the early online travel companies in the UK that successfully exited to Lastminute.com
Mr. Blair’s earlier career involved management consultancy, investment banking and civil engineering. Mr. Blair holds a Bachelor of Engineering from the University of Sydney and an MBA from INSEAD.
Scott Bookmyer
Head of Australia & Chief Operating Officer
KKR
Scott Bookmyer (Sydney) runs the KKR Australia business and is Chief Operating Officer of KKR Asia. He serves on the Asia Private Equity Investment Committee and is a member of the Asia Portfolio Management Committee. Mr. Bookmyer joined KKR Capstone in 2002 supporting operational improvements in KKR’s North American private equity portfolio. In 2010 he moved to Hong Kong, serving as CEO of KKR Capstone Asia until joining KKR Asia in 2014. Mr. Bookmyer’s prior experiences include brand management (Procter & Gamble) and consulting (The Boston Consulting Group). He holds a B.A. with honors from Indiana University and an M.B.A. from The University of Chicago.
Daniel Bowden
Partner
STAFFORD PRIVATE EQUITY
Daniel Bowden is a Partner and Investment Committee member at Stafford Capital Partners, a global funds management and advisory firm focused on alternative asset classes. Stafford has funds under management of $5bn and invests across private equity, venture, sustainable, infrastructure, credit, timberlands, and agriculture sectors.
Mr. Bowden has been responsible for making private equity commitments totaling over $750m to various private equity managers in Australia and New Zealand. He sits on the Investment Advisory Boards for a range of private equity funds.
Stafford Capital Partners also has an active private equity coinvestment and secondaries program, and has completed over 60 coinvestment and secondaries transactions in the Australian and New Zealand markets.
Prior to joining Stafford Capital Partners, Mr. Bowden spent three years in corporate finance at Goldman Sachs, where he provided M&A advice to a range of corporations and private equity firms.
Tim Burroughs
Managing Editor
ASIAN VENTURE CAPITAL JOURNAL
Tim Burroughs is managing editor of Asian Venture Capital Journal, having joined the publication in May 2011. He is responsible for all editorial content put out under the AVCJ brand, including Asian Venture Capital Journal, AVCJtv, AVCJ Awards and AVCJ.com. Tim previously spent five years at China Economic Review, serving as editor-in-chief and then editorial director. Located in Greater China since 2003, during which time he has lived in Beijing, Qingdao and Hong Kong, Tim has been a China-based contributor for publications including The Sunday Times, Sunday Telegraph, BBC and China Daily. Prior to moving to China, he trained and worked as a journalist in the UK. He was honored at the Society of Publishers in Asia awards in 2007, 2008 and 2010, and at the State Street Institutional Press Awards - Asia in 2012.
James Carnegie
Senior Managing Director
BLACKSTONE
James Carnegie is a Senior Managing Director at Blackstone. He is based in Sydney. Mr. Carnegie was previously a Senior Adviser for Australia in 2012. Prior to that, he was a partner at Archer Capital, one of Australia’s leading domestic private equity firms and a Director of the Macquarie Direct Investment group, Macquarie Bank’s private equity division. Mr. Carnegie received a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Melbourne as well as an M.B.A. with Distinction from Harvard University. He is currently on the board of Antares Restaurant Group and Ixom.
Alessio Conforti
Head of Institutional Client Relationships
EUROPEAN INVESTMENT FUND
Alessio Conforti was born in Rome and started his career in 2003 working for the United Nations.
In 2009, following an MBA at London Business School and a PhD in Economics at the University of Rome, Dr. Conforti joined the European Investment Bank Group.
Since then, he worked in various departments dedicated to the financing of SMEs and Mid-Caps. Starting from 2013, has been the Adviser to the EIB Vice President and since February 2017, he leads the Institutional Client Relationships Unit of the European Investment Fund.
Michelle Deaker
Managing Partner
ONEVENTURES
Dr. Michelle Deaker is a Managing Partner of OneVentures and has been primarily responsible for the foundation of OneVentures firm and capital raisings of OneVentures Funds. The firm now has $320M in funds under management. Dr Deaker serves on the investment committee of OneVentures three main Funds, leads the technology practice within the firm and is responsible for investor relations managing the supervisory boards of OneVentures funds.
Dr. Deaker has over 20 years experience in the development of high growth technology companies in Australia and the US, has served on the boards of large and small listed and unlisted companies and has established financing syndicates with Australian, Asian and US investors. She is a current Director of OneVentures portfolio companies Smart Sparrow, Employment Hero and Incoming Media. She is a former member of the NSW government’s Digital Economy Taskforce and the Advisory Board of Head Over Heels. Dr Deaker is also a former Director of Seven West Media (Seven Network, Pacific, WAN, Yahoo7) and Australia’s ICT Centre of Excellence, NICTA (now Data61).
Dr. Deaker established OneVentures in late 2006, coming into the venture capital industry as a successful IT industry business owner, entrepreneur and subsequently angel investor. The Company she founded in 1999, E Com Industries (www.giftvouchers.com), became the leading prepaid card and electronic voucher provider in Australia, servicing over 100 major retail brands including Coles Myer and Woolworths, managing $700m in Australian retail liability and eventually expanding operations into the United Kingdom, South Africa and New Zealand. E Com was acquired by UK publicly listed company, Retail Decisions, in 2005, in a transaction returning to investors 4.6xcapital and an average IRR of 70%. Notably, E Com industries was one of only a handful of Australian companies that successfully migrated the dotcom boom and crash through to a successful outcome for investors. Prior to E Com Industries, Dr Deaker established IT enterprise business, Networks Beyond 2000.
Dr. Deaker holds a Bachelor of Science (Honours 1st class), Master of Science and a PhD (Applied Science). She is a member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and Chief Executive Women (CEW).
Yasser El-Ansary
Chief Executive
AVCAL
Commencing in 2013, Yasser El-Ansary is responsible for leading the strategic direction of AVCAL in representing the private equity and venture capital industry in Australia.
Mr. El-Ansary's responsibilities include working closely with members as well as key stakeholders such as the broader financial services sector and the federal government to ensure the industry continues to make a significant positive contribution to the long-term prosperity of the Australian economy.
Prior to joining AVCAL, Mr. El-Ansary was the General Manager of Policy and Advocacy for the Institute of Chartered Accountants Australia. He has over 20 years’ experience as a business adviser and public policy expert through his previous roles with PwC, Rio Tinto, Australand Property Group, as well as the Department of Treasury in Canberra.
Mr. El-Ansary is a Chartered Accountant and holds a Bachelor of Commerce from the Australian National University and a Master of Taxation Law from the University of New South Wales. He also sits on the Board of the Medical Research Future Fund.
Simon Feiglin
Managing Partner and RAF Fund Manager
THE RIVERSIDE COMPANY
Simon Feiglin joined Riverside in 2007. Mr. Feiglin leads the RAF transacting and operating teams in the acquisition, growth and sale of portfolio companies, as well as the development of the strategic direction of the fund. Prior to Riverside, he was a founding Partner of Silver Oak Services Partners, a private equity fund focused on investing in the services sector. He also served as the Vice President of Corporate Development at CBIZ Inc., where he managed the merger, acquisition and divestiture effort for a $600 million publicly traded company. His earlier career includes four years at Morgenthaler Partners, a private equity firm. He holds a BBA from the University of Michigan and an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.
Jake Haines
Managing Director
PACIFIC EQUITY PARTNERS
Jake Haines originally joined Pacific Equity Partners in 2002, and rejoined the firm in 2008 having spent the previous three years in the United States. While based in New York, he was involved in establishing the US private equity group for Babcock & Brown. Prior to 2002, Mr. Haines was a consultant with Bain & Company based in Toronto. He received an HBA from the Richard Ivey School of Business.
David Heathcote
National Leader, Corporate Finance
KPMG AUSTRALIA
David Heathcote is a veteran of the international banking scene having spent more than two decades working for the likes of ABN AMRO, both in Australia and in the UK. There he honed his skills around a wide suite of debt products including vanilla corporate financing and refinancing, project finance, leverage finance, acquisition finance, commodity and export finance, structured and infrastructure financing, securitisations and syndications. He has been involved in multiple cross border transactions particularly involving the ASPAC region.
It is not surprising Mr. Heathcote is in his element as the National Leader of KPMG Australia’s Corporate Finance group. “I like the challenge of providing solutions where 1 + 1 = 3. It can be complex and challenging at the same time, but creating value and finding solutions for clients where others can’t is really very rewarding.” He also loves working in partnership with the firm’s clients, “where you are leveraging off different skill-sets to get an optimal outcome”.
Among other things, Mr. Heathcote’s years in the United Kingdom taught him how not to behave. “Witnessing the financial crisis in London first hand, you saw how important your own ethics and morals were in building sustainability and resilience in your work.”
Tony Holt
Co-Founder
SQUARE PEG CAPITAL
Tony Holt is a co-founder of Square Peg Capital.
He has deep experience in investment banking, corporate finance, M&A and capital raising gained in industry-leading global organisations. He has also worked in Melbourne, New York, Sydney and Asia and has breadth and depth of knowledge and experience doing business in and across different geographies.
From 1991 through 2006, Mr. Holt was with Merrill Lynch in the Investment Banking division. He had experience in a wide range of Corporate Finance, M&A, and Capital Raising advice.
From 2006 through 2008, Mr. Holt was a Managing Director at Citigroup’s Sydney Investment Banking Group and Head of its TMT business in Australia and New Zealand.
In 2008 Mr. Holt joined Macquarie Capital where he worked until co-founding Square Peg Capital. While at Macquarie Mr. Holt held a variety of roles including co-head of TMT for Asia and Head of Principal Investments for Macquarie Capital Asia.
Mr. Holt holds a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Melbourne.
Lance Jenkins
Partner and Executive Director
WATERMAN CAPITAL
Lance Jenkins is a partner and executive director of Waterman Capital, a New Zealand private company investor. He has over 20 years of financial markets experience having worked in New York, Sydney and Auckland. Prior to joining Waterman, he held senior roles with Goldman Sachs JBWere in New York and more latterly as CEO and Managing Director of Goldman Sachs JBWere New Zealand.
He is a non-executive director of the New Zealand Meal-Kit business, My Food Bag, New Zealand Life Insurer, Partners Life and the Australian listed investment company, Whitefield Ltd. He was previously a non-executive director of AMP New Zealand subsidiary, Spicers Portfolio Management Limited.
Mr. Jenkins holds an MBA from New York University (Stern) and an LLB and BCA from Victoria University of Wellington.
Rob Koczkar
Managing Director; Chief Executive Officer
ADAMANTEM CAPITAL; SOCIAL VENTURES AUSTRALIA
Rob Koczkar is Managing Director of Adamantem Capital and Chief Executive Officer of Social Ventures Australia. His experience spans private equity, public company directorships, strategy and social impact investing.
He was a Managing Director of Pacific Equity Partners from 2004 to 2014 and a Principal with Texas Pacific Group from 2002 to 2004. Mr. Koczkar also spent seven years with Bain & Company, advising clients on issues relating to strategy, mergers, and operating improvements in a wide range of industries.
Mr. Koczkar received a BEng (Hons.) in Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering from the University of Melbourne. He currently serves on the boards of Social Ventures Australia and Goodstart Early Learning Limited.
T.J. Kono
Partner
UNISON CAPITAL
T. J. Kono joined Unison Capital in 2002. He is a founding member of the Seoul office, and is leading Unison's Korea initiative for portfolio company value creation as well as sourcing new investment opportunities. Prior to Unison Capital, he worked at Merrill Lynch Japan, where he was responsible for M&A advisory operations.
Kay-Mok Ku
Managing Partner
GOBI MANAGEMENT (SOUTHEAST ASIA)
Kay-Mok Ku is Managing Partner for Gobi Southeast Asia. He joined Gobi in 2010 and has invested in over 30 companies, including Aptoide, DeClout, Eko, Hermo, Offpeak, Orami, and Qraved. He is a board member of the Singapore Venture Capital Association (SVCA). Prior to his career with Gobi Partners, Mr. Ku held the Vice President position in both Xinya Media and MediaCorp (Singapore). He was also part of the team that managed a $500 million fund at the Media Development Authority in Singapore, and is co-founder of Private Express, a crypto startup based in Silicon Valley. He started his career with the Infocomm Development Authority, and has a Computer Science degree from UC-Berkeley, and an MBA from San Jose State University.
Philip Latham
Partner and Leader of the Australian Office
NAVIS CAPITAL PARTNERS
Philip Latham is a Partner of Navis and a director of Navis Capital Australia. Navis is a pan -Asia/Australasia Private Equity group, focused on control buyouts and manages approximately USD5bn in portfolio assets in the region. It has raised 7 funds since 1998, with the most recent being approximately USD1.5bn. Navis employs approximately 100 executives across 6 regional offices.
At Navis, Mr. Latham sources Australian and New Zealand transactions and leads investment teams in making, monitoring and exiting investments, sits on the Navis Investment Committee and sits on the boards and executive committees of four Navis portfolio companies. Mr. Latham is also responsible for a number of matters related to the Australian operations of Navis.
Mr. Latham has lead Navis’ activities in Australia since 2008. He was responsible for Navis investments in WorldMark Pty Ltd, Retail Apparel Group Pty Ltd, Blueprint Group Pty Ltd, Guardian Early Learning Group, Modern Star and Mainland Poultry, as well as more than 30 follow-on acquisitions which are now part of those businesses. In addition, Mr. Latham managed the acquisition of Cherry Valley Farms in the UK and China.
Mr. Latham has been active in private equity for 24 years, since founding Lend Lease Development Capital in 1994. He founded and grew RMB Ventures, where he managed 22 mid-market buyouts, including 13 exits between 1998 and 2008.
Mr. Latham holds an MBA from London Business School and a BSc Hons Mech Eng from Birmingham University. He is also a chartered Engineer and a member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.
Mr. Latham Co-founded and chaired Yalari, an indigenous education initiative which is today responsible for managing and funding hundreds of boarding school students from remote and rural communities, and he served on the Board of the Australian Chamber Orchestra for 5 years.
Sheridan Lee
Founder and Principal
SHED ENTERPRISES
Sheridan Lee is the founder and principal of Shed Enterprises, a specialised financial services public relations and third-party marketing consultancy. As a journalist she launched Super Review in the early days of occupational superannuation.
As a business development manager she worked with Swiss Bank Corp (now UBS) and Alliance Capital. Ms. Lee pioneered third party marketing in Australia in 1996. Clients have included Adveq Management AG, Neuberger Berman LLC, Bridgewater Associates, Old Mutual plc, CDC Ixis Asset Management, Standard Life Group,GAM, Axa Rosenberg Investment Management Ltd., Acadian Asset Management and Challenger International.
Ms. Lee holds a Bachelor of Economics from the University of Sydney. She is a board member of Shed Media and of the charity SecondBite, as well as sitting on the Artbank Advisory Board.
Ken Licence
Managing Director
PRINCIPLE ADVISORY SERVICES
Ken Licence joined Principle in 2009 and was appointed to the role of Managing Director in December 2010. Mr. Licence has over 20 years' financial services experience across a range of investment strategies including property, private equity and infrastructure. He has held senior management positions with Lend Lease, Deutsche Asset Management, and CP2, assisting major domestic and international institutional clients.
Mr. Licence has been a Board Member of the Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia (NSW) and holds a Bachelor of Commerce from Griffith University and a Masters of Business Administration from the University of Queensland.
Steven Lipchin
Global Head, Private Equity
IFM INVESTORS
Steven Lipchin is responsible for IFM Investors’ Private Equity platform, including the firm’s Australian and international fund-of-funds programs and direct investment initiatives. Mr. Lipchin has invested in private companies since the mid 1980s and has extensive experience supporting mid-market companies with replacement, growth and buyout capital. He co-founded South African private equity manager Horizon Equity Partners, where he established a successful investment track record that spanned 18 years and four fund vehicles. Mr. Lipchin led a number of Horizon’s flagship investments, particularly, in business services, consumer brands, health care and information technology. Prior to joining IFM Investors, Mr. Lipchin spent two years at niche private investment and advisory firm The Wingate Group, where he was Head of Private Equity. Mr. Lipchin started his career at Berkshire Partners, in Boston.
Chester Moynihan
Managing Director
ALLEGRO FUNDS
Chester Moynihan is a founding Partner of Allegro Funds.
Mr. Moynihan has over 24 years’ experience in private equity investing, corporate advisory, executive management and turnaround. Prior to Allegro Mr. Moynihan worked at Permira Advisers in London, Gresham Private Equity in Sydney and KPMG in both New Zealand and South Africa.
Mr. Moynihan is a Chartered Accountant and has a BComm and Post Graduate honours from the University of Natal, SA. Mr. Moynihan holds an Investment Management Certificate from IMRO in the UK and the Advanced Insolvency Law & Practice II unit from the University of Queensland.
Mr. Moynihan is currently on the boards of Pizza Hut Australia (Chairman), Carpet Court NZ (Chairman), and Experience Australia (Director).
Justin Ryan
Managing Partner
QUADRANT PRIVATE EQUITY
Justin Ryan joined Quadrant Private Equity in February 2011. Prior to this Mr. Ryan was Chief Executive Officer of Alesco Corporation Limited, an ASX 200 diversified industrial company which he joined in 2004 (Alesco was taken over by Dulux Corporation Limited in 2011). Before joining Alesco, Mr. Ryan was a Director of Catalyst Investment Managers which he joined in 1997. Mr. Ryan was Chairman of AVCAL in 2003. Mr. Ryan is a member of Quadrant’s Investment Committee and a Chairman of Quadrant investee companies CQMS Razer, Real Pet Food Company, Rockpool Dining Group and Motorone Group.
Jeremy Samuel
Founder and Managing Director
ANACACIA CAPITAL
Jeremy Samuel is the Managing Director of Anacacia Capital, an award winning Australian investment firm focused on the small-medium mid-market growth buyouts.
Anacacia manages >A$250m and invests into established small-medium enterprises that are managing ownership change and growth. The firm’s private equity funds make buyout and control investments into unlisted companies. The firm also manages the synergistic Wattle Fund that can follow up with minority investments into small listed companies.
Mr. Samuel is the former lead director of Anacacia’s investments into Appen, Big River, Home Appliances, Lomb Scientific and Rafferty’s Garden. Mr. Samuel holds an MBA from the Yale University School of Management and Arts/Law degrees from the University of New South Wales.
Tim Sims
Managing Director
PACIFIC EQUITY PARTNERS
Tim Sims is a Managing Director and Founder of Pacific Equity Partners (PEP). He was previously Chairman and Managing Partner of Bain & Company's businesses in Australasia and Africa. He was an elected member of Bain's World Wide Executive Committee. Prior to joining Bain, Mr. Sim was a Founding Partner of the LEK Partnership in London and Managing Partner of their Australasia practice.
Mr. Sim has also led or served on a number of National Strategy issues, The Karpin Committee, The Nuclear Research Program and the National Service Export Strategy. He was selected to participate in the Prime Minister's Climate Change Summit and 2020 initiative. He was a Founder of the Australian Charities Fund Work Place Giving Program and has served on the Boards of the Garvan Foundation, Sharelife / Outcomes Australia and Ravenswood School.
He has a BA / MA from Oxford where he was a Mitsui Scholar and an MPA from Harvard where he was a Kennedy Scholar.
Mitchell Stack
Managing Director
BAIN CAPITAL
Mitchell Stack joined Bain Capital Credit in 2013. He is a Managing Director and Head of Bain Capital Credit Australia. Previously, Mr. Stack was the Head of Debt and Alternatives at the Future Fund, Australia’s sovereign wealth fund. Prior to that, Mr. Stack was the head of the Australian investment team at the global fixed income specialist Western Asset Management and its predecessor organization Citigroup Asset Management. Mr. Stack also worked at J.P. Morgan in credit and corporate finance in Melbourne and New York. Mr. Stack received a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Melbourne and is a Chartered Financial Analyst® charterholder.
Gary Stead
Managing Director
HPS INVESTMENT PARTNERS, LLC
Gary Stead is a Managing Director at HPS Investment Partners, LLC, and is responsible for leading the Australian business. HPS is a leading global private investment firm with approximately US$42 billion of capital under management in both private and public credit strategies, with the ability to invest across the capital structure. His prior experience was as Co‐Head of Olympus Capital Asia Credit, a regional structural credit investment company, and before that Managing Director and CEO of Fortress Investment Group Australia, where he established and led the Australian office which focused on investing for the Drawbridge Special Opportunities Fund. Prior to joining Fortress, Mr. Stead spent twenty years in Investment Banking, primarily at Merrill Lynch, where he served in various business building and leadership roles, including Head of M&A for Australia and the Asia Pacific region, Co‐Head of Investment Banking Japan, Management Committee Member Merrill Lynch Japan Securities, and Vice Chairman of Investment Banking Australia. Prior to that Mr. Stead was with Salomon Brothers in New York, where he was a Vice President in the M&A Group.
Mr. Stead has a Bachelor of Commerce degree and a Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of New South Wales and an M.B.A. from The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania.
Ravi Thakran
Chairman and Managing Partner
L CATTERTON ASIA
Ravi Thakran has been working in various leading positions at the Louis Vuitton Moët Hennessey Group (LVMH) since 2001. He has been the Group President of LVMH South & Southeast Asia and Oceania from 2007.
LVMH is the world's largest luxury goods company with over USD 50 Billion in revenue and USD 7 Billion in profit. The group owns over 70 world famous brands including Louis Vuitton, Christian Dior, Fendi, Tag Heuer, Hublot, DFS, Sephora, Moët & Chandon, Dom Perignon and others.
Ravi Thakran is also the founder of L Capital Asia. From its foundation in 2010 the fund has invested USD 3 Billion in 27 companies across Asia Pacific; including leading companies in India like PVR and Fab India.
In 2016, Ravi Thakran led his team for a merger with America's largest consumer focussed Private Equity fund formed through the partnership of Catterton, LVMH and Groupe Arnault.
Ravi Thakran is now the Chairman and Managing Partner of the merged entity called L Catterton, now the world's largest consumer focused Private Equity fund with over USD 15 Billion of assets under management; operating six distinct fund strategies out of seventeen offices located across five continents.
Prior to his time in LVMH, he had held senior management positions at the Swatch Group, Nike and the Tata Group. He holds an MBA from the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad.
Edward Tong
Senior Vice President, Head Private Debt Asia
PARTNERS GROUP
Edward Tong is Head of the Asian Private Debt business unit, based in Singapore. He is a member of the Private Debt Investment Committee. He has 14 years of industry experience. Prior to joining Partners Group, he worked at INGBank. He holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting and finance from the London School of Economics, UK.
Matthew Turner
Head of Australia & New Zealand Senior Debt
ICG
Matthew Turner has 22 years of debt markets experience and is the Head of Australia & New Zealand Senior Debt at ICG. He previously was responsible for covering the largest PE firms in the Australian market in NAB’s Acquisition Finance Team. In his last year of eligibility Mr. Turner was rated as one of the top 5 DCM Bankers in Australia in the 2012 East Coles annual bankers survey. Prior to 2007, he spent eight years working in London, five years as a debt specialist within the Investment Banking Division of Credit Suisse. Before that he spent three years at FleetBoston (now part of Bank of America Merrill Lynch) where he concentrated on Leveraged Media and Telecom credits and was responsible for FleetBoston’s European secondary loan trading. Before moving to London, Mr. Turner worked in Corporate and Institutional roles in Australian trading banks. He is regularly quoted in the Financial Press, particularly on the emergence of Private Debt in Australia. Mr. Turner holds a Bachelor of Economics from the University of Sydney.
James Viles
Partner
BAIN & COMPANY
James Viles is a partner in Bain & Company's Sydney office. He is an expert in the firm's Private Equity and Healthcare practices.
He has more than 10 years of international consulting experience across Australia, London, South Africa, Nigeria and Chile.
Mr. Viles focuses primarily on the private equity industry, with corporate and deal-related sector experience in healthcare and fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG). He has deep experience working with PE firms and their portfolio companies on diligence, post-acquisition strategy, focused initiative support and exit value maximization.
Mr. Viles holds an MBA with distinction from INSEAD France / Singapore and an MA (Oxon) from Oxford University.
John White
Partner
NEXT CAPITAL
John White has more than 15 years’ experience in private equity, is a highly regarded director with expertise across multiple sectors and has transaction experience spanning Australia and New York.
Mr. White was a founding partner of Next Capital following the successful spin-out from Macquarie Bank in 2005, where he was a principal of Macquarie Bank’s private equity arm, Macquarie Direct Investment.
Since establishing Next Capital, he has executed multiple new investments and exit transactions, and has had deep involvement in the ongoing management of portfolio companies across a multitude of sectors. These include Vitaco, Onsite Rental Group, Discovery Holiday Parks, GoBus and Infinite Care. Next Capital’s focus is on expansion capital and small to mid-market buyouts in Australia and New Zealand, where the Partners see considerable investment opportunity.
Mr. White is currently a non-executive director of portfolio companies Noisette, Forest Buses and Fun-Lab.
Prior to the establishment of Next Capital, Mr. White held a number of senior roles at Deutsche Bank (including Head of the Australasian Telecommunications and Media Advisory Group), as well as Ferrier Hodgson, where he focused on corporate reconstructions and the sale of distressed assets in Australia and New York. Mr. White also served as Chairman of the Australian Venture Capital Association Limited (AVCAL) for a number of years.
Mr. White holds degrees in Commerce and Law from the University of NSW and is a fellow of FINSIA.
David Willis
Partner – Transaction Services, National Head of Private Equity
KPMG
David Willis is a Transaction Services Partner and National Head of Private Equity at KPMG.
Mr. Willis joined KPMG in January 2006 (after 11 years with Deloitte in Australia and the United Kingdom) and was admitted to partnership in 2007. David has worked in Transaction Services for 15 years, focussing exclusively on Private Equity since 2001.
Alex Wilmerding
Partner
PANTHEON VENTURES
Alex Wilmerding evaluates investment opportunities and monitors existing investments in Asia and is a member of Pantheon’s Asian Regional Investment Committee. He also manages Pantheon’s Asian client services team. Most recently, Mr. Wilmerding was a director at Citi Private Bank with a focus working with financial sponsors including private equity and venture funds. He previously spent nine years as a partner at Boston Capital Ventures where he sourced, structured and managed investments in the areas of business process outsourcing and distribution as well as the areas of information, hospitality and transportation services. Prior to working for Boston Capital Ventures, he served as Commercial Manager Eastern China for the Fednav Group, as well as in management positions for Cathay Pacific Airways and Dragonair in Hong Kong, Shanghai and Jakarta. Mr. Wilmerding has a BA from Yale University and MBA from Columbia Business School. Mr. Wilmerding is based in Hong Kong.
Paul Wilson
Co-Founder and Director
BAILADOR TECHNOLOGY INVESTMENTS
Paul Wilson is a co-founder and director of ASX listed Bailador Technology Investments Ltd (ASX:BTI), which focuses on expansion capital opportunities in the information technology sector.
Mr. Wilson is a Director of a number of technology focused businesses including SiteMinder, a world leading provider of cloud based solutions to the hotel industry, with over 30,000 subscribers in more than 100 countries; translation technology business Straker Translations which is targeting an ASX listing in 2018, and Stackla, a cutting edge user generated content and digital asset management platform. Other board roles include Yellow Pages NZ, Vita Group (ASX:STG) and the Rajasthan Royals Indian Premier League cricket franchise.
Mr. Wilson’s business background includes over 20 years principal investing experience in London, New York and Sydney, holding senior positions with leading private equity house, CHAMP, and the media and technology focused investment house, Illyria, prior to co-founding Bailador.
Jessie Yan
Director
LUNAR
Jessie Yan is a Director at Lunar. Lunar invests in companies where the Chinese consumer is driving explosive growth through a control-oriented, operationally involved, platform-building investment strategy. Lunar is widely recognized as a pioneer in China, with a successful track record that includes founding companies and taking controlling positions in more than 20 businesses. Lunar’s investments have included Linktone (Listed on NASDAQ), SmartPay (Acquired by Ping An), Yeehoo (Partially sold to Heilan), BPG (Acquired by Asian Citrus), WH Group (Listed on HKSE), Lao Henghe (Listed on HKSE) and others. Ms. Yan has more than a decade of private equity and M&A experience and focuses her efforts across structuring transactions, due diligence and monitoring, and general administration of the Firm. Prior to Lunar, Ms. Yan served as a Director at Citic Securities in their private equity group and was with White & Case, and was for a time seconded the Global M&A Competence Centre of Nestle in Vevey, Switzerland. Ms. Yan, a native to Beijing, received her Bachelor degree from University of Adelaide in Australia.
Stefan Zuschke
Co-Chairman and Managing Partner
BC PARTNERS
Stefan Zuschke joined BC Partners in Hamburg in 1993. Previously, Mr. Zuschke spent three years in the German mid-cap buy-out firm, Equimark. Prior to this he worked at Mercedes Benz in Germany and Spain. He has a degree in business administration from the Fachhochschule (Reutlingen/Germany) and the Universidad Pontificia Comillas (Madrid, Spain). He speaks German, English and Spanish. Portfolio Company Involvement: PlusServer (current board member), Aenova (current Chairman of the board), Nille, Synlab, SGB-SMIT, Brenntag, Amadeus, Unitymedia, KTM, Sanitec, Grohe, Techem, Beck and Thierschmidt.