Board of Directors
-
Rajeev KannanNon-Executive Chairman
Managing Executive Officer, SMBCRajeev is the Managing Executive Officer of Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC) and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group (SMFG) and Co-Head of Asia Pacific and is responsible for SMBC & SMFG’s business in Asia Pacific region. Rajeev has previously been responsible building its corporate and institutional banking business in Asia Pacific between 2020 and 2022 and the investment banking business for Asia between 2016 and 2020. Rajeev was also previously based in Tokyo between 2012-2016 as Executive Officer responsible for Global Structured Finance.
Rajeev’s banking career spans nearly 30 years having held various leadership roles with global, regional and product responsibilities. Rajeev has a deep experience in corporate and investment banking, structured finance, principal investments and infrastructure and green finance and is passionate about building businesses and diverse teams to drive innovation, adaptability and sustainable growth. He is also non-executive Director of Fullerton India Credit Company Limited (FICC) and ESR HK Limited.
Rajeev graduated from Birla Institute of Technology & Science (BITS), Pilani in India with a master’s degree in management and engineering. Rajeev was conferred the Institute of Banking and Finance (IBF) Distinguished Fellow Award in 2019.
-
Clive KernerGroup Chief Executive Officer &
Executive DirectorClive joined Clifford Capital at its inception in 2012 and has led its successful growth as well as the development of two new businesses, Pierfront Capital and Bayfront Infrastructure Management, both of which are now housed in CCH. As Group CEO, he is responsible for the overall performance of CCH and its strategic direction.
He has 35 years of emerging markets finance experience as a CEO and in investment banking. Before joining Clifford Capital, he was CEO of Linq Asia Capital AG, a private credit business focused on South East Asia. He previously spent 20 years with Kleinwort Benson and its successor entities, holding senior positions in advisory and financing divisions covering the utilities, infrastructure and resources sectors, based in Singapore, London and Kuala Lumpur.
He was previously a non-executive director of Changi Airports International (2015 - 2021) and a non-executive director of Singapore LNG Corporation (2013 - 2019).
He holds an MBA from the Cass Business School in London and a BA in Economics from the University of Sheffield.
-
Christina TanNon-Executive Director
CEO, Keppel CapitalChristina is the CEO of Keppel Capital, Chairman of Keppel DC REIT Management and Deputy Chairman of Alpha Investment Partners Limited. She has more than 20 years of experience and expertise in investing and fund management across the U.S., Europe and Asia.
Prior to Keppel Capital, she served as the Chief Financial Officer of GRA (Singapore) Private Limited, the Asian real estate fund management arm of Prudential Insurance Company of America. Prior to that, she was the Treasury Manager with Chartered Industries of Singapore, managing the group’s cash positions and investments. She started her career with Ernst & Young before joining the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation.
Christina holds a Bachelor of Accountancy (Honours) from the National University of Singapore and is a CFA® charterholder.
-
Elbert PattijnNon-Executive Director
Elbert retired as the Chief Risk Officer of DBS Group Holdings in 2018, where he was responsible for the management of credit, market, liquidity and operational risks. Prior to this, he was Managing Director and Head of Specialised Corporate and Investment Banking, responsible for DBS’ corporate and investment banking activities.
He has more than three decades of experience in the banking industry and has held progressively senior positions at Barclays Bank, ABN Amro and ING Group prior to joining DBS.
Between 31 Jan 2012 and 17 Mar 2015, Elbert was DBS’ nominee Director to Clifford Capital and he was the Risk Committee Chairman between Dec 2012 and Mar 2015.
A Dutch national, he holds a Master’s degree in Law from the University of Leiden in The Netherlands.
-
Bridget LeeChief Operating Officer, Keppel Capital and
Chief Executive Officer, Keppel Capital Alternative AssetBridget is the CEO and executive director of Keppel Capital Alternative Asset (KCAA). She is concurrently the COO of Keppel Capital (KC). She has more than 20 years of experience in investment, corporate finance and mergers and acquisitions with various financial institutions in Asia and the United States.
Prior to assuming her dual roles as CEO of KCAA and COO of KC, she helped to spearhead the efforts in the investment of new platforms and initiatives in Keppel Capital. Prior to Keppel Capital, Bridget was with Mapletree Investments as Senior Vice President of investment overseeing the China market. She was also with other global financial organisations including Temasek Holdings.
Bridget has a Bachelor of Accountancy from Nanyang Technological University and a Master of Management from the JL Kellogg Graduate School of Management, Northwestern University.
-
Stéphane DelatteExecutive Director
CEO and CIO, Pierfront CapitalStephane is the CEO and CIO of Pierfront Capital and provides the strategic leadership and vision for the company. He has been with Pierfront since its inception in 2016 and He is directly responsible for the day to day running of the firm. He has over 25 years of experience in private credit, private equity and project financing, including over 20 years of experience in Asia.
Prior to Pierfront Capital, he served as Managing Director in Asia for CLSA Capital Partners for 12 years where he was in charge of Private Credit investments. He also previously served as Vice President for Dresdner Kleinwort Capital, Vice-President of the Asian Mezzanine Infrastructure Fund, and prior to that as Vice-President in the project finance division of Credit Lyonnais.
Stéphane holds a BSc in Corporate Finance from Kedge Business School and a Master’s in Financial Engineering from Lyon Business School.
Leadership Team
-
Stéphane DelatteChief Executive Officer and
Chief Investment OfficerStephane is the CEO and CIO of Pierfront Capital and provides the strategic leadership and vision for the company. He has been with Pierfront since its inception in 2016 and is directly responsible for the day to day running of the firm. He has over 25 years of experience in private credit, private equity and project financing, including over 20 years of experience in Asia.
Prior to Pierfront Capital, he served as Managing Director in Asia for CLSA Capital Partners for 12 years where he was in charge of Private Credit investments. He also previously served as Vice President for Dresdner Kleinwort Capital, Vice-President of the Asian Mezzanine Infrastructure Fund, and prior to that as Vice-President in the project finance division of Credit Lyonnais.
Stéphane holds a BSc in Corporate Finance from Kedge Business School and a Master’s in Financial Engineering from Lyon Business School.
-
Wayne PalmerChief Operating Officer and Head of Strategy
Wayne is responsible for overseeing all aspects of the effective management of operational processes and infrastructure required to support Pierfront’s growth, including operations, risk, legal and compliance, regulatory, and planning.
Wayne has over 20 years’ experience in law and asset management platform operations and strategy, including 16 years in Asia-Pacific. Prior to joining Pierfront in 2020, Wayne spent ten years at CLSA’s asset management division, initially as Head of Legal and then as Chief Operating Officer where he oversaw all operational aspects of CLSA’s private equity, real estate, credit, real asset and hedge fund businesses. He was also previously a senior lawyer at Clifford Chance advising a range of global and regional private equity houses and banks on their transactional activities.
Wayne holds a LL.B (Hons) in Law and a post-graduate diploma in legal practice granted by The College of Law, York. He is currently a board member of the Singapore Venture Capital and Private Equity Association and has also served as chair of its Advocacy sub-committee.
-
Anjali PatelHead of Investor Relations
Anjali joined Pierfront Capital in 2022 and is actively involved in fund raising, deal origination, structuring and monitoring of transactions for the firm. She has nearly 20 years of experience in special situations, private equity, and private debt financing (such as mezzanine, structured credit and distressed debt) including almost 15 years of experience in Asia.
Prior to Pierfront Capital, Anjali served as a Director at Credit Suisse as part of the APAC Financing Group, where she was responsible for portfolio financing as well as covered illiquid credit loan sales for institutional investors and fund clients. She was previously an Associate Director at Macquarie Capital, where she managed a distressed Indonesian credit portfolio. Anjali started her career in New York at JPMorgan, where she spent nearly fifteen years originating, executing and managing principal investments and most recently served as an Executive Director in the Global Special Opportunities Group in Hong Kong, where she was responsible for asset management of portfolio investments across the APAC region.
Anjali holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration (concentration in Finance) from Carnegie Mellon University. Anjali is also a CFA® charterholder.
-
Wei Teck ChuaManaging Director
Wei Teck joined Pierfront Capital in 2016 and is responsible for the origination, structuring, negotiating and monitoring of transactions at the firm. He has over 15 years of experience in debt financing, with a focus in originating high-yield, mezzanine, structured and private credit transactions.
Prior to Pierfront Capital, he served as an Executive Director in Swissco Holdings, an offshore marine company listed on the SGX. He also worked in the structured finance teams of major financial institutions in Hong Kong, London and Singapore, including Standard Chartered, Rothschild & Co., and UBS.
Wei Teck holds a Master’s in Accounting & Finance from the London School of Economics and Political Science.
-
Akihito (Aki) WatanabeManaging Director
Aki joined Pierfront Capital in 2019 and is actively involved in the origination, structuring, negotiating and monitoring of transactions at the firm, with a core focus on real estate. He has over 15 years of experience in the Asia-Pacific real estate sector, including deal origination, investments and financings throughout the capital structure.
Prior to Pierfront Capital, he served for ten years as a Managing Director focusing on Asia real estate investments for Varde Partners, a global credit investment fund. He was previously with Lehman Brothers in the Global Real Estate Group focusing on the provision of corporate advisory services to real estate related companies and real estate secured debt investments.
Aki holds a Master’s in International Affairs from Columbia University SIPA with a concentration in International Finance and Business, and a BSc. In Mechanical Engineering from Johns Hopkins University.
-
Saul RaccahManaging Director
Saul joined Pierfront Capital in early 2022 and is actively involved in the origination, structuring, negotiating and monitoring of transactions at the firm. He has over 25 years of experience in structured credit, debt and equity capital markets and M&A, including almost 20 years of experience in Asia.
Prior to Pierfront Capital, Saul served an as a Managing Director at Tor Investment Management, focused on originating and executing Asia private credit, high-yield and special situations transactions across infrastructure and related services, industrials, resources, and consumer sectors. He was previously Managing Director, Head of Asia-Pacific Energy at Morgan Stanley in Hong Kong, where he led all energy and energy-related infrastructure initiatives. He started his career in Investment Banking with Morgan Stanley and HSBC in London.
Saul holds a Bachelor of Arts in Modern Languages from Oxford University.
-
Brandon AwSenior Vice President
Brandon joined Pierfront Capital in 2019 and is responsible for the origination, structuring, negotiating and monitoring of transactions at the firm. He has more than eight years of structured and project finance experience in the Asia-Pacific infrastructure, energy and natural resource sectors.
Prior to Pierfront Capital, he worked in the structured finance, project finance and investment banking teams of major financial institutions, including HSBC, Mizuho, Royal Bank of Canada and Rothschild & Co.
Brandon holds a Bachelor of Accountancy and a Bachelor of Business Management (Finance Major) from the Singapore Management University.
-
Lynette CheahAnalyst
Lynette joined Pierfront Capital in 2022 and is supporting the team in the origination, structuring, negotiating and monitoring of transactions at the firm.
She has over 4 years of experience including transaction services with focus on financial and vendor due diligence across various sectors. She previously worked in Deloitte’s M&A transaction services team in Singapore.Lynette holds a Bachelor of Accountancy from the Singapore Management University.
-
Andrea ChooAssociate Director (Finance)
Andrea is primarily responsible for the accounting, taxation, financial statements and other finance related matters of the firm. She has over 10 years of commercial experience in finance functions, including financial and management reporting, cash planning, tax and internal control processes.
Prior to joining Pierfront and Clifford Capital, she has held finance roles at Clearwater Capital Partners, L Capital Asia and KPMG, where she covered a range of sectors, from focused credit and special situations to those catering to the large and fast-growing aspirational consumer segment.
Andrea holds a Bachelor of Accountancy from the Singapore Management University. She is a Chartered Accountant and a CAIA Charterholder.