People Moves October 2017

LAWYERS

The Securities and Exchange Commission appointed Dalia Blass as director of investment management. Blass joins from international law firm Ropes & Gray, where she was counsel in the investment management practice. She replaces David Grimm, who stepped down in August.

Blass has worked at the SEC in a variety of roles over the past 12 years, most recently as assistant chief counsel in the investment management division.

International law firm Reed Smith has appointed Leith Moghli as a private equity and investment funds partner in its London office. Moghli, who joins from Kirkland & Ellis, specializes in fund structuring across buyouts, venture capital, infrastructure and real estate. He also structures secondaries transactions and private equity group spin-outs from large corporates.

Seyfarth Shaw has added Raymond Wong as a corporate partner in Hong Kong. He specializes in mergers and acquisitions, initial public offerings and regulatory compliance in Hong Kong, China and the UK. Wong joins from King & Wood Mallesons. Seyfarth Shaw opened in Hong Kong in February.

Ian O’Donnell has been appointed partner in global law firm Goodwin’s private funds practice in San Francisco. He is a fund formation specialist working with venture capital, growth equity and private equity funds. O’Donnell joins from Cooley, where he was a partner.

Dechert has appointed Monica Gogna as a finance partner. She advises asset managers on cross-border regulatory matters. She joins from Ropes & Gray, where she was a partner for three years, after time at Pinsent Masons, where she also made partner.

SERVICE PROVIDERS

Crestbridge, a global fund administrator, has made two senior appointments in its Jersey office.

Michael Newton joins the firm as head of fund services in Jersey. He will be responsible for developing the firm’s Jersey business across its private equity, debt and real estate. He joins from State Street Jersey, and prior to this was managing director at Swedish private equity firm, EQT.

John MacFeeters also joins as client director. He will oversee the administration of a selection of private and regulated public fund structures, while developing new relationships. He was previously a lawyer at Mourant Ozannes in Jersey, advising on fund formation and regulation as a senior associate.

In the fund finance market, Australian bank Macquarie has named Steve Berry as its division director of fund finance in London. Berry will focus on expanding the division’s roster of private equity and private debt clients. He joins from Investec’s London office.

Aztec Group, a fund services firm, has promoted Paul Conroy and Richard Anthony to director and associate director, respectively, of its real assets team. Both will be based in the firm’s Jersey office. Conroy joined the group in 2014 as associate director of real assets, while Anthony started in 2012 as a group client relationship manager.
Private equity consultancy Constellation Advisers has appointed Lusine Moshkounian to lead its west coast regulatory and compliance team in San Francisco. Moshkounian joins the firm from Cordium, another consultancy firm, where she held a similar role. She has worked at the Securities and Exchange Commission as an attorney-advisor in the investment company examination program.

Global fund administration firm Northern Trust has appointed Yen Leng Ong as head of Singapore and head of South-East Asia. She will take up the role in December, leading the firm’s asset servicing business across the region. Ong, who joined the firm in 2009, was promoted from chief administrative officer of the Asia-Pacific region. ?