Speakers

Stéphane Blanchoz is Client Solutions Manager, Head of Alternative Solutions since November 2022. He is based in Paris.
He was previously in charge of the SME Alternative Financing business, lending to SMEs in the UK, Netherlands and Germany, and focusing on origination, credit assessment and scalability of management processes. He was appointed to his role in November 2017, having previously headed BNP Paribas Asset Management’s Alternative Debt Management investment teams. As Chief Investment Officer (CIO) of Alternative Fixed Income (later renamed Alternative Debt Management) from 2010, he was responsible for defining and piloting the management process and the investment strategy implemented by the management team. He actively participated in designing and developing the product range with several innovative debt funds (including capital guaranteed and inflation-adjusted funds), structured credit and private debt strategies (CLO, SME Debt).

Stéphane joined BNPP AM’s fixed income team in 2004 as Product Manager and Head of Fixed Income Solutions, after four years as an auditor in the Group’s ‘Inspection Générale’ department. He joined Banque Nationale de Paris in 1997 (prior to its merger with Paribas in 2000) as a risk manager in Tokyo, having previously held the same role at Pechiney, where he began his career in 1994 in the finance department in Sydney.

Cassandra is enthusiastic about financial services, with more than 20 years industry experience. Cassandra sees finance as a way to improve our communities, promoting financial wellness and stronger retirement outcomes.

Cassandra is vice president of T. Rowe Price Group, Inc., and T. Rowe Price Australia Limited, a premier global investment management firm. Cassandra is a member of the firm’s Asia-Pacific leadership team and heads the consultant function.

Cassandra values giving back to the industry and currently serves as co-chair of the Chartered Financial Analyst® (CFA) Society Australia Member Council as well as chair of the CFA Society Australia Investment Forum, after serving as a board director of the CFA Society Sydney for 7 years. Cassandra is also an executive founding member of the Bloomberg Women’s Buy Side Network for Australia and New Zealand aiming to inspire the next generation of investment leaders.

Cassandra is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, a CFA charterholder, holds the CFA Institute Certificate in ESG Investing and the recipient of a degree in economics from the University of Tasmania. Cassandra was named in the Top 100 Australian Professionals 2020 list for her contribution to financial services.

Chartered Financial Analyst® and CFA® are registered trademarks owned by CFA Institute.

Stuart Eliot leads AMP Investments’ Portfolio Design & Management team, overseeing strategic and dynamic asset allocation across around $80 billion in assets. Since joining AMP in 2022, Stuart has redefined the firm’s Dynamic Asset Allocation program, focussing on a robust risk framework and a signal-driven investment approach which includes AMP’s historic bitcoin allocation.

Stuart is a director of NMMT Limited, sits on the AMPI Investment Committee, chairs several sub-committees, and acts as investment adviser to the AMP Foundation Board.
Prior to AMP, Stuart held senior roles at Pendal Group and leading investment banks, with a strong focus on multi-asset investing and responsible investment strategies. He holds a Bachelor of Commerce (Actuarial Studies) from Macquarie University.

Jarrad was previously a Founder and Director of Accord Property, a national property development and funds management company specialising in development of small to mid-scale commercial projects. Prior to this, Jarrad was the National Operations Manager - Building Projects for ASX listed Programmed Ltd where his was responsible for 40 commercial builders across Australia and New Zealand and also worked as a Valuer with the South Australian Department of Planning, Transport and Infrastructure (DPTI).
Jarrad is Chair of Amulet Property, a Non-Executive Director of Helping Hand Aged Care and Board advisor to Haigh’s Chocolates.

Marc Jocum is a Senior Product & Investment Strategist at Global X ETFs Australia. He is responsible for investment research and ETF analysis to facilitate market insights, product development, investment strategy and portfolio construction. Marc has over a decade experience in the industry, of experience in the industry, previously working at Stockspot, Morgan Stanley, AMP and KPMG. Marc holds a Bachelor of Business from the University of Technology, Sydney (UTS), a Diploma of Financial Planning, and has completed CFA Level 1.

Hugh is an Investment Strategist at Betashares supporting distribution channels and assisting clients with portfolio construction across all asset classes. Prior to joining Betashares, Hugh was an Investment Analyst at Lonsec covering active equity managers and was an Investment Solutions Consultant at Pinnacle Investment Management on their distribution team. Hugh holds a Bachelor of Commerce and Economics degree from the University of New South Wales and is also a CFA® Charterholder.

Andrew Lockhart is the CEO and one of the four founders and Managing Partners who form the Investment Committee at Metrics Credit Partners. Andrew has more than 37 years’ banking, funds management and financial markets experience specialising in leverage and acquisition finance as well as corporate and institutional lending. Andrew’s considerable experience includes being responsible for the origination and portfolio risk management of large, diversified and complex loan portfolios including corporate restructurings. Andrew holds a Bachelor of Business and Masters of Business Administration from the Queensland University of Technology.

Clive is a Senior Strategist with State Street Investment Management covering Australia. He is responsible for engaging with clients to interpret their objectives and design appropriate portfolio solutions. Clive and the APAC Investment Strategy and Research team conduct research on asset allocation trends, making recommendations on potential enhancements at the total portfolio, asset class or sub-portfolio level. Clive also works on customized research and analysis for clients.

Previously Clive was at QBE where he was most recently Manager of Investment Strategy. This involved translating research into strategic and tactical asset allocation recommendations for a global multi-currency investment portfolio. He began his time with QBE as an Actuarial Analyst, before being promoted to Investment Risk Analyst. Prior to QBE, Clive was a Research Consultant AquilaExec and a Superannuation Business Analyst at BT Financial Group.

Clive is a CFA Charterholder. He holds a Master of Actuarial Studies from the University of New South Wales and a BSc (Actuarial Science) from Curtin University.

Andrew McAuley is Managing Director, UBS Global Wealth Management. Andrew has been part of the Australian investment team for 18 years. He is responsible for developing, articulating and delivering investment strategies across multi asset class portfolios for clients in Australia. He leads the investment team that advises clients on the best solutions to achieve their financial goals.
 
Andrew has been investing on behalf of clients for over 28 years and was the founder of the UBS Discretionary Portfolio Management service in Australia, which has consistently delivered strong performance for clients. The Discretionary service has grown from zero to a multi billion dollar portfolio of client assets. He has managed single and multi-asset class portfolios for major superannuation funds, institutions, ultra-high net worth individuals, not for profits and private clients.
 
Andrew is a Chartered Accountant. He holds an Economics degree from the University of Sydney and a Graduate Diploma in Applied Finance and Investment from the Finance and Securities Institute of Australia.

Dr Michael McCorry is BlackRock Australia's Chief Investment Officer and a member of BlackRock Australia's Board. In his prior roles, Dr McCorry led research and portfolio management teams across Equities, Fixed Income, and Global Macro for BlackRock and, prior, Barclays Global Investors. Dr McCorry also has over 24 years of experience in hedge funds, having been Lead Portfolio Manager and/or Lead Researcher for a broad range of hedge fund strategies including Equity Market Neutral,  Global Macro, and Fund of Hedge Funds. In 2004, Dr McCorry established BlackRock’s global flagship fund of fund which now carries a 20 year track record. Dr McCorry continues to be the Lead PM for that strategy which has expanded to include commingled funds, daily liquid alternatives and custom solutions. Dr McCorry earned a PhD in Finance from the University of Memphis before moving to Australia in 1994.

Andrew Co-founded Remara, a Sydney based investment firm managing A$2.6bn across real estate, credit and tactical investments. Prior to commencing Remara, Andrew held multiple positions within Brookfield Asset Management across its Australian and Asian Platforms. Andrew most recently held the position of CFO Asia-Pacific covering Financial Leadership of both Brookfield Property, Private Equity Group and Brookfield’s Corporate Operations for Asia-Pacific. This followed previous roles covering Group Finance, External Investments, Infrastructure and Commercial Properties. Prior to joining Brookfield, Andrew gained experience in Audit, Corporate Taxation, Corporate Finance and Business Services within Industry.

Andrew currently holds a Bachelor of Business in Accounting and a Graduate Diploma in Finance. He has served on the CFO Round-table and the National Accounting Round-table for the Property Council of Australia, while also serving as a Steering Committee member for the Bachelor of Accounting Scholarship course at The University of Technology Sydney. Andrew also served as a board member of the Cronulla Sharks Football and Leagues Club, holding the roles of Chair of the Audit, Risk and Compliance Sub-Committee and the Property Sub-Committee.

Ashmi Mehrotra, managing director, joined the Private Equity Group in 2003. She is Global Co-Head of the Private Equity Group within JPMorgan Asset Management, managing $32 billion in private equity investments on behalf of institutional and private investors. The business comprises a global team (based in New York, London, Hong Kong, Mumbai) which invests in primaries, co-investments, and secondary investments across industry and stage. The Private Equity Group manages a range of diversified commingled funds and separate accounts primarily focused on venture capital, growth equity and buyout investments.

Ashmi serves on several venture capital and buyout fund advisory committees and is a board observer on several co-investments. She also serves on the Investment Committee for the Funds managed by Beijing Equity Investment Development Management Co. Ltd. Prior to joining the Private Equity Group, Ashmi was an investment analyst for the J.P. Morgan Private Bank, where she focused on investment portfolios for high net worth clients. An employee of the firm since 1999, Ashmi also worked in J.P. Morgan's Internal Consulting Group, where she was responsible for Six Sigma projects and process improvement initiatives. Ashmi serves on the Board of Trustees of Trinity School in New York City and is a member of its investment and finance committees. She earned her BA in Economics, International Relations and Spanish from Tufts University.

Diana joined AMP in 2016 within the AMP Investments team. Diana’s responsibilities include providing global economic and macro investment analysis to retail, institutional and internal customers through her regular reports and presentations. Diana regularly presents AMP’s macro views across various media outlets. Diana also contributes to the asset allocation decisions of the AMP multi-asset funds.

Previously, Diana worked at the Commonwealth Bank of Australia as an economist. Diana holds a Bachelor of Commerce/Economics and has a Master of Finance (in funds management), both from the University of New South Wales.

Diana is a believer that economics should and can be understood by everyone, because it improves your financial literacy. And being more financially literate helps you to build your wealth. Diana is helping to build Australian financial literacy through her Econosights videos alongside her team, which explain economic concepts in short, digestible forms that are humorous and easy to understand.

Denis Orrock is a seasoned executive with over two decades of leadership experience across financial markets, capital markets infrastructure, and fintech innovation. Currently serving as Chief Strategy Officer at Praemium Ltd since November 2022, Denis leads strategic initiatives across the firm’s distribution, marketing, and corporate development functions, helping shape the company’s growth trajectory in the wealth management technology space.

Prior to joining Praemium, Denis was a Partner at Elixirr, a global consultancy, where he advised clients on digital transformation and strategic growth. He also held the role of Head of Capital Markets at FNZ Group, where he oversaw the integration of GBST’s capital markets business following its acquisition.

Denis’s tenure at GBST spanned nearly 14 years, where he held multiple senior roles including Regional Head for Asia Pacific and Chief Executive of GBST Broker Services. His leadership was instrumental in expanding GBST’s footprint and capabilities across the region.
Earlier in his career, Denis served as General Manager and Executive Director at InfoChoice Limited, where he played a key role in digital product development and market strategy.

Denis is known for his deep expertise in financial technology, strategic partnerships, and capital markets operations. He is a frequent contributor to industry panels and internal leadership forums, and continues to drive innovation and client-centric transformation at Praemium.

Claire Smith is Head of Business Development Australia, Private Markets, Schroders Capital. In this role Claire works closely with institutional, family office and intermediary clients, helping them understand how private assets may help them meet their investment goals. Claire joined Schroders in their London office in 2017, before relocating to Sydney in 2020. Prior to Schroders, Claire was an Associate Director for Macquarie’s infrastructure debt business based in London. Prior to that, Claire spent over a decade at Macquarie in Sydney and held a number of fund management, structured product and structured finance roles.

Claire holds a Bachelor of Economics from Macquarie University.

Dr. Marina Yue Zhang is an Associate Professor at the Australia-China Relations Institute, University of Technology Sydney (UTS: ACRI). She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Biological Sciences from Peking University, China, and an MBA and PhD in Innovation Studies from the Australian National University. Dr. Zhang is the author of three books, including Demystifying China's Innovation Machine: Chaotic Order, co-authored with Mark Dodgson and David Gann (Oxford University Press, 2022).

Her research focuses on innovation policy, strategic technologies like AI, semiconductors, critical minerals and biotechnology, and their intersections with geopolitics. Dr. Zhang’s work has been widely featured in media outlets such as the CNN, BBC, Bloomberg TV, ABC, and CNA, and her research has been cited in leading publications including Science, Nature, The New York Times, The Washington Post, and the Australian Financial Review, among others.

Mike Zimmerman is one of the Founding Partners at Main Sequence, a deep tech venture capital firm backing companies to solve our greatest Planetary Challenges with breakthrough Australian research. MSV manages just over $1B AUM with 70+ portfolio companies.  Prior to Main Sequence, he spent more than 20 years as a founder, executive and investor in Australia and the US, and worked with Bain & Company and Goldman Sachs.  Mike is also a Director of the Australian Investment Council, and Board Member of the Stanford University Business School Fund. He holds an MBA from Stanford University and a BA with honours from Amherst College.

With a career spanning over twenty-five years in the financial services industry, Cameron’s experience covers a number of business areas including: Capital Markets; Product Development; and Distribution. Cameron has held senior positions in global firms including eight years with Macquarie Bank where he was the National Sales Manager and prior to that Australian Unity Investments. His background aligns with Federation’s focus areas having experience in Private and Public markets across all major sectors.