Equities team

Karen Frank is Senior Managing Director and Global Head of Equities. The Equities team manages $70 billion in net assets, including a portfolio of more than 60 private companies, significant investments in public companies, and relationships with more than 30 private equity funds. Karen will be based in London, where she has been living for over 20 years.

Maggie Fanari is based in London and leads High Conviction Equities (HCE), a platform which crosses over both public and private markets across most sectors globally. The HCE mandate is comprised of two complimentary investment strategies which includes Global Active Equities and Alternative capital solutions (ACS). Global Active Equities is a high conviction stock picking strategy premised on bottom up deep sector expertise led approach to investing in the common equity of publicly traded companies globally that aims to deliver above benchmark returns over time. Alternative Capital Solutions (ACS) is a flexible capital mandate focused on minority transactions in: Private companies (Growth Equity and Pre-IPO situations), Structured Equity (instruments including Converts, Prefs), and transactional situations in Public companies (Blocks, IPOs, PIPEs, SPACs).

Bogdan Cenanovic leads Ontario Teachers' investing activities in the technology, media and telecom (TMT), financial services and healthcare sectors. He joined Private Capital in 2009 and has over two decades of private equity and investment banking experience.

Romeo Leemrijse leads Ontario Teachers' investing activities in the diversified industrial and business services, consumer and retail as well as the energy sectors. He joined Private Capital in 2006 and has more than 25 years of private equity and investment banking experience.

Jean-Charles Douin is based in London and leads Private Capital's activities in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. He joined Ontario Teachers' in 2008 and has over 15 years of private equity experience.

Raju Ruparelia leads Ontario Teachers’ direct private equity investing activities across Asia-Pacific. Raju joined Ontario Teachers’ in 2008, was a senior founding member of its Hong Kong office in 2013 and has nearly two decades of combined experience in private equity and corporate finance. He has worked in both Toronto and London for the organization and has been involved in a number of its direct investments, including the acquisitions of Spandana Sphoorty Financial Ltd., INC Research, Coway, DTZ and Cushman & Wakefield. Raju currently sits on the board of Cushman & Wakefield.

Harj Shoan is based in Toronto and leads Private Capital’s Portfolio Management practice, which focuses on value creation planning, value lever acceleration, talent management, board effectiveness, and sharing of best practices across the direct investment portfolio. Prior to joining the Portfolio Management team, Harj was a member of the Consumer & Retail direct investing team in Private Capital, and currently sits on the boards of Arterra Wines Canada, Shearer's Snacks, Traeger Grills, and Koru.

Dan Kiang joined Ontario Teachers' Hong Kong office in 2014 and is focused on direct equities investments in Asia.

Ian Archbold joined Ontario Teachers’ in 2010 and is a member of the High Conviction Equities team with a focus on Global Technology investments. He has invested in public and private technology companies at scale across North America, Europe and Asia.

Dave Haddock joined Ontario Teachers’ in 2004 as a member of the Global Active Equities team and has over 25 years’ experience investing in public markets. He currently has sector responsibilities for Industrial and Consumer Discretionary investments.

Kevin Mansfield joined Private Capital in 2005 and has nearly two decades of private equity experience. He has been involved in a number of Ontario Teachers' investments, including 24 Hour Fitness, Arterra Wines Canada, BRG Sports (formerly Easton-Bell Sports), Flynn Restaurant Group, GCAN, Helly Hansen, Munchkin, Osprey Media, Plano Synergy Holding and Traeger Grills. He currently serves on the boards of Flynn Restaurant Group, BRG Sports and Plano Synergy Holding.

Raymond Shiu joined Ontario Teachers' in 2005 from RBC Capital Markets. He has been involved in a number of direct investments, including the acquisition of the Pure Group, Flynn Restaurant Group, Insight Pharmaceuticals, PetVet Care Centre, Shearer's Foods, Serta, Simmons, and Valentino Fashion Group. He also participated in the formation of FountainVest Partners and Park Square Capital and currently sits on the boards of Flynn Restaurant Group and the Pure Group.

Blake joined Ontario Teachers' in 2013 and has worked in private equity for more than 15 years. Previously, Blake was a Senior Vice President at Callisto Capital, a mid-market Toronto-based private equity firm focusing on buyouts and growth capital investments in Canada. Blake's varied work experience includes hedge fund investing at a Toronto-based firm, equity research at RBC Dominion Securities and debt syndication at Newcourt Capital.

Ashfaq Qadri joined Ontario Teachers' in 2016 with more than a decade of experience in private equity and investment banking. His role includes execution and portfolio management responsibilities for direct private equity investments in the industrials and energy sectors. Ashfaq currently serves on the boards of various Ontario Teachers' portfolio companies, including The AZEK Company, Trivium Packaging, TricorBraun, Stone Canyon Industries Holdings, Hawkwood Energy and Kanata Energy Group. Prior to joining Ontario Teachers', Ashfaq was a Vice President at Morgan Stanley Private Equity, with roles based in both New York and London. He previously also worked in Morgan Stanley's Investment Banking division in New York. Ashfaq received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Amherst College and graduated with a double major in Computer Science and Economics.

Robin Shah joined Ontario Teachers' in 2012 and is focused on direct private equity investments in the industrials and business services sector. Since joining the organization he has worked on a number of investments, including Aurora Plastics, Infiltrator Water Technologies, Mauser Packaging Solutions, Cole Parmer, CSC Serviceworks, EXAL Group, and Alliance Laundry. Robin serves on the boards of Aurora Plastics and Mauser Packaging Solutions.

Zvi Orvitz joined Ontario Teachers' in 2008 and is responsible for leading our energy sector investment activities in Private Capital, including transaction sourcing and execution, as well as the ongoing management of the firm's direct private equity investments. Zvi's skillset is focused on private investments and M&A, capital markets, due diligence, business development, strategy and portfolio management, with deep energy sector expertise. He currently serves on the boards of Aethon United, Chisolm Energy, Canbriam Energy, Edgemarc Energy, Aspenleaf Energy and Impark.

Jeff Markusson joined Ontario Teachers' in 2006 and has participated in a number of investments across the industrial, business services, and financial services sectors. He currently serves on the boards of APCO, Broadstreet Partners, Constellation Insurance Holdings, First American Payments Systems, Lendmark Financial Services, and Seacube.

Greg joined Ontario Teachers' in 2006 and focuses on direct private equity investments within the financial services sector. He has been involved in a number of transactions, including equity investments in Canada Guaranty Mortgage Insurance Company, First American Payment Systems, NXT Capital, Broadstreet Partners, and the sale of GCAN Insurance to RSA Canada. Greg currently serves on the board of directors of Canada Guaranty, First American Payment Systems, SeaCube Container Leasing, and Lancaster Leasing (a joint-venture with Aircastle).

Greg Nielsen joined Ontario Teachers' in 2007. He has worked on a number of investments in the financial services sector, including GCAN Insurance Company, Canada Guaranty Mortgage Insurance Company, BroadStreet Partners, NXT Capital, First American Payments, APCO Holdings, Catalina Holdings (Bermuda), Constellation Insurance Holdings, Lendmark Financial Services, and RATESDOTCA Group Ltd (formerly Kanetix). Greg currently serves on the boards of APCO Holdings, BroadStreet Partners, Constellation, Lendmark, and RATESDOTCA Group.

Christian Dunn joined Ontario Teachers' in 2006 and moved to the Hong Kong office in 2013. He has been involved in the origination, evaluation, execution, and post-investment monitoring and management of numerous fund investments, most recently with a focus on Asia and the emerging markets. He has also been involved in select direct and venture capital investments. As part of the Asia team, Christian is focused on fund investments in the region.

Mei Ni Yang is based in Hong Kong and is part of the senior team leading private equity funds in the Asia-Pacific region. Mei Ni has more than 20 years of experience in the private equity and venture capital industry. Prior to joining Ontario Teachers’, Mei Ni was a Partner and Head of Private Equity for Asia-Pacific at Mercer, where she was a member of the global IC and was responsible for investment research, business development and portfolio construction. She started her career at Citigroup Investment Banking and held various senior positions at JP Morgan Partners, Hamilton Lane and UBS. Mei Ni received her B.S. and B.A. degrees from The University of Pennsylvania, where she graduated from the Huntsman Program, a dual-degree program between The Wharton School and College of Arts and Sciences. She is a Chartered Financial Analyst registered in Hong Kong.

Joe Topley joined Ontario Teachers' London office in 2016 and is responsible for private equity funds in the EMEA region.

Terry Woodward leads the Global Healthcare portfolio and team within Private Capital. He joined Ontario Teachers' in 2001 with prior industry experience in both R&D and corporate development.

Richard Thomas joined Ontario Teachers’ Portfolio Management Team in 2020. He works closely with portfolio companies in the Financial Services and Technology sectors to lead the identification and implementation of strategic priorities and value creation opportunities. Richard also drives portfolio-wide initiatives as part of the PMT, and sits on the boards of Koru and Lendmark Financial. Prior to joining Teachers’, Richard held a number of executive roles at Royal Bank of Canada. These included leading the development of the bank’s digital start-up arm at RBC Ventures, leading the Strategy & Business Architecture group, and managing portfolios and products within Cards & Payments. His previous experiences also include executive positions at HSBC and Sears Canada Financial Services, as well as working with Deloitte in Europe and North America in the Strategy & Operations practice. Richard has an MA from the University of St Andrews, an MBA from London Business School, and the Chartered Director (C.Dir) designation from the Directors College at McMaster University.

Tricia Witty joined Ontario Teachers' Portfolio Management team in 2016. She supports our portfolio companies in identifying and capturing value creation opportunities, particularly in the area of Operations. She currently sits on the board of Shearer’s Foods.

Fabrice Chesnais joined the London office of Private Capital in 2016 and has 14 years of industry experience in private equity and investment banking. Fabrice currently sits on the board of OGF and European Camping Group, and is responsible for origination and execution of direct investments in the Consumer, Retail and Leisure sector in Europe, as well as the geographic coverage of France and Benelux.

Amit Sobti joined the Private Capital division of Ontario Teachers' in 2016 and is part of the senior team responsible for direct and co-investing activities across the Asia-Pacific region. Amit sits on the board of Spandana Sphoorty.

Marvin Teubner joined the London office of Private Capital in 2011 and has over 15 years of private equity investing experience. He has worked on a number of transactions and was recently involved in the buyouts of Techem, CeramTec, Synlab, Lowell, Bridon, and Burton's Biscuits. Marvin currently serves on the boards of Techem, CeramTec, Synlab, and Lowell.

Ashvin Malkani joined Ontario Teachers' in 2002 and has over 20 years of private equity investing experience. He has been involved in a number of transactions at Ontario Teachers', including Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, CTVglobemedia, Doane Pet Care Company, North American Oil Sands Corporation, Q9 Networks, Datapipe, Ascend Learning, Metronode and TierPoint. Ashvin is presently based in London and leads the Global Technology, Media and Telecommunications group. He currently serves on the board of directors of 24-7 Intouch, Compass Datacenters, Inmarsat, Mitratech and Sovos Compliance. Prior to joining Ontario Teachers', Ashvin was an Analyst at TD Capital, the private equity arm of TD Bank Financial Group. Ashvin received a BA from Western University and an MBA from the Schulich School of Business at York University.

Eric Hargrave joined Ontario Teachers' in 2009 and has nearly two decades of principal investing, investment banking and accounting experience. He relocated from Toronto to London in 2015 and after nine years of working on the Infrastructure and Natural Resources team, he joined Private Capital in 2018. He is responsible for origination, execution, and management of direct investments in the technology, media and telecom sectors across Europe, as well as geographic coverage for the Nordics. Eric currently serves on the board of Memora.

Ilya Kachko joined Ontario Teachers' in 2009 and has 17 years of private equity and investment banking experience. Ilya has been involved in a number of transactions at Ontario Teachers', including Camelot Group, Premier Lotteries Ireland, SeaCube Container Leasing, BayBridge Seniors Housing, Amica Mature Lifestyles, Datapipe, Metronode Group, 24-7 Intouch, Fleet Complete, RSA Security, and Mitratech. He currently serves on the board of directors of Camelot Lottery Solutions, 24-7 Intouch, RSA Security, and Mitratech, and previously served on the boards of BayBridge Seniors Housing, Metronode Group, Fleet Complete, and Premier Lotteries Ireland.