Campbell Neal, Managing Director (MD) & Portfolio Manager (PM)

Campbell is a co-founder and Managing Director of K2 Asset Management. In conjunction with this role, Campbell is a Senior Portfolio Manager in the Australian and Asian investment strategies.

Campbell was a barrister and solicitor of the Supreme Court of Victoria before moving into financial services in 1986, when he became an Institutional Equities Dealer for Citicorp Scrimgeour Vickers. Prior to founding K2, Campbell was an Executive Vice President of Bankers Trust Australia Ltd, where he was Head of Australian Equities Distribution (Melbourne and Asia).

Years in industry: 36 yrs 
Years at firm: 23 yrs

David Poppenbeek, Chief Investment Officer (CIO) & Portfolio Manager (PM)

David is the joint-CIO for the K2 investment funds. In conjunction with his responsibilities as joint-CIO, David dedicates his time managing an allocation of the Australian and Asian equity strategies.

David previously held senior roles as Division Director Institutional Equities Sales for Macquarie Bank, Vice President Institutional Equities Sales for Bankers Trust Australia Ltd and a Quantitative Analyst at Daiwa Securities Ltd. David holds a Bachelor of Applied Science (Mathematics) from RMIT.

Years in industry: 31 yrs 
Years at firm: 19 yrs

Bill Laister, Portfolio Manager (PM)

Over 30 years experience in the financial services industry as Senior Portfolio Manager, Head of Australian Equities, Head of Trading and Resources Analyst. He has worked at several organisations as Senior Portfolio Manager at Contango Asset Management (initial shareholder, 1999), Head of Australasian Equities HSBC AM, Director Contango MicroCap Ltd (ASX listed), and various roles at Wilsons and Co and Morgans Stockbroking in the 1980s.

Bill has been involved in resources analysis, portfolio construction and management through out his career. He was part of the first listed Australian MicroCap mandate in 2004 which saw FUM grow to be the largest in the local market. He has travelled regularly reviewing greenfield sites, mining operations and industrial growth opportunities. Bill joined K2 as the co-PM for the Annapurna Microcap Fund in September 2020. 

Years in industry: 36 yrs 
Years at firm: 3 yrs

George Boubouras, Managing Director (MD) Head of Research & Investment Advisory

George is a Managing Director (MD) and Head of Research, Investments and Advisory at K2. He joined the K2 team in January 2020 and has over 25 years’ experience in the financial services industry.

George is also a Director and Investment Advisor at Salter Brothers Asset Management (SBAM); IC member of Paua Wealth Management (Auckland) and part of the Advisory Board at the International Centre for Financial Services (ICFS) at The University of Adelaide and part-time finance lecturer.

Previous roles include CIO at SBAM, Managing Director (MD) and CIO at Contango Asset Management; Executive Director (ED) and Head of Investment Strategy and Consulting at UBS; CIO and Head of Asset Management at Equity Trustees; Senior Investment Manager at HSBC Global Asset Management; Investment Strategist at Macquarie Group; Economist at Westpac, NSW Treasury and SBC (now UBS); Director Blues Foundation at The Carlton Football Club and Director at Women in Banking and Finance (WiBF).

Years in industry: 30 yrs 
Years at firm: 4 yrs

Marcela Tirado, Head of Relationship Management and Corporate Services

Marcela joined K2 Asset Management in March 2021 as Corporate Services Manager. She has previous experience in commercial banks, insurance brokering, financial services, funds management and registered training organizations.

Marcela has a degree in Finance and International Commerce at Rosario University in Bogota, Colombia, Certificate IV and Diploma in Accounting at Lonsdale Institute and Master of Professional Accounting and Master of Business Administration in Melbourne.

Years in industry: 14 yrs 
Years at firm: 2 yrs

Sarah Connelly, Head of Investor Relations

Sarah joined K2 Asset Management in July 2023 as Head of Investor Relations with over 10 years experience in financial services. Starting her career in Financial Planning, she later moved to New York City where she worked as part of the management team who were responsible for the strategic turnaround of an ASX listed REIT with over $1b in assets. 

Sarah has a Bachelor of Business (Finance) from the University of Technology, Sydney as well as a Diploma in Financial Services (RG146).

 Years in Industry: 10 yrs

Hollie Wight, Managing Director (MD), Head of RE & Trustee Services

Hollie is Chief Financial Officer and an Executive Director of K2, responsible for all financial accounting and report preparation for both the operating company and the investment funds.

Hollie was previously an accountant/auditor at PricewaterhouseCoopers. Hollie is a CPA and has a Bachelor of Business (Accountancy) from RMIT.

Years in industry: 25 yrs 
Years at firm: 23 yrs

Andrew Poppenbeek, Head of IT and System Development

Andrew joined the K2 team in 2010 as the Head of IT and System Development. He has spent his whole career developing equity portfolio software and databases.

Andrew started his career at Daiwa Securities in 1992 and then moved to GMO Australia in 1995. In 1997 Andrew joined the Commonwealth Bank before commencing at MIR Investment Management in 2006. Andrew holds a Bachelor of Science and a Graduate Diploma of Economic Studies (Econometrics) from Monash University.

DJ Lee, Legal Counsel

DJ joined K2 Asset Managment in February 2021 as Legal Counsel with over 10 years experience in financial services, compliance and risk management.

Having started her career as a business analyst with Macquarie Capital – Financial Products (now Macquarie Funds Group) in 2007, DJ has worked in funds management, trustee and custodian services as well as securitisation at Perpetual and Bank of New York Mellon respectively. Prior to joining K2, DJ was with the Wealth and Capital Markets group at Australian Unity advising the equity and property funds management teams as well as working on the group’s registry transition and operations projects.   

DJ has a Bachelor of Commerce (International Business): Hons / Law from the University of New South Wales.

Years in industry: 16 yrs 
Years at firm: 2 yrs

Lisa Sun, Financial Accountant

Lisa Joined K2 Asset Management in April 2020 as Financial Accountant with previous experience in business services and taxation at various accounting firms.

Lisa is a CA and has a degree in Bachelor of Business (Professional Accountancy) from RMIT.

Years in industry: 3 yrs 
Years at firm: 3 yrs

Mark Tandiono, Accountant

Mark joined K2 Asset Management in September 2016 as a Fund Accountant.

Mark is responsible for the financial accounting and report preparation of the investment funds as well as managing the internal market making procedures for the K2 Australian Small Cap Fund and Apostle Dundas Global Equity Fund ETFs.

Mark holds a Bachelor of Commerce and International Relations and a Graduate Certificate of Artificial Intelligence from Deakin University.

Years in industry: 7 yrs 
Years at firm: 7 yrs

Alvin Hamdja, Fund Accountant

Alvin joined K2 Asset Management in April 2023 as a Fund Accountant, responsible for supporting the financial administration of the operating company and the investment funds. Previously, Alvin worked as a finance assistant in the healthcare sector.

Alvin holds a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Melbourne and a Master of Business from Monash University.

Years in industry: 1 year

Mandy Wu, Fund Accounting Manager

Mandy joined K2 Asset Management in July 2023 as a Fund Accounting Manager, experienced in providing end-to-end fund accounting services for equities, managed investment schemes, and US property and private equity funds.

 Mandy is a CA and has a degree in Commerce/Arts from UNSW.

 Years in Industry: 8 yrs

Mary Ma, Assistant Manager - Fund accounting

Mary joined K2 Asset Management in July 2023 as an Assistant Manager - Fund accounting. 

Mary is responsible for providing end-to-end fund accounting and reporting services for private equities funds, managed investment schemes and a joint venture company. 

Mary is a CPA and holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from Macquarie University and a Master of Commerce degree from University of Sydney. 

Years in Industry: 14 yrs 

Kristine Alfafara, Fund Accounting Manager

Kristine joined K2 Asset Management in July 2023 as Fund Accounting Manager.

Kristine started her career in financial accounting for a commercial bank, before moving into fund administration for asset management firms where she looked after the fund accounting and reporting requirements for listed and unlisted funds with investment strategies in private equity, real estate, credit and infrastructure. 

Kristine is a CPA and has a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Sydney.

Years in industry: 10 yrs

David Court,

David is a partner at Holley Nethercote Lawyers and one of the external members of the Compliance Committee for the K2 investment funds. David specialises in advising on the various laws regulating the financial services industry with a particular focus on the funds management industry.

David has worked at Holley Nethercote for over 10 years.  After beginning his career at one of Australia’s largest law firms, he worked for over 15 years at Mercer Australia, reaching the position of Corporate Counsel. He presently sits as an external member on a number of compliance committees.

LLB/BComm

Years in industry: 30 yrs 

Murray Jones,

Murray is a risk and compliance management specialist with expertise in investment management, superannuation and insurance.  He is the managing director of Compliance and Risk Services Pty Ltd, a company he founded in 2002, which provides risk and compliance management services to financial institutions including; funds managers, superannuation trustees, financial advisers and private equity.  He has acted as an independent expert under ASIC enforceable undertakings and litigation involving superannuation director’s duties, chaired institutional compliance committees and acted as a responsible manager for AFS licences.  He is currently a non-executive director of Arrow Funds Management Ltd. He previously held senior roles with National Mutual/AXA Group and worked for the Australian Securities Commission.

BSc(Hons)/Grad. Dip. App. Finance and Investments/Foundation DFP

Years in industry: 30 yrs 

Lux Ramachandran,

Lux is the Head of Risk at Estia Health Ltd, Australia’s largest ASX-listed provider of residential aged care with over 7,500 employees operating across 73 sites in New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria and South Australia. Lux oversees risk management, compliance and internal audit aspects of the group’s operations.

Having started her career specialising in tax compliance and superannuation with the Australian Taxation Office, Lux transitioned into risk and compliance management roles at Perpetual Ltd. At Perpetual, Lux implemented and oversaw the Corporate Trust and Private Wealth business’ operational and compliance risks including holding positions in their Breach Committee and divisional Risk Management Committees.

Lux was also previously the Global Manager of Assurance, Risk and Compliance at CBRE, managing a portfolio of 110 sites across 30 different countries. She has also held senior risk and compliance roles at Liberty Specialty Markets and Insurance Australia Group.

Bcomm (Accounting and Info Sys)/Master of Taxation Law

Years in industry: 20 yrs