The Merlin Partners Team
Understanding the client: Merlin's professionals have all worked in businesses that we seek as clients. Merlin is an entrepreneurial business and understands the pressures of businesses as they develop.
MATTHEW CLARKE
Matthew Clarke practised as an international finance lawyer at Linklaters from 1988-1998 working in London, New York and Hong Kong.
From 1996-2001 he was a director at the merchant bank Robert Fleming & Co. Limited, where he carried out numerous natural resource transactions in emerging markets.
He founded the company as Montrose Partners Ltd. in 2002 and turned it into a regulated LLP in 2006. In 2011, he changed the company name to Merlin Partners LLP. Matthew also sits on the Boards of several private natural resource businesses.
HENRY CLARKE
Henry Clarke began his career at Kitcat and Aitken in 1982, prior to running the sales desk for Bank Sarasin in London for eight years. He later founded the highly successful distressed debt unit at Collins Stewart.
In 1996, Henry launched his own venture and private equity business, Trafalgar 1805 Ltd., investors in successful mining, engineering, software, manufacturing, biotech, med-tech, and oil & gas businesses, and served on the boards of many among them. In 2011, he co-founded Stone Drum Partners, and manages its Resources Early Stage Opportunities Company.
NEIL JAMIESON
Neil began his career in financial services in 1982 with Gordon Capital Corporation. After 11 years, he became executive vice-president of Midland Walwyn Capital (Merrill Lynch Canada) and co-managing their Capital Markets division. In 1994, Neil became a shareholder, director and vice-president of Lincluden Management Limited as a senior investment counsellor and portfolio manager. In 2012, he formed NNP Capital Partners Ltd. to provide diversified advisory services to a broad base of Canadian, European and Caribbean companies as an executive director, non-executive board member, M&A advisor and investment banking financial advisor.
Neil joined Merlin in 2019.
DOMINIC HUGHES
Dominic Hughes has been advising companies on raising capital since 1994 and has IPO’d companies from Beirut to London and most markets in between. Starting as a front-line equity salesman, he has gone on to build equity advisory businesses for institutions including Flemings, Dresdner Kleinwort and, most recently, Berenberg.
He has advised clients in a wide variety of sectors and situations, ranging from IPO to complex cross-border public M&A and from banks to bar owners. He has been working as an independent advisor since 2013, initially at STJ Advisors, the leading IPO-only specialist.
He joined the team at Merlin in 2017.
ASHLEIGH RUXTON
Ashleigh Ruxton spent several years on the Institutional Equity Sales team at GMP Securities, specialising in mining, energy and agriculture. Prior to that, she worked in the interests of Close Asset Management as an analyst on the Pan-European Equity Fund, managing their collective investments and serving as their senior relationship manager.
In 2007 Ashleigh graduated from the University of Oxford with a Master of Chemistry and went on to do her Post-Graduate in Entrepreneurship, founding the Foldeez shoes company, in Cape Town.
Ashleigh joined Merlin in early 2014.
NICOLA BERETTA COVACIVICH
Nicola has a carrier-long experience in the UK and international markets in project and corporate finance, financial advisory and asset management in green economy and sustainable infrastructure, PPP, renewable energy and utility sectors. He had senior management positions at Santander AM, Wells Fargo AM, Deloitte and PWC in London, Mediocredito Centrale in Rome and UBS in New York and Zurich.
Nicola holds a Master degree in Civil and Mining Engineering from the University of Rome, Italy and an Executive Master in Finance and Business Administration from Drexel University, PA and Bocconi University (joint programme) awarded with full scholarship by the Italian Trade Commission (ICE). Nicola speaks four languages English, Italian, French and German.
DESMOND WOODS
Desmond started his career as an analyst with JB Equity, a corporate finance advisor in Edinburgh, focused on the global agriculture and agri-technology sectors. He worked on transactions in South America, Europe and Sub-Saharan Africa. In 2018 he relocated to Sub-Saharan Africa, overseeing the regional expansion of a major Southern African food business in Malawi and Tanzania. Whilst in Malawi, Desmond joined the investment team of African Lakes Company, the Malawi-focused Scottish investment company. Desmond holds a master’s degree in International Banking and Finance from the University of Edinburgh and LLB from the University of Aberdeen.
Desmond joined Merlin in 2019.
MARIA DE FREITAS
While pursuing her legal career, Maria de Freitas specialised in public interest law. She has worked for both the European Court of Human Rights and The Council of Europe in Strasbourg, France. Upon returning to the UK, Maria worked for Sage Pay and the Royal Mail Group, where she added financial and office administration to her portfolio of skills and knowledge.
She graduated in 2002 from Spiru Haret University in Bucharest with a BSc 2:1 in LLB Law. Maria continued her studies in the UK, graduating from the University of the West of England in 2011, earning a BSc (Hons) 2:1 in LLB Law.
Maria joined Merlin Partners LLP in July 2019.