Team
Investment Team
Alyx Wood
Chief Investment Officer
alyx@kernowam.com
Alyx is the Chief Investment Officer of Kernow Asset Management. He is responsible for trading and investment research.
Before Co-founding Kernow, Alyx worked as a Fund Manager at Downing LLP, Vice President at Deutsche Bank AG, and Management Consultant at KPMG LLP. He is a consultant for several family offices and has completed the Non-Executive Directors Programme (BVCA). Alyx is a Qualified Chartered Accountant (ICAS) and holds an Investment Management Certificate (CFA Institute) and a BA in Accounting and Economics.
Edward Hugo
Chief Executive Officer
edward@kernowam.com
Edward manages the company’s resources and executes Kernow’s strategy.
He began his career analysing technology and cleantech start-up businesses before starting his own company in the consulting sector.
Edward was previously the Head of Equity Research at boutique investment bank VSA Capital. He holds an MSc in Microsystems & Nanotechnology and a BSc in Mathematics & Artificial Intelligence.
Dr Michael Cook
Head of Data and Analytics
michael@kernowam.com
Having spent over a decade in investment teams spanning both systematic and fundamental investing, Mike has a wealth of experience in quantitative analysis, data science and investment operations.
Before joining Kernow, Michael worked within the Advantage team at Lazard Asset Management, focusing on equity research across all major global regions. Prior to this, he was a quantitative analyst at Man AHL, focusing principally on incorporating alternative data within systematic investment processes. Michael began his career in finance at Lloyds Banking Group, independently valuing exotic cross-asset derivatives.
He holds a PhD in Astrophysics from SISSA (Italy) and an MSci in Physics with Astronomy (first class honours) from the University of Nottingham.
Operations Team
Anil Joshi
Chief Operating Officer anil@kernowam.com
Anil Joshi is Chief Operating Officer. He runs Saffron Consulting Limited and has over 30 years of Hedge Fund, Banking and Accounting experience.
Previously, Anil was COO of Titan Capital Management, Portland Hill Capital and Old Lane London and CFO of Silver Ridge and COMAC Capital. Anil also ran Product, Financial Control and Operations teams at Morgan Stanley and Credit Suisse (London) and Deutsche Bank (Tokyo).
He qualified as a Chartered Accountant with PwC and has a First Class BSc in Banking and International Finance.
Gabriella Baber
Senior Compliance Consultant gabriella@lansdowneconsultancy.com
Gaby Baber is an independent Senior Compliance Consultant. She has over 15 years of compliance consultancy experience in asset management.
She founded Lansdowne Consultancy Limited in 2011 to provide bespoke and personalised compliance consultancy services.
Previously, she was a compliance consultant for Leale-Green Limited. She has an LLB Hons Degree in Law and was called to the Bar.
Fund Marketing
Dr Christina Makris
Advisor
christina@kernowam.com
Christina began her career as an academic in philosophy. She then moved into financial services, working with private clients, family offices and foundations to advise them on alternative investment strategies, private deals and philanthropy.
She enjoys putting abstract ideas and concepts into real-world applications. She is also involved in arts philanthropy as a Patron and art collector.
Formerly Director of Downing Private Office, Head of Client Development at Fry Capital Partners and Investment Adviser for a US Family Office. Christina holds an MA, MPhil, DPhil, the Investment Management Certificate, and BVCA ESG Certificate.
Alasdair Shaikh
Head of Investor Relations
alasdair@kernowam.com
Educated at Stowe School in Buckingham, Alasdair’s career has seen him involved in fundraising across the UK and US in both the private and political sectors. Before joining Kernow, Alasdair was a Director of Shaikh & Co, a Tonbridge-based Chartered Accountancy practice.
A huge cricket fan, he is Chairman of the Sussex Association of Cricket Officials and a former ECB National Panel of Umpires member. He chairs the Finance Committee for the Parish of Petworth and Midhurst. He is on the Ambassador’s Steering Committee for the Charity Mission – where he is involved in the fundraising efforts.
Alasdair has served on the Main and Wine Committee as a member of the East India Club in London.
Non-Executive Directors & Advisors
Krishnan Muthappan
Non-Executive Director
Krishnan is a Singaporean serial entrepreneur. He is passionate about building businesses and has successfully founded, managed and sold several in the agricultural, financial services, technology and recycling sectors in Singapore and abroad over the last two decades.
Most recently, Krishnan successfully exited his investment in remittance banking to a global provider of foreign exchange services and his agri-business in Papua New Guinea to the world’s biggest plantation group.
Krishnan is a board member of two Singapore Government Statutory Boards: the Singapore Food Agency (SFA) and the Hindu Endowment Board (HEB).
Before his own ventures, he worked in the Gulf and Singapore in management consulting, corporate finance, investment banking, and commodity trading. He holds a bachelor’s degree in commerce and is a qualified Chartered Accountant and a Cost and Management Accountant.
Neil Shillito
Non-Executive Director
Neil’s first career was as a Navigating Officer in the merchant navy, first as a Cadet with P&O Lines and then with Blue Star Line, mainly on refrigerated cargo vessels sailing worldwide. He qualified as a Master Mariner in 1982.
He joined a leading insurance company in 1986, advising individuals and corporates on pension schemes and investment planning. In 1996 he became a partner in an established independent practice.
In 2001 he founded SG Wealth Management Ltd based on the principles of complete openness and transparency and a culture of “clients come first”. The company grew to a business with 33 employees, two significant offices in East Anglia and managing £350m of client assets.
In 2015 Neil joined Downing LLP, managing his investment fund, which was launched in 2007. Alyx Wood was appointed co-manager of this fund and worked closely with Neil for three years until 2018.
Carol L’Heveder
Non-Executive Director
Carol is a corporate and financial services lawyer with over 30 years of international experience, notably at Linklaters, as European general counsel for Merrill Lynch private banking, head of legal EMEA for State Street and head of regulatory affairs at Invesco Asset Management.
She is currently a partner at Gunner Cooke LLP, advising investment firms and entrepreneurs on FCA regulatory and conduct matters, corporate governance and senior management responsibility.
She is also a non-executive director and is currently the shareholder representative on the board of Flarin Holdings Limited, which is part of Infirst Healthcare, an OTC pharmaceutical group based in the UK and the US.
Graham Smith
Independent Advisor
Graham has been a professional trader for over 25 years and is currently Head of Execution at investment bank Liberum.
Graham joined Dillon Read as a graduate in 1996 before moving to Salomon Brothers a year later as a specialist Scandinavian and French Trader. He started the TMT sector pitch at Salomon Smith Barney, later to become Citigroup, where he was promoted to Managing Director, running the Pan-European and UK Mid Cap cash trading teams.
After Citi, he became Global Head of Cash Equity Trading at Unicredit, running the Trading and Sales Trading teams until 2012. Graham then moved onto the buy side to work for Trafalgar Capital in London.