0100 Conference CEE 2024

Petr is an Investment Director at Schroders Capital covering private equity secondary investment activities in Europe, with a focus on lower mid-market GP-led transactions. Before joining Schroders Capital in 2017, Petr spent 4 years at Montana Capital Partners where he was an Associate conducting due diligence on secondary opportunities globally. Petr holds a Master degree in Quantitative Economics and Finance from University of St. Gallen, Switzerland.

Executive Partner of the leading €165mn PE fund in the Baltics INVL Baltic Sea Growth Fund managed by the leading asset management group in the Baltics – Invalda INVL, active since 1991. Currently serves as deputy chairperson of the largest environmental management group’s AS Eco Baltia supervisory board and chairperson of supervisory board of its subsidiary AS PET Baltija. Before joining INVL was one of the leading M&A experts in Lithuania with extensive experience in transaction structuring and negotiations, who advised local and international clients on deals with the combined value of almost €2 billion. Deimante enjoys travelling, reading and doing sports (kitesurfing, snowboarding and running) in her free time.

Dominic joined AVP in 2017, focuses on fund investing, and is based in London. Prior to AVP, Dominic was a Vice President at Adams Street Partners in the Global Primary Investment team based in London. Dominic gained extensive experience evaluating funds ranging from technology and life sciences venture capital, growth capital and buyout funds, as well as monitoring investments as a member of Advisory Boards. Before that, Dominic worked at EY in their Financial Services Business Modelling team where he worked on transactions in the banking and asset management sub-sectors. Dominic is a Chartered Accountant with the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland. He holds a First Class degree in Accounting, Auditing & Finance from Lancaster University Management School.

Catherine serves as Managing Director at ACA Ltd, a single family office, for the past 16 years. She manages the family’s portfolio construction. She has advised on mergers & acquisitions, allocations in venture capital, private equity and long short hedge funds. Her advisory projects include: Projects of Energy Investments Corp (Panama), Sands China, Ltd. (Macau), Frontier Resource Group (then privately held, now listed on SEHK), Starr International Co. Inc. (Asia), Dragon Capital Group (Vietnam), Vision Investment Management (Hong Kong) in strategic developments and Equinox Group (Nigeria). She has served as a member and observer on various boards of the family’s portfolio concerns, and has been seconded time to time to various organizations in special situations: She was Special Advisor to the Chairman of Equinox Group, a Nigerian based resource and real estate corporation on in bound investment projects; Special Advisor to the CEO of Sands China, Ltd., Special Advisor to the Deputy CEO of UC Rusal during their dual listing on the Securities Exchange of Hong Kong and NYSE-Euronext Paris Exchange, and Autorité des Marchés Financiers building out their compliance and institutional investor and retail programs; and Executive Advisor to the Chairman at Prudential Corporation Asia she advised on the proposed acquisition of $1.3Bn AIG Global Investments Asia Real Estate Fund portfolio. Catherine holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of California, Berkeley, in political science with minor in biochemistry, and Juris Doctor from Georgetown University Law Center with election to The Tax Lawyer as Associate Editor. Catherine is admitted to the New York State Supreme Court’s Appellate Division, First Department, and U.S. Federal District Court for the Southern District of New York and the State Bar of California.

Brian Wardrop has been originating, executing, monitoring and exiting private equity investments in Central and Eastern Europe since 1997. Mr. Wardrop is Managing Partner of ARX Equity Partners, which is a private equity firm with a 20-year track record supporting the growth and development of mid-sized companies in select Central European countries. With more than € 300 million raised in four funds, ARX has become a leading private equity firm in its segment in the Central European region. Prior to joining ARX, Mr. Wardrop was a Principal and Head of the Prague office with sector specialist private equity firm, Baring Communications Equity (Emerging Europe). Mr. Wardrop holds a Master’s degree from Boston University and a Bachelor’s degree from Bishop’s University. He is also a graduate of the Owner/President Program at Harvard Business School. Mr. Wardrop is also an active supporter of the non-profit social enterprise sector via his roles as a board member of NESst (a non-profit organization focused on developing sustainable social enterprises in emerging market economies) and as a member of the investment committee of Tilia Impact Ventures (the first fund in the Czech Republic investing in social enterprises).

Roland is Managing Partner at Cipio Partners (www.cipiopartners.com), a leading investment management and advisory firm for European Growth Capital & Minority Buy-Outs for Technology Companies. Roland leads Cipio’s origination activities while serving on several company boards in Europe. He started his private equity career at 3i Group doing technology and mid-market buyout deals. Before 3i, Roland was a strategy consultant with Roland Berger and the Boston Consulting Group, as well as a robotics researcher with Hitachi Ltd. in Japan. He holds degrees from EPFL in Lausanne and the MIT Sloan School of Management in Cambridge, USA.

Henry is a member of the Alpha Associates Private Equity investment team and Investment Committee. He has been active in private markets investing since 1992. He is responsible for the due diligence, evaluation, execution and management of fund investments, secondary transactions and direct co-investments in Central & Eastern Europe and Russia/CIS and serves on a number of fund advisory boards in the region. Henry joined Alpha Associates in September 2008 from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), London. As Senior Banker at EBRD, he helped build EBRD’s private equity fund investment program into the largest in the CEE and CIS region and participated in several groundbreaking transactions in the region, including bank privatisations and turnarounds. In addition to his managerial and transactional responsibilities, he oversaw EBRD’s private equity performance data collection and analysis as well as the co-investment program between EBRD and its portfolio funds. Henry holds a B.A. and a M.Sc. from McGill University and the London School of Economics.

Barbara is actively involved in all aspects of portfolio management, including all investment due diligence and decision-making processes. Barbara joined Knightsbridge after spending more than twenty years as a venture capitalist, holding partner positions with both Charles River Ventures and Schroder Ventures. As General Partner of Charles River Ventures from 1986 to 1992, Barbara was responsible for a successful portfolio of health care, technology, and consumer companies and served on the board of several companies. From 1992 to 1999, she invested with a life sciences focus as a Partner of Schroder Ventures, co-founding the SV Life Sciences funds and serving on the boards of eight companies. From 2000 to 2006, she was President of Blackwood Capital, investing in and advising private and public companies. Barbara received an MBA with honors from Harvard Business School and holds a BS summa cum laude from Boston College where she graduated first in her class. She is a member of the Massachusetts Women's Forum, previously served on the board of the Koch Center for Cancer Research at MIT, and is involved with several non-profit entities.