CERNO TEAM

Service is core to Cerno culture
Consistent, Responsive, Diligent.

Nicholas Hornby

Managing Partner – Portfolio Manager

 

Nicholas is a co-founder of Cerno Capital and lead manages several of the firm’s client portfolios. His investment career began at Cazenove & Co in 1990, where he was a research analyst based in Hong Kong and then Singapore. In 1995, he joined CLSA in London and was responsible for the institutional business across the UK and Europe. Nicholas is deputy chair of the Board of Governors of Downe House School. He is a trustee for the Barn Theatre, Cirencester, and for various UK families, including the Cecil Estate Family Trust. He is also Chairman of The Ashendene Trust, a UK charity. Nicholas is an Economics graduate of Bristol University and an Associate of the Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment.

JAMES SPENCE

Managing Partner – Portfolio Manager

 

James is a co-founder of Cerno Capital and lead manages a number of the firm’s collective and private portfolios. After qualifying as a chartered accountant in London (Coopers & Lybrand, 1989) he relocated to Asia. Between 1991 and 2004 he worked as an equity analyst, head of research, and latterly as an equity strategist at WI Carr, Paribas, HSBC and UBS, based variously in Hong Kong, Singapore and Jakarta. James graduated from the University of St Andrews, Scotland with an MA in Philosophy & Logic in 1986. James is a Member of the Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment.

Fergus Shaw

Partner – Portfolio Manager

 

Fergus surveys the full range of the firm’s investments on a bottom up basis and is principally engaged in manager and security selection. He began his investment career at Valu-Trac Investment Management in 1995, where he worked in their global equity and asset allocation products. He worked for Russell Investments as a Portfolio Manager of UK equities (2001-2006) and Asian equities (2006-2009). Fergus graduated from Edinburgh University with a BCom (Hons), holds the CFA charter and is a member of the CFA Society of the UK. Fergus is a Director of the Salters’ Management Company.

James Cave

Private Client Director

 

James read Classics at Oxford University prior to spending his entire working life in the wealth management industry. After 15 years at Lazard Brothers managing unit trusts, offshore funds and private client portfolios, he founded Thornhill Investment Management, a private client asset management firm, in 1984. He continued there until 2007, when he established Salisbury Partners (later Alvarium Investment Managers (UK) LLP), a multi-family office based in Mayfair, where he was Managing Partner. James was also a director of the Rank Foundation from 2000 to 2015 and Chairman of its Finance Committee from 2009 to 2014, as well as being a director of Lazard World Trust Fund from 2008 to 2019. He joined Cerno Capital Partners in 2023 through its acquisition of Alvarium Investment Managers and continues to specialise in managing the wealth of individuals, families and charities.

Chris Richards

Director – Private Clients

 

Chris joined Cerno Capital as a Director of the private client team with over 20 years of experience in finance. He focuses on managing the wealth of individuals and families in the UK. Chris’s appointment followed the acquisition of Alvarium Investment Managers, where he was a Partner and Director of the International Wealth Management business. Prior to this, Chris was a Senior Private Banker in the London office of Kleinwort Hambros and a Private Banker in the High-Net-Worth team of Barclays Wealth and Investment Management. He holds the Investment Advice Diploma and is an Associate member of the Chartered Institute for Securities and Investment.

Tom Milnes Cerno Capital

TOM MILNES

Business Development Director

 

Tom joined Cerno Capital to help with the firm’s intermediary client relationships. Before joining Cerno, Tom was Business Development Director at Investec Wealth & Investment, where he was responsible for intermediary relationships in London. Prior to this, he had roles in investment sales at LV Asset Management and Rathbones. Tom also spent five years at BAE Systems previous to his career in finance, spending some of that time as a lobbyist in Washington DC. Tom graduated with an MA (Hons) from the University of Edinburgh in 2001, holds a Licence d’Histoire from the Université Grenoble Alpes and is an Associate member of the CISI.

Edward Bonsor

Private Client Director

 

Edward has over 20 years’ experience in the financial sector and is a Director of the client team at Cerno Capital with a focus on private individuals and families. He joined Asian broker CLSA as their first graduate trainee in London in 1999, before moving out with the company to Asia to work as an equity salesperson in Hong Kong and Tokyo. He moved back to London with Nomura in 2007, before founding a hedge fund business in Zurich. In 2011, he moved to Jefferies International in London to establish and manage their Asia Pacific equities research distribution across Europe. Edward studied at Bristol University where he graduated with a degree in Human Geography (BSc).

James Chenevix-Trench

Investment Associate

 

James has 5 years’ experience working on venture capital investments. In his role at Cerno Capital, he assesses emerging economics in new industries. Working alongside the private client and investment teams, he gathers information, interviews entrepreneurs and studies the growth prospects of new and potentially disruptive sectors. Projects undertaken to date include blockchain and space related investments.

KATIE DODD

Marketing Manager

 

Katie is responsible for the firm’s marketing strategy. As part of this role she coordinates public relations and communications and is responsible for the firm’s visual identity and livery. She works alongside the front office on existing and prospective investor contact, including all aspects of the firm’s relationships with intermediaries. Katie manages the firm’s outreach programme which helps UK women athletes, explorers and adventurers and promotes participation and inclusion. Katie previously worked at Savills, and holds an MA in Art History from the University of St Andrews. Katie is a member of the Chartered Institute of Marketing.

Camelia Joel-Davison

Client Management & Business Development Support

 

Working within the Client Management and Business Development functions of the firm, Camelia has a particular focus on client onboarding, suitability reviews and all aspects of client relations. Camelia graduated from the University of Exeter in 2022 having completed a BA in Liberal Arts majoring in Politics and minoring in Geography and Business. She previously worked for a property investment company. Camelia will undertake her Chartered Institute for Securities and Investment level 3 Investment Operations Certificate in July 2023.

Joseph Joyce

Finance Director

 

Joseph is the firm’s Finance Director with responsibility for the financial infrastructure of the firm and managing key counterparty relationships. Previously, Joseph worked for the Banking and Capital markets team at Ernst and Young LLP, primarily working on the statutory audits of a range of global entities. Joseph graduated from Durham University in 2009 with a BSc in Mathematics and Physics. He then joined Chantrey Vellacott DFK, where he trained and qualified as a Chartered Accountant (ACA).

Shivani Solanki

Financial Controller

 

Shivani has been appointed as the firm’s Financial Controller. She works within the firm’s finance function and oversees and manages counterparty relationships. Previously, Shivani worked in the Audit Asset Management team at Mazars LLP in London, as an Assistant Manager. She is a qualified Chartered Accountant (ACA), having completed her qualification at Mazars LLP. Shivani graduated from Loughborough University in 2019 with a BSc (Hons) in Accounting and Financial Management. She also completed a Year in Industry as part of her degree, at Dyson, where she worked as a Management Accountant.

Michael Flitton

Portfolio Manager

 

Michael began his investment career at GLG Partners, the hedge fund, in 2006 where he focused on the Basic Materials and Industrials sectors. He worked as an equity research analyst at Citi (2011-2017), initially covering Mining & Steel (2011-2015) and latterly European Chemicals (2016-2017). Michael graduated from the University of Nottingham with an BA (Hons) in Industrial Economics.

Fay Ren

Portfolio Manager

 

Fay Ren works within the investment group and has specific responsibility for quantitative measurement of sector, style, portfolio and asset class returns. She undertakes asset class studies and coordinates the firm’s top-down symposia at which asset class settings are determined. She also undertakes security analysis in conjunction with the Portfolio Managers. Fay joined the firm from Imperial College London where she completed a BSc in Mathematics and a Masters in Applied Mathematics.

Ion Sioras

Investment Analyst

 

Ion is an investment analyst and supports the portfolio team on implementation and consistency on individual portfolio and the strategy levels. His work is across all the firm’s strategies with a focus on the macro component and non-equity classes. Ion joined the firm after internships at Credit Suisse and Bank of America Merrill Lynch in London. Previous to that he had completed internships at Cerno Capital and other asset-management institutions. Ion holds a BSc (Hons) in Statistics & Finance from the London School of Economics.

Oscar Mackereth

Investment Analyst

 

Oscar works across all the firm’s strategies and is principally engaged in security analysis and manager due diligence. Oscar’s first degree was Anthropology and History where he obtained a 1st from the University of Sussex. He then completed an MSc in International Finance and MSc in Finance at the Hult International Business School before joining Cerno Capital. In his role, he helps incorporate all relevant aspects of ESG and the climate crisis into our investment thinking and investment management.

Jeny Zhu

Head of China Investment & Senior Accountant

 

Jeny heads the China desk that provides investment services for Chinese nationals in the UK. She is also responsible for portfolio valuation, fund accounting and all aspects of client reporting. Previously, Jeny worked at MGPA, a private equity investment advisory company, as an investment accountant and at PricewaterhouseCoopers in London. Jeny holds an MA in Mathematics and Statistics from St. Hilda’s College, Oxford. She is a qualified Chartered Accountant (ACCA) and a Member of the Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment.

Hashim Mustafa

Senior Accountant

 

Hashim is principally engaged with client reporting and trade flow processing between the Portfolio Managers and client or fund custodians. Hashim previously worked for Saxon Capital, an algorithmic trading company, as a Management Accountant and before this he worked for two international banks, Renaissance Capital and ICICI. Hashim graduated with a BSc from University College London in 2006 in Geography and Economics, and is a qualified Chartered Accountant (ACCA).

Clinton Lionnet

Fund Accountant

 

Clinton is primarily focused on the operational management of private client portfolios. Working closely with custodians and fund managers, he is responsible for portfolio administration, trade processing and consolidating reporting. Clinton joined Cerno in 2023 following its acquisition of Alvarium Investment Managers (UK) LLP, where he was a Vice President of AlTi International Wealth Management. Clinton has worked alongside James Cave since 2007, prior to which he worked for Barclays Bank.

Harriet Winfield

Office Manager

 

Harriet is responsible for the office and the firm’s general daily administration. She is the first line of contact for general enquiries and assists in the organisation of firm events. Harriet joined Cerno Capital in May 2023 with experience working across the residential property industry. Harriet completed a BA in Business Management from the Royal Agricultural University, Cirencester.

Adam Hawkins

IT

 

Adam is responsible for Cerno Capital’s Information Technology strategy, Web and Communication systems and implements technology to benefit the business and its clients. Adam previously worked for Clyde & Co LLP as their in-house Legal Web Specialist, The Chartered Institute of Personnel & Development as the Website Software & Infrastructure Analyst and The Royal Academy of Engineering as the IT & Web Officer. Adam graduated from The University of Kent in 2006 with a BSc (Hons) In Multimedia Technology and Design with additional modules in Business.