London, England, United Kingdom
Regional CFO Asia for AXA Assistance since 2010, taking a leading role in reporting, strategy, M&A (including disposals). Wide-ranging financial services experience, initially as a sell-side equity analyst specialising in banks and insurance companies, more recently as a fund of hedge funds analyst. Strong collaborative mindset, with a commitment to deliver positive outcomes in any situation. Specialties: See previous
Managing strategic exits from selected business activities, including a UK Motor Extended Warranty broker; sales of individual subsidiaries in Russia, Brazil and Philippines; a multi-country sale of Asian assets (HK, JP, TW, TH, MY); a company run-off in Greece. As Project Lead, I’m deeply involved in every aspect, including valuation & negotiation, data room prep and roll out, sale docs, SPA drafting, IT & operational transition, design of severance & retention packages. My value-add is my extensive knowledge of the businesses and people involved, coupled with my ability and appetite to address issues from C-level down to operational level, liaising between Head Office and local entities.
Alphatraxx is a boutique fund of hedge funds group, established in 2005. The group grew to manage around US$70mn for clients in Europe, North America, the Bahamas and the Middle East. My activities and responsibilities included: Responsible Officer: Licensed by the HK SFC as responsible officer for regulated activities 4 & 9 (Advising on Securities & Asset Management) Research: Senior analyst, heading up the research team, covering the entire Asian hedge fund universe including Japan and Australasia; sourcing underlying managers from prime brokers and other industry sources; categorizing into peer groups according to style and geographical focus; analysing performance; meeting over 300 Asia-focused managers on research trips in Asia, Europe and the US, and conducting detailed discussions on strategy, performance, infrastructure and operations; writing detailed reports on selected hedge funds following deeper operational due diligence and site visits; portfolio construction; setting up internal processes, including formalized investment and asset allocation committees; detailed monitoring of investee funds’ monthly performance and trading activities via regular contact with PMs and CIOs. Operations: Set up complete Excel-based accounting system for tracking investment performance and cashflows for two portfolios of hedge funds; responsible for reconciling these on a monthly basis with fund administrators in Mumbai and New York, and approving NAVs before dispatch of statements to investors. Distressed funds: closely involved with legal team in managing redemption flows from distressed portfolios and winding up investment vehicles, as well as handling in specie redemptions of underlying hedge fund assets directly to investors.
Initially based in London. Moved to Hong Kong in January 2001, as part of the research team that launched the Asian office. My core responsibility was to write reports and issue recommendations on around 20 financial stocks in Thailand, Malaysia and India, though secondary coverage often included stocks in Hong Kong, China, and other Asian markets. I expanded coverage to include Krung Thai Bank, Thai Military Bank and Bank of Ayudhya in Thailand; RHB and Southern Bank in Malaysia; JCG in Hong Kong; and soft coverage of CIMB in Malaysia and several Thai finance companies. Successful recommendations to clients included identifying Krung Thai and Thai Military Bank as perennial weaklings (at a time of widespread optimism about their prospects) and identifying JCG and Southern Bank as undervalued acquisition targets. My insurance sector coverage included co-authoring research reports covering Ping An’s Hong Kong IPO and Cathay Financial’s acquisition of United Bank.
As a Spanish and Portuguese speaker with previous experience working with FPK, I was hired following my Masters degree to help launch the Latin American research product, initiating coverage of seven banks in Brazil, Mexico and Argentina, and writing a report on the Brazilian insurance industry.