Breakfast Briefing | Fund Valuation After Brexit

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, London, Tuesday December 4th 2018

Voltaire Advisors is hosting a Breakfast Briefing in December 2018 looking at investment fund valuation post-Brexit. This event will provide an update on the likely regulatory landscape post Brexit, followed by a series of expert presentations looking at best practices for fund valuation standards in the post-Brexit era.

The Briefing will discuss what valuation standards and challenges UK fund managers are likely to face after Brexit - both globally and locally - and what best practices will prevail in this new environment.

Delegates will include COO's, CFO's, CCO's and Heads of Operations at both private and traditional mutual funds.

Agenda

• The Fund Regulatory Landscape Post-Brexit | Lisa Cawley, Kirkland & Ellis
• Global Fund Valuation Standards | Ben Elder, RICS
• Current Challenges in Fund Valuation | Simon Jones, BDO
• Illiquid Credit Valuations | Darragh Mooney, Corvid Partners
• Common Mistakes in Portfolio Valuation | Ryan McNelley, Duff & Phelps

Speakers ...

Lisa Cawley, Partner, Kirkland & Ellis LLP

Lisa Cawley has extensive experience in financial services regulation, gained over more than 20 years. She is recognised in Chambers, which has described her as an "oasis in the desert" when it comes to FCA regulation, and also “very precise and commercial” on AIFMD matters. It distinguishes her team as “the go-to source of counsel on the mutable regulatory landscape”.

She is also recognised in Who’s Who Legal: Private Funds and The Legal 500, where she is described as a “master at all things regulatory in Europe” who “knows how to address the regulatory complexities that have come out of the financial crisis”. In the IFLR1000 it is noted that “she is extremely knowledgeable and efficient. A fantastic attorney with extensive knowledge of the law and practical implications of the regulatory environment”.

Lisa speaks, comments and writes regularly on regulatory matters and is an acknowledged authority in her field.

Ben Elder, Global Director of Valuation, RICS

Ben is responsible for delivery of the RICS Global Valuation Strategy which has a key role to play in securing global financial stability through participation by the RICS in the development and application of International Valuation Standards. Ben is well qualified for this role as an Economist and a Chartered Surveyor and he has a particular interest is the interface of the economy and property markets.

Ben’s has been a practising valuer and respected academic holding senior positions at Nottingham Trent University and The College of Estate Management. Ben joined the RICS as Global Director of Valuation in 2011 having served on various RICS Boards including International Governing Council as an elected World Representative.

In recognition of Ben’s expertise in 2016 he was selected to Chair the IVSC Tangible Assets Standards Board and be a member of the overarching IVSC Standards Board. This appointment follows influential periods as a member of the Global Advisory Forum for The Appraisal Foundation in the USA as well as the Advisory Forum Executive to the International Valuation Standards Council.

Simon Jones, Partner, BDO LLP

Simon is a Partner in the London Valuation Practice of BDO. He specialises in share valuations, business valuations, intangible asset valuations, intellectual property valuations and impairment reviews.

His experience includes valuations and valuation advice for restructuring, tax, purchase price allocation (IFRS 3), goodwill impairment (IAS 36) and other financial reporting related valuation services, together with valuations under Section 597 of the 2006 Companies Act and commercial valuations for M&A or dispute resolution purposes.

Simon’s industry experience includes the consumer, retail, travel, leisure and media sectors, as well as aerospace and defence, oil and gas services and financial services. Simon is a CFA charterholder and is a committee member for the ICAEWs valuation community.

Darragh Mooney, Co-Founder, Corvid Partners

Darragh is one of the co-founders of Corvid Partners Ltd, an independent illiquid credit valuation firm. He has more than 20 years of experience in trading, marketing and structuring illiquid fixed income securities. He has worked on both sides of the capital markets fence, managing a €4 billion credit portfolio for a German Hypothekenbank before working for two of the world’s largest investment banks, Merrill Lynch and Barclays Capital.

Corvid Partners specialises in valuing the most illiquid end of the fixed income market. Clients include some of the largest investment banks, pension funds, data managers and government agencies in the world. The firm works with these clients in multiple regions and business lines including risk management, regulatory capital management and bilateral secured financing.

In total, Corvid values over 14,000 securities each week, amounting to over $850 billion in issued principal.

Ryan McNelley, Managing Director, Portfolio Valuation, Duff & Phelps

Ryan McNelley is a managing director in the London office of Duff & Phelps, and part of the Portfolio Valuation service line within the Alternative Asset Advisory business unit. Ryan’s clients primarily include alternative investment fund managers, including private equity and private debt fund managers, hedge fund managers, infrastructure fund managers, real estate debt fund managers, etc., in both Europe and in the U.S.

The primary focus of Ryan’s work is in assisting alternative investment fund managers demonstrate top tier governance to all stakeholders, including most importantly: limited partners and regulators. All of Ryan’s work is at the behest of the ultimate stakeholders: the limited partners to the alternative funds sector.

Ryan is a regular speaker at conferences across Europe and is part of several industry working groups and trade organisations. Most notably, Ryan was a contributing author to the Alternative Investment Management Association’s (AIMA) Guide to Sound Practices for Hedge Fund Valuation, and is a member of Invest Europe’s Working Group on Accounting Standards, Valuation and Reporting.