Octopus appoints marketing director

UK alternative investment firm Octopus Investments has appointed Karl Jentoft as marketing director. Jentoft will be responsible for overseeing the development of Octopus's marketing and brand strategy as the company progresses with the expansion of its retail investment product offering, the firm said in a statement. He will report to Simon Rogerson, chief executive of Octopus.

Prior to joining Octopus, Karl was chief executive and founder of City Living Ventures, a Washington, DC real estate development company specialising in multi-family residential and mixed use projects, retail and commercial development, and real estate development consulting. He had previously spent four years with the Neighborhood Development Company, another Washington, DC real estate company. At NDC, Jentoft was executive vice president and head of development, then co-chief executive. He was responsible for the overall execution of the company's business development strategy, in addition to securing and structuring finance for transactions.

Before, Jentoft spent 10 years at Capital One, where he was responsible for overseeing the organisation's expansion into noncredit card related businesses and establishing the Capital One brand within the Canadian market. He held a number of senior executive positions during his time there, including director of the prime mortgage division, director of corporate development and three years as president of Capital One Services (Canada).

Octopus invests in venture capital and middle market private equity, and provides mezzanine debt. The firm recently closed its Leeds office in order to “centralise” its team and focus more on its mezzanine finance offering. Four staff were let go following the move.