Management
Craven House Capital has a management contract with Desmond Holdings Ltd to manage the portfolio of the company and generate new investment opportunities. Desmond Holdings is a private investment holding company with principal offices in Hong Kong and an investment portfolio that includes public and private companies in Latin America, Asia, Africa and Eastern Europe. The company primarily focuses on the natural resource industry, agriculture and manufacturing.
Desmond Holdings manages the day-to-day operations of Craven House Capital and reports to a non-executive Board of Directors which acts in a supervisory capacity.
Board of Directors
Mark Pajak - Acting Chairman & Non-Executive Director
Mark Pajak is responsible for the overall performance of Craven House Capital. His duties include chairing the investment committee and direct board level involvement with the portfolio companies. Prior to his role at Craven House Capital, Mr. Pajak was Managing Director at Desmond Holdings and a member of their investment committee. He is also President and CEO of Desmond Investments Ltd, a company listed on the TSX Venture Exchange in Toronto.
Mr. Pajak started his career at Taylor Wimpey Plc, the UK's largest property developer where he worked directly for the Chief Executive advising on M&A activity, corporate capital structuring and communications with shareholders and the financial community. He was among the youngest directors in the 130 year history of the company.
Mark holds both an undergraduate degree and MBA from Oxford University.
Alexandra Eavis - Non-Executive Director & Company Secretary
Miss Eavis is responsible for accounting, administration and corporate governance at Craven House Capital. Miss Eavis structured the change of control of the Company and fundamental change of business that occurred in April/May 2009. Since this time, she has been a Director of the Company.
Between 2006 and 2010, she acted as Director of Corporate Finance at Infinity Corporate Finance Ltd, the corporate finance arm of a small financial services group, where she was in charge of designing bespoke financial products for primarily retail investors. She is a graduate of Oxford University.
Balbir Bindra - Non-Executive Director
Mr. Bindra is a Partner and Head of Asia Banking & Finance at international law firm, Gide Loyrette Nouel, in Hong Kong. He has extensive experience in international finance law and has represented multinationals, banks, securities houses, hedge funds, private equity groups, multilateral and sovereign lenders, including the World Bank, with interests in Asia, the PRC, Africa and South America.
He has been involved in banking, securities, project and structured finance transactions throughout the world. He is a member of the English and Hong Kong Law Societies. Mr. Bindra holds an LL.B with First Class Honours from the University of Southampton and an MBA from Edinburgh Business School. Mr. Bindra was named for Banking & Finance and recommended for Projects & Energy in Asia Pacific Legal 500 2012, Chambers Legal Directory 2009 for Structured Finance and Euromoney's Guide to the World's Leading Structured Finance Lawyers 2009-10.
Xyras To - Chief Strategy Officer, Greater China
Xyras To started his career with Safe-Land Investment of Montreal, Canada (a fund-based consultancy in association with CW Saskfund, managed by Ventures West of Vancouver); Chi Cheung Investment of Hong Kong (a Hong Kong main board listed company, with a focus on property development) and Cresvale Securities of London, UK (subsequently acquired by Jih Sun Group of Taiwan). He spent 6 years with property projects firm, Centre Pacific Group of Vancouver, Canada (now, Charter Pacific Developments) as Director responsible for the Greater China region.
In early 2000, Mr. To went on to start-up his own consultancy operation in Hong Kong "Ventures China". Initially, as a strategic consultant in Hong Kong and China to the hedge fund of funds group, DFD Select Group of France. DFDS raised capital for hedge funds and was responsible for the investment management of a USD$150M fund of hedge funds under the Societe Generale Lyxor platform. Ventures China now also focuses on private investment projects, assisting private equity funds and private investors in China. He is currently a senior representative of Innoven Partners of London for the China region. Innoven is an independent asset manager and has raised over €200M million through 17 Funds over the past 12 years.
Mr. To is a graduate of the University of Hull Business School, UK (MBA), and is also a member of The Chartered Institute of Marketing, UK
