Biographies

Bassam Aburdene is the Chairman of Capital Trust S.A. and CEO and a director of Capital Trust Limited. Mr Aburdene has in excess of 30 years of experience in investing and managing companies in the United States, Europe, the Middle East and North Africa. Prior to the Group’s formation in 1985, Mr Aburdene was General Manager of the Aggad Investment Company in Riyadh, where he was responsible for managing the company’s investments, which included mergers and acquisitions, corporate finance, and principal investment activities. From 1974 to 1979, Mr Aburdene was an investment manager with the Industrial Bank of Kuwait. He received an M.A. from Johns Hopkins University and a B.A. from the University of Connecticut.

John P. Oswald is the President and CEO of Capital Trust S.A. and the President and CEO of C.T. Capital International, Inc. Mr Oswald advises the Group’s U.S. operations which include private equity and real estate. Mr Oswald acts as CEO or board member of several portfolio companies and advises on the structuring and acts as client representative in numerous high profile transactions. Prior to 1992, Mr Oswald was a partner at the international law firm Lord, Day & Lord. His practice was involved in mergers and acquisitions transactions, cross-border financing, tax and real estate matters. Mr Oswald began his career as a Certified Public Accountant with Arthur Andersen & Co., where he specialised in real estate. He is a graduate of the New York University School of Law (L.L.M.) and Brooklyn Law School (J.D.).

George Shweiry is the Director responsible for the Group ’s European private equity and mezzanine debt investments. He has also led the fund raising effort for the Group’s real estate, private equity and mezzanine debt funds as well as numerous stand alone investments. Mr Shweiry works, in an advisory capacity, with EuroMena fund management team and certain corporate joint ventures in the U.S. Prior to joining the Group in 1994, he worked for Robert Fleming Group and Shaw & Co (Accountants). Mr Shweiry is a graduate of the American University of Beirut (Bachelor of Business Administration, with distinction).

Olga Aburdene is a Director of Capital Trust Limited. Ms Aburdene is co-Fund Manager of the Group's European private equity and mezzanine debt funds and a member of the EuroMena fund management team. She also assists in the execution and follow up of the Group's US investments. Her role includes deal sourcing, analysis and execution. Prior to joining the Group in 2002, Ms Aburdene worked at Barclays Capital as a corporate finance analyst on the “Balance Sheet Advisory” team, providing corporate finance and strategic advice to European banks and insurance companies. Previously, she had worked at Linnco Europe, a financial brokerage firm. Ms Aburdene holds a B.Sc. in Management from King’s College London.

Romen Mathieu is the Managing Director of EuroMena. He has more than 14 years experience in corporate transactions and advising family owned businesses, covering Europe and the MENA region. He headed Ernst &Young’s MENA desk in France and was a Partner of Ernst &Young Corporate Finance (EYCF) and M&A in France. Prior to EYCF’s formation, Mr Mathieu worked with Lazard frères, in the M&A and financial affairs team. From 1996 to 1998, he headed the credit department of Banque Saradar in Lebanon and was a member of the bank’s credit committee. He began his career with Arthur Andersen, in its corporate restructuring and corporate finance division in France. Mr. Mathieu holds two post-graduate degrees in Finance (DESS and Magistère) and a Master’s degree in Management from the Sorbonne University.

Gilles de Clerck is a Senior Manager of EuroMena. He has more than 14 years experience in strategy and finance, of which more than 6 years were spent in the MENA region with Booz Allen & Hamilton in the restructuring and privatisation programs. He worked in France as a Senior Manager with Vertone, a strategy & management consulting firm. Prior to joining Booz Allen, he worked with L’Oreal in the UAE as an Area Manager and with Price Waterhouse as an auditor. Mr de Clerck holds a graduate degree from the ESSEC School of Management (Paris) and a Bachelor degree in Commerce from the McGill University (Canada).

Brian Hammond is the Group Chief Financial Officer. His responsibilities include financial reporting and compliance for the various Group companies, funds and portfolio investments. Prior to joining Capital Trust Limited in 2003, Mr Hammond worked as an auditor at Jeffreys Henry (Chartered Accountants), where he passed his Chartered Accountancy exams. Previously, Mr Hammond worked at Palamon Capital Partners, a private equity firm based in London. Mr Hammond holds a BEng in Mechanical Engineering from Imperial College, London, and a MSc in Finance from the University of Leicester.

Finola Reynolds is Human Resources Manager for Capital Trust Ltd and Company Secretary for Capital Trust Limited. Her responsibilities also include real estate administration and fund management. Ms Reynolds joined Capital Trust Group in 1993 and has worked with the real estate team since 1996. Ms Reynolds is an Associate of the Chartered Institute of Personnel Development.

Karim Burhani is an investment officer of EuroMena.  He has three years of experience in Corporate Finance and Consulting.  Prior to joining the fund, he worked in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia as a Financial Analyst at Horwath International.  Mr Burhani holds a B.Sc in Banking and Finance and he is a CFA Charter holder.

Rachid Hanna is an investment officer of EuroMena.  He has three years experience in strategy and finance.  Prior to joining the Group in 2007, Mr Hanna was a strategy and management consultant within the Deloitte Middle East practice.  Previously, he held the position of financial analyst in ECE Consultants.  Mr Hanna holds a Master’s degree in Economics from Concordia University (Canada) and a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from the American University of Beirut.

Rita Mahfouz is an investment officer of EuroMena.  She joined the Group in 2007 and is involved in all aspects of the EuroMena Fund (Financial, legal and negotiations) and supports the investment process and portfolio companies’ management.  Ms Mahfouz is a graduate from the American University of Beirut (Bachelor of Business Administration). She is currently in the process of finishing her master’s degree in financial economics.