Citywire North Retreat 2025
Welcome back to our much-loved Citywire North Retreat where we will once again bring together the best of the wealth management and financial advice communities from the region.
This is your invitation to join us 3-4 September at Rudding Park in Harrogate for a day and a half filled with valuable insights from fund managers and keynote speakers into the pivotal factors influencing your investment decisions in the upcoming year, and the opportunity to network with your peers.
As with all of our retreats, attendance is strictly by invitation only and delegates participating in the accredited North Retreat can claim up to 8 CPD hours towards the CII / Personal Finance Society member CPD scheme.
By the end of the event, attendees will be able to:
- Explore the advantages and challenges of different investment strategies across various asset classes and themes.
- Outline the major issues impacting the world economy
- Identify strategies to foster psychological safety and resilience in a team
We begin with prize-winning economist and policy advisor Dr. Tim Leunig, who will explore the key challenges facing the global economy. Drawing on his experience advising Chancellors, Cabinet Ministers, and Prime Ministers, he will provide insight into how major economic and social policies are shaped.
After lunch, we’ll be joined by broadcaster and psychotherapist Lucy Beresford, known for her appearances on The Jeremy Vine Show, the BBC, as well as other major platforms. Lucy will explore the psychology of money and how to maintain wellbeing during times of stock market turbulence. This session will offer practical insights into financial behaviour and help strengthen both client relationships and personal resilience.
After dinner, we will hear from Alfie Moore who spent 18 years as a police sergeant before swapping the beat for the stage as a professional stand-up comedian with a hit Radio 4 series and multiple sold-out Edinburgh Fringe shows. Blending deadpan humour with real-life policing absurdities, his performances offer a hilarious and unexpected look at life behind the badge.
Friday morning will kick off with former Leeds Rhinos captain Stevie Ward who is also the founder of mental health movement Mantality. He uses his remarkable rugby career and personal struggles to explore authenticity, leadership, and psychological safety, encouraging people to move beyond their comfort zones.
Best wishes
Agenda
08:00 - 09:20
Registration
09:20 - 09:30
Welcome with Ayesha Khan
09:30 - 10:30
Conference Session 1 - Dr Tim Leunig
10:30 - 11:00
Fund Group Workshop 1
11:10 - 11:40
Fund Group Workshop 2
11:50 - 12:20
Fund Group Workshop 3
12:20 - 13:40
Table Planned Lunch
13:40 - 14:40
Conference Session 2 - Dr Lucy Beresford
14:40 - 15:10
Fund Group Workshop 4
15:20 - 15:50
Fund Group Workshop 5
16:00 - 16:30
Fund Group Workshop 6
16:40 - 17:10
Fund Group Workshop 7
19:30 - 20:00
Drink Reception
20:00 - 23:00
Table Planned Dinner - After dinner speaker Alfie Moore
08:00 - 09:15
Breakfast at Leisure
09:15 - 10:15
Conference Session 3 - Stevie Ward
10:15 - 10:45
Fund Group Workshop 8
10:55 - 11:25
Fund Group Workshop 9
11:35 - 12:05
Fund Group Workshop 10
12:05 - 13:30
Buffet Lunch
13:30
Event Close
Keynote Speakers
Speakers

Dr. Tim Leunig
Dr. Tim Leunig is a prize-winning economist and policy advisor whose work spans economic history, urban planning, and public policy. A Visiting Professor at the London School of Economics, Tim has advised Chancellors, Cabinet Ministers, and Prime Ministers, shaping major economic and social policies.
After working in academia, Tim joined the policy world, first at the Centre for Cities influencing urban policy, infrastructure, and strategies to promote economic growth in cities across, and then in government. He served as Chief Economist at the Department for Education, devising policies on school funding, performance measurement, and curriculum reforms. He worked on housing policy and the expansion plans for Heathrow Airport. He was also Economic Adviser to Chancellors Sajid Javid and Rishi Sunak. Significantly, and contrary to the existing plans of the Treasury, he conceived the UK’s furlough scheme during the COVID-19 pandemic, protecting millions of jobs.
Having left government, Tim explores the real world effects of economic policy. He considers how it affects businesses and individuals, and provides insights into decision-making, productivity, and long-term economic growth. He’s a regular commentator to The Financial Times, The Times, The Telegraph, and The Guardian, and has contributed to programmes on Radio 1 and Radio 4.
Tim has also served as Director of Economics at Public First, and as a Senior Fellow at the Institute for Government. He is a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences, the Royal Society of Arts, and the Royal Historical Society, and a Governor of the National Institute of Economic and Social Research.


Dr. Lucy Beresford
Lucy Beresford is an experienced radio and TV broadcaster, practising psychotherapist, author, and wellbeing warrior. Her TEDx talk “Infidelity: to stay or to go?” has been viewed on You Tube over 3.2 million times.
A former Investment Banker, she is the go-to woman in the media to analyse politics, current affairs, relationships, and psychology.
Best known for hosting a hugely-successful weekly phone-in show on LBC Radio exploring sex and relationships, Lucy now hosts the successful podcast On The Couch for Reaction which looks at politics through the lens of psychology
She is a regular panelist on The Jeremy Vine show on Channel 5, The Weekend on GB News, and reviews the papers for Sky News and Times Radio.
Lucy is the founder of The Kindness Club, and its award-winning Refuge for Books scheme, which creates libraries in shelters run by the UK domestic violence charity Refuge.
She is the author of 4 best-selling books, including the international best-seller HAPPY RELATIONSHIPS: at home, work, and play.
She is a passionate advocate for self-care as the cornerstone of all relationships, and her mission is to demystify psychology and smash the remaining stigmas around mental health.
Twitter: @lucyberesford
Instagram: @thelucyberesford1


Alfie Moore
Stevie Ward is a former professional rugby player who was part of the golden generation at Leeds Rhinos, one of the most successful teams in Super League history. He became the youngest Grand Final winner, securing 3 Grand Finals and 2 Challenge Cups. At just 26, he was named captain. However, Stevie faced significant challenges, undergoing 10 surgeries and struggling with mental health issues. He had to retire at 27 due to a brain injury.
This adversity led Stevie to launch Mantality in 2016. The initiative promotes mental health for men through counseling, life coaching services, and a podcast that breaks the stigma around mental health.
Stevie also works with Premier League football teams, athletes, and creatives through keynote talks, leadership programs, and one-on-one coaching. He helps them discover their authentic game plan.


Stevie Ward
Stevie Ward is a former professional rugby player who was part of the golden generation at Leeds Rhinos, one of the most successful teams in Super League history. He became the youngest Grand Final winner, securing 3 Grand Finals and 2 Challenge Cups. At just 26, he was named captain. However, Stevie faced significant challenges, undergoing 10 surgeries and struggling with mental health issues. He had to retire at 27 due to a brain injury.
This adversity led Stevie to launch Mantality in 2016. The initiative promotes mental health for men through counseling, life coaching services, and a podcast that breaks the stigma around mental health.
Stevie also works with Premier League football teams, athletes, and creatives through keynote talks, leadership programs, and one-on-one coaching. He helps them discover their authentic game plan.
Sponsors


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Workshops
Workshops
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In a world of uncertainty, one thing remains clear: US disruption is reshaping the world
The rapid pace of change can be unsettling. Disruption is coming in a variety of forms; technological, political and cultural. America, the world’s dominant economy, sits at the centre of it. In this presentation, you will hear how the Baillie Gifford American Fund takes advantage of disruption via a portfolio of America’s most exceptional growth companies.
Workshop Objectives:
-Delegates will examine how long-term growth can play a role in client portfolios.
-Delegates will explore the characteristics of exceptional growth companies.
-Delegates will analyse the trade-offs between risk, volatility, and long-term returns.
Company Profile:
Baillie Gifford’s sole business is investment management. Since the company was founded in 1908 it has been a partnership. Today it is owned by 59 partners all of whom work in the business. We believe that the best investment ideas spring from thinking about future possibilities, not short-term probabilities. We set no barriers to the imagination of our investors, encouraging fresh perspectives and the use of diverse sources of information. We term ourselves Actual Investors. We currently manage or advise some £197bn on behalf of clients worldwide. Whilst we are predominantly an institutional manager (circa 80% of FUM), we offer an extensive range of investment trusts and open-ended funds to UK wealth managers and intermediaries.
Speakers
Gary Robinson
Investment Manager
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Gary is an investment manager in the US Equity Growth Team. He joined Baillie Gifford in 2003 and became a partner in 2019. He worked on our Japanese, UK and European Equity teams before joining the US Equity Growth Team in 2008. Gary is a generalist investor but retains a special interest in the healthcare sector, dating back to his undergraduate degree. He graduated MBiochem in Biochemistry from Oxford University in 2003.
Representatives
Laura Ingleby
Client Relationship Director
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Laura joined Baillie Gifford in 2010 and is a client relationship director responsible for the North and Midlands. Prior to Baillie Gifford she worked at Norwich Union in Leeds as a business development manager before moving to Close Fund Management as a regional sales manager for the North and Scotland. Laura graduated in German from the University of St Andrews in 1998.
Megan Rooney
Client Relationship Manager

Megan is a client relationship manager in the UK Intermediaries Team. She joined Baillie Gifford in 2016. Prior to joining the firm, Megan worked at Barclays, specialising in private client services. She graduated BSc (Hons) in Geography from the University of Glasgow in 2014.

In a world of change, take a new perspective
We appear to be undergoing seismic shifts in the global economic and geopolitical landscapes, as well as equity markets that have become increasingly difficult to navigate. But far from being phased by these conditions, as bottom-up investors we are excited about the diverse range of long-term opportunities that could emerge. Capital Group New Perspective is a global equity strategy that has been investing in change for over 50 years, looking to identify companies that we believe will benefit from shifts in global trade patterns as well as economic and political relationships.
Workshop Objective:
-Delegates will examine the seismic changes that are currently impacting the global economy and financial markets
-Delegates will analyse approaches to navigating global equity markets.
Company Profile:
Capital Group is one of the oldest and largest asset management companies in the world, managing multi-asset, equity and fixed income investment strategies for different types of investors.
Since 1931, Capital Group has been singularly focused on delivering superior, consistent results for long-term investors using high conviction portfolios, rigorous research and individual accountability. Today, Capital Group works with financial intermediaries and institutions to manage more than US$2.8 trillion in long-term assets for investors around the world.
* As at 31 December 2024.
Speakers
John Lamb
Investment Specialist
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John Lamb is an investment specialist at Capital Group. He has nine years of industry experience and has been with Capital Group for six years. Prior to joining Capital, John worked as a strategic product management associate at BlackRock. He holds a bachelor's degree in economics and management from the University of Oxford. He also holds the Chartered Financial Analyst® designation. John is based in London.
Representatives
Adam Price
Managing Director, Financial Intermediaries

Adam Price is a Managing Director, Financial Intermediaries at Capital Group. He has 13 years of industry experience and has been with Capital Group for nine years. Prior to joining Capital, Adam worked in structured products at UBS Investment Bank. He holds a bachelor's degree in business management with honors from University of Leeds. Adam also holds an Investment Management Certificate. Adam is based in London.
Shreya Anil
Associate Director, Financial Intermediaries & Strategic Partners
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Shreya Anil is Associate Director for financial intermediaries & strategic partners, UK & Channel Islands at Capital Group. She has been with Capital Group for three years. Prior to joining Capital, Shreya worked in market research at a medical recruitment company and has experience of working on the future trading desk at Amplify Trading. She holds a bachelor’s degree in History from King’s College London. Shreya is based in London.
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Navigating global fixed income markets through a flexible, high alpha approach
How should investors be thinking about fixed income markets in 2025? Join Mike Riddell, portfolio manager of the Fidelity Strategic Bond Fund, to learn about the factors shaping global fixed income markets and how he is navigating a complex backdrop by leveraging alpha from across four core areas.
Workshop Objective:
Delegates will analyse the latest macro events and the implications for global fixed income markets
-Delegates will analyse four key sources of alpha:
• Interest Rates
• Inflation
• Currencies
• Credit
-Delegates will explore current example trades from across the four key alpha sources
Company Profile:
At Fidelity International, our purpose is to work together to build better financial futures for our clients and we believe that investing, over the long-term, is critical to achieving that. As a family and management-owned company, we think generationally in terms of the services we build and provide, as well as the way in which we invest on our clients’ behalf.
Our focus is on delivering sustainable investment returns for our clients, while managing our impact on society and the environment. To do this, we incorporate sustainability into our business operations and our investment process, working with investee companies to help them operate more sustainably in order to deliver those long-term returns and secure a better future for all.
Speakers
Mike Riddell
Lead Portfolio Manager for Fidelity Strategic Bond Fund
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Mike joined Fidelity in July 2024 and is the Lead Portfolio Manager for Fidelity’s Strategic Bond strategies. He works closely with Co-PM Tim Foster and the wider Fidelity Fixed Income team using a team-based investment approach. Mike joined Fidelity with extensive experience in unconstrained fixed income strategies, having previously led Allianz Global Investors’ Macro Unconstrained Fixed Income team.
Representatives
Oli Khalil-Martin, CFA
Investment Director

Oli Khalil-Martin is an Investment Director in Fidelity International’s Fixed Income Team with primary responsibility for Strategic Bond and Emerging Market Debt strategies. He previously covered Fidelity’s retail and institutional Money Market strategies and has over 12 years of industry experience. Oli joined Fidelity in 2015 from Goldman Sachs Asset Management, where he had worked in the Fixed Income Product Management and RFP teams.
Oli holds a Master of Arts degree in Classics from Trinity College, University of Cambridge and is a CFA charterholder.
Mark Caldwell
Regional Account Manager - Wholesale Sales, Fidelity International
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Mark joined the UK Wholesale team at Fidelity in 2018 as part of the Strategic Partners team, working with key Nationals and Networks across the UK. Mark now supports key advisory firms in the North of England and Northern Ireland. Acting as a primary point of contact for the investment fund business at Fidelity. Prior to joining Fidelity, Mark was a Senior National Account Manager in the drinks industry working at AB Inbev, Britvic and Carlsberg. He has a BSc(Hons) in Exercise & Health Science. He is married with 2 children. A keen sports fan and is often found following Liverpool FC around the country.
Matt Wright
Regional Sales Manager - Wholesale Sales, Fidelity International
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Matt joined Fidelity (Australia) in July 2018 and transferred to the Fidelity UK business in July 2023 as a Regional Sales Manager.
Matt is responsible for growing, building, and maintaining relationships with Wealth Managers/IM’s, financial advisers, stockbrokers and high net worth investors in the North & Central England region. Providing investment solutions and assisting them with their investment philosophy, fund selection, investment portfolios and asset allocation to ensure their clients successfully achieve performance outcomes and objectives.
Prior to joining Fidelity International, Matt worked in the investment arm for National Australia Bank for 9 years, as a Business Development Manager/Investment Specialist. He also has a Bachelor of Commerce (finance and marketing) from the University Of Wollongong, a Diploma of Financial Planning and a Diploma of Business Management.

Phoenix from the flames
UK small cap companies have derated in recent years as UK economic and political uncertainty have created headwinds. Yet, management teams have weathered the storms and are coming out the other side stronger.
Dan Green is excited to discuss with you some of the misunderstood qualities of UK companies. Following a challenging few years, are UK companies ready to rise from the ashes?
Workshop Objective:
Delegates will examine potential prospects for the UK small cap market.
Company Profile:
Martin Currie is a global active equity specialist within Franklin Templeton, one of the world’s leading asset managers. We build concentrated, best-idea portfolios that create conviction in fast-changing markets.
Our talented, autonomous teams are backed by a distinctive and supportive investment culture. With stewardship at our heart of the business, we employ long-term, original thinking to deliver sustainable investment returns.
Speakers
Dan Green, CFA
Portfolio Manager & Research Analyst
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Dan Green is a portfolio manager and equity research analyst for the Martin Currie UK Equity team, focusing on UK small and mid-cap equities. He is lead portfolio manager of the FTF Martin Currie UK Smaller Companies Fund and manages the small cap portion of the FTF Martin Currie UK Manager's Focus Fund.
Dan joined the UK equity team in September 2015. He began his career with PwC working predominately with financial services clients before joining JP Morgan to work as equity derivatives analyst. He later worked at Deutsche Bank as an Assistant Vice President in the valuations team.
Representatives
Jessie Wilson
Client Portfolio Manager

Jessie is a Client Portfolio Manager dedicated to the UK Equities team. She bridges the gap between our investors and clients, enabling the investment team to focus on what they do best. She has nearly 20 years of experience in the financial services industry with the majority of her career in client focused roles at investment managers.
Dan Williams
Business Development Director
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Dan Williams is a business development director at Franklin Templeton Investments, responsible for relationships and investment fund distribution in the North of England and Scotland.
He joined the Franklin Templeton Leeds office in 2013 as a Sales Support Executive. Prior to joining Franklin Templeton, he worked at RBS Global Banking & Markets in roles within Interest Rate Derivatives Operations and FX Prime Brokerage. Dan studied Virtual Reality Design at the University of Huddersfield and holds the CFA Level 4 Investment Management Certificate and the CISI Level 3 Certificate in Investments.

Fund Group Workshop
Company Profile:
MSIM, with $1.6 trillion in assets under management as of March 31, 2025, is a client-centric organization dedicated to providing investment and risk-management solutions to a wide range of investors and institutions including corporations, pension plans, intermediaries, sovereign wealth funds, central banks, endowments and foundations, governments and consultant partners worldwide.
With over four decades of asset management experience, our investment strategies span the risk/return spectrum across geographies, investment styles and asset classes, including equity, fixed income, alternatives and private markets. MSIM offers its clients personalized attention, the intelligence and creativity of some of the brightest professionals in the industry, and access to the global resources of Morgan Stanley.
Speakers
Candida de Silva
Portfolio Specialist

Representatives
Daniel Hawkes
Head of UK Intermediary Sales

Daniel is a member of the UK Intermediary Distribution team at Morgan Stanley Investment Management. He joined Morgan Stanley in 2015 and has 24 years of related industry experience. Prior to joining MSIM, Daniel worked at Columbia Threadneedle Investments for 11 years and both Cofunds and Fidelity before that. Daniel holds a degree in Criminology and Criminal Justice from the University of Wales, Bangor and holds the Investment Management Certificate (IMC) Level 6.
Harvey Lewis
UK Intermediary Sales

Harvey is a member of the UK Intermediary Distribution team at Morgan Stanley Investment Management. He joined Morgan Stanley full time in 2015, having interned in 2014, and has nine years of industry related experience. Harvey received a B.A in Economics and Politics from the University of Nottingham and holds the Investment Management Certificate (Level 6).

NB Global Equity Megatrends: High conviction on long-term structural change
Investing in companies that are uniquely positioned to benefit from powerful secular change should help to mitigate investment risk – particularly important at this time of tremendous innovation and disruption, and unprecedented business and economic uncertainty.
Workshop Objectives:
Delegates will examine how structural shifts in the global economy can impact investment strategies and will explore such approaches.
Company Profile:
Neuberger Berman was founded in 1939 to do one thing: deliver compelling investment results for our clients over the long term. This remains our singular purpose today, driven by a culture rooted in deep fundamental research, the pursuit of investment insight and continuous innovation on behalf of clients, and facilitated by the free exchange of ideas across the organization.
As a private, independent, employee-owned investment manager, Neuberger Berman is structurally aligned with the long-term interests of our clients. We have no external parent or public shareholders to serve, nor other lines of business to distract us from our core mission. And with our employees and their families invested alongside our clients—plus 100% of employee deferred cash compensation directly linked to team and firm strategies—we are truly in this together.
Speakers
Maximiliano Rohm
Portfolio Manager for the Global Equity Megatrends

Maximiliano Rohm, Portfolio Manager for the Global Equity Megatrends team, joined the firm in 2006. Before joining the Global Equity Megatrends team in 2017, Maxi was the Head of Corporate Development for Latin America, overseeing Neuberger Berman’s client efforts in the region. Prior to this, Maxi was a member of Neuberger Berman’s Corporate Strategy team, focusing on business development and strategic acquisitions for the firm.
Representatives
Adrian Sharpe
Relationship Manager

Adrian Sharpe, Vice President, is a Relationship Manager within Neuberger Berman's EMEA Client Group. Adrian's focus is on expanding the firm's footprint with financial institutions and intermediary clients in the Midlands and North of England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Isle of Man.Adrian has more than 30 years of industry experience working in the U.K., U.S., Europe and Middle East. He joins the firm from Columbia Threadneedle, and has also worked at Standard Life, BNY Mellon and BlackRock.

Fund Group Workshop

Fund Group Workshop
Company Profile:
PIMCO is a global leader in active fixed income with deep expertise across public and private markets. We invest our clients’ capital in income and credit opportunities that span the liquidity spectrum, leveraging our decades of experience navigating complex debt markets. Our flexible capital base and deep relationships with issuers have helped us become one of the world’s largest providers of traditional and alternative investment solutions and a valued financing partner.
Speakers
Saurabh Sud
Portfolio Manager, Global Credit
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Mr. Sud is an executive vice president and portfolio manager in the London office. He oversees European public corporate credit portfolios, including investment grade and leveraged finance, and is a senior member of PIMCO’s multi-sector and global investment grade credit portfolio management teams. He is currently a rotating member of the European Portfolio Committee and a rotating member of the Investment Committee. He rejoined PIMCO in 2024 and previously was with T. Rowe Price, where he led the launch of a liquid alternatives version of the multi-asset credit (long/short) strategy and co-managed the new income strategy; he was also co-head of the sector strategy advisory group and an advisory board member of the dynamic global bond and global multi-sector strategies. Prior to 2018, Mr. Sud was a PIMCO portfolio manager for credit absolute return and long duration credit strategies, and he was a member of the Americas Portfolio Committee. He has 17 years of investment experience and holds an MBA from Columbia Business School. He received an undergraduate degree from the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi. He is a CFA charterholder.
Representatives
Joseph McCurdy
Account Manager, UK Global Wealth Management

Mr. McCurdy is a vice president in U.K. global wealth management based in the London office. He is responsible for overseeing the development of PIMCO's business across the northern U.K., Isle of Man and Ireland, focusing on wealth managers, multi-managers and financial advisers. Prior to joining PIMCO in 2018, he was an investment director at Standard Life Investments. He has 22 years of investment and financial services experience and holds an undergraduate degree from the University of Dundee.

Fund Group Workshop
Company Profile:
At Ruffer, our aim is to deliver consistent positive returns through an unconstrained approach, regardless of how financial markets perform. We seek to achieve this by maintaining an offsetting balance of growth and protective assets and have achieved a long, successful track record of protecting and growing the value of our clients’ assets. Our approach has been successful through periods of market fragility including the bursting of the dot.com bubble, the credit crisis and covid-19. We aim to continue this success, whatever the future holds.
Speakers
Gemma Cairns-Smith
Investment Specialist
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Joined Ruffer in 2020 after graduating from the University of Cambridge with a first class degree in land economy. She spent three years with Ruffer’s private client team and now works as an investment specialist with wealth managers and advisors, as part of Ruffer’s UK wholesale team. She is a CFA charterholder.
Representatives
Garrey Hamilton
Director – UK Wholesale
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Joined Ruffer in 2021, having spent the previous 14 years at RLAM and Standard Life Investments. He holds the Diploma in Regulated Financial Planning (CII) and the Investment Management Certificate (CFA). He is also a trustee of the Agnes Hunter Trust (SCIO), sitting on the investment committee.
Harvey East
Investment Specialist
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Initially joining Ruffer's private client team in 2022, Harvey works with wealth managers and advisers as an investment specialist with Ruffer’s UK wholesale team. Previously a research analyst and investment executive at Redmayne Bentley, he graduated from the University of Leeds with a first class degree in international business and economics. He is a Chartered Member of the CISI and has completed the CISI Masters in wealth management.

Doubling Down on Defence: Dividend Strength and Defence Stocks
There’s more than one way to stay defensive. In this session, we’ll walk through two strategies that continue to gain traction with investors: quality dividend-paying companies and listed defence firms. Both are backed by solid long-term trends, from the search for reliable income to rising global defence budgets. We’ll keep it simple, focusing on the key drivers behind each ETF, why investors are using them, and what sets them apart from other options out there. Whether markets stay volatile or settle down, these themes offer something different and worth a closer look.
Workshop Objective:
Delegates will explore dividend and defence ETFs and examine how they can be used to build portfolios.
Company Profile:
With over $120 billion in AUM globally (as of 15 May 2025), VanEck is a global investment manager offering forward-thinking solutions to enhance portfolios. Our range spans intelligently designed ETFs, active strategies, and SMAs, providing targeted exposure to emerging industries, asset classes, and markets — as well as innovative core strategies.
In Europe, VanEck manages over $19 billion in assets, with the majority held across 37 UCITS ETFs. These span thematic strategies, hard assets, strategic equity, dividend stocks, and more. We focus on identifying economic, technological, political, and social trends that drive compelling investment opportunities.
A pioneer in international investing, gold, and ETFs, VanEck continues to deliver both core and specialised strategies designed to support diversification and long-term growth.
Speakers
Ahmet Dagli
VanEck, Head of UK, Ireland & Channel Islands
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Ahmet heads VanEck’s ETF distribution within the UK, Ireland & Channel Islands. Ahmet also supports the firm’s business and product development activities. With a background in Investment Analysis in the UK and Wealth Management within Switzerland and Malta, Ahmet joined VanEck in January 2018. He holds a degree in Business Economics from Hertfordshire University.
Representatives
Dan Lacey
VanEck, Sales Associate
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Dan joined VanEck in March 2025 and is responsible for supporting VanEck’s growth in the UK and Ireland. Prior to joining VanEck, Dan spent 4 years at Global X where he was part of the distribution team covering the UK and Ireland, promoting the firm’s range of ETFs. Dan holds a BSBA (Hons.) in Finance and Marketing from Northeastern University.
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When the Benchmark Becomes the Bar: The rise of index investing
In recent years, market-cap-weighted indices—and the ETFs that track them—have repeatedly delivered returns that many active managers have struggled to match. This trend has been driven not only by structural cost advantages, but also by the growing concentration in large-cap growth stocks and the inherent skewness in equity return distributions. This session takes a closer look at the structural and market-driven forces behind passive dominance, and considers the implications for both core and satellite portfolio construction and fund selection going forward.
Workshop Objectives:
• Examine the key structural and market factors that have made benchmarks difficult to beat—including index concentration, mega-cap leadership, and style persistence
• Identify criteria for selecting ETFs as core building blocks, focusing on cost, liquidity, tracking quality, and implementation efficiency
• Explore how ETFs can be used beyond core holdings to enhance diversification and express targeted investment views through thematic, factor-based, or regional exposures
Speakers
Haneen Sakhi
Product Specialist Xtrackers
Haneen Sakhi is part of Xtrackers within the DWS Product Division. She is involved in Xtrackers business development. In particular, her focus areas include index development and analysis, UCITS ETF structuring, and ESG strategies across the Xtrackers ETF range. Haneen joined DWS in 2022 and holds a Bachelor of Science in Economics from the University of Warwick.
Representatives
Alexander Boggis
Coverage Specialist
Alex Boggis joined Xtrackers in 2024.
Previously to his role, Alex has spent the last 4 years working at a boutique manager Alquity Investment Management covering UK sales for their ESG products. Before that, he was at Aberdeen Asset Management for 24 years initially in the UK but heading their Hong Kong business from 2000 until 2019.
Based in the South, Alex’s role as Business Development Manager, South of the UK ex-London focuses on supporting national & regional discretionary wealth managers, managed portfolio service providers and Independent financial advisers.