The latest moves and appointments for wealth management roles in the UK, other parts of Europe, the Middle East and select international locations.

Finserve Global Security Fund

A former top US military leader, Lieutenant General (Ret) Ben Hodges (pictured below) has brought his insights to the advisory board of the Finserve Global Security Fund. 

Ben Hodges 

The fund says it is the first actively managed global defence fund to be launched in the UK and European markets, coming at a time when calls for higher defence spending in Europe have grown louder, affecting a number of sectors – as reported here, here and here. The fund was started in 2019.

As Commanding General of US Army Europe, Hodges led US land forces across the continent.

In his new role, Hodges will serve as principal strategic advisor working with another former senior military figure, Lieutenant General (Ret.) Karl Engelbrektson, head of the advisory board and former Chief of the Swedish Army, as well as lead portfolio manager, Joakim Agerback. 

Hodges will support the portfolio managers in evaluating long-term capability requirements and the company’s positioning within the security landscape, Finserve said in a statement.

Welrex

William Bethell (pictured below) has been appointed chief compliance officer at Welrex, the digital wealth management platform.

William Bethell 

Bethell is a senior compliance executive with more than 30 years’ experience in financial services regulation. He has served in senior leadership roles at JPMorgan Chase, HSBC and Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank. Bethell started his career as a financial advisor at Deloitte.

During his career, Bethell has carried out assignments in London, New York, Hong Kong, Geneva and Abu Dhabi.

Bethell has a bachelor of science degree with honours from Bristol University and is a qualified chartered accountant.

Ogier

Ogier, an offshore professional services firm, has confirmed five promotions in three jurisdictions within its trusts advisory group, drawing together contentious and non-contentious practitioners from its dispute resolution and private wealth teams.

In Guernsey, Diana Rodriguez and Katy Longan have progressed to counsel. Matthew Davies and Ralph Spencer-Tucker have been promoted to managing associate in Jersey. In the BVI, Romauld Johnson has been progressed to senior associate.

Rodriguez advises on a wide range of contentious and non-contentious trust, foundation and private client matters. She has a keen interest in pensions and employee share schemes and has previously participated on the sub-committee of the Guernsey Association of Pension Providers. Rodriguez was admitted to the Guernsey bar in 2022 and is an affiliate member of STEP.

Longan is a Guernsey advocate specialising in commercial litigation, contentious trusts, regulatory matters and the enforcement of judgments. She regularly advises clients in high-value, multi-jurisdictional disputes and is a “consummate trial lawyer with tactical knowledge and a forensic attention to detail,” the firm said in a statement.

Davies is an experienced contentious trusts and disputes lawyer, who deals with commercial and financial disputes, shareholder disputes, regulatory and restructuring and insolvency matters. He qualified as a Jersey advocate in 2021.

Spencer-Tucker is a Jersey advocate covering contentious and non-contentious trust applications, commercial and financial litigation matters, regulatory investigations and contentious insolvencies. Johnson concentrates on insolvency and restructuring matters, as well as commercial litigation and digital assets and crypto disputes.

Maven Capital Partners

UK private equity firm Maven Capital Partners has made two appointments for its Scottish team, strengthening its investment capability and expanding its growth in Scotland.

Nicola Holloway, who is joining as portfolio director, will be based in Glasgow. She will work closely with Maven’s Scottish portfolio companies supporting new investment activity across the region. Previously she was with The Weir Group, where she had served as corporate development manager since 2023, supporting the Group’s M&A strategy and execution. Prior to that, Holloway spent 12 years at Grant Thornton, building extensive experience advising owner-managed and private equity backed businesses on corporate finance transactions.

Andrew Leslie is also joining as portfolio director in Glasgow. He will be responsible for the portfolio companies and supporting them alongside the investment team. Leslie was formerly with Scottish investment firm N4 Partners, where he had been investment director since its inception in 2020. Before that, he worked at PwC and Leslie Corporate Finance. Leslie is a chartered accountant with experience of advising entrepreneurs, management teams and investors.

“We are delighted to welcome Nicola and Andrew to Maven. Both bring excellent investment and corporate finance experience and are highly complementary to our existing team,” David Milroy, partner at Maven, said. “Maintaining a strong, locally-based team is fundamental to our regional led approach and allowing us to work closely with the management teams we proudly support.”