Our Team The team that make up Ambassador are  Richard Darke, Peter Tiffin, David Twiss, Andrew Vrech, Angus Carson and Christina Yip .  Back to Top Richard Darke (BA, FICB) Chairman Richard is one of the founders of Ambassador which was established in 2004. He has broad experience and a record of success in building businesses in the institutional financial services industry over a period of more than 40 years across four continents – Canada, the UK, Hong Kong and Australia. Following many years as a bank credit analyst and lender to public-listed corporate clients, Richard spent 15 years in institutional fund management marketing with Fidelity Investments. He established and managed Fidelity’s Hong Kong office and was then responsible for opening the Australian office, growing global equity assets from zero to A$7 billion over a 5 year period. In 2002, Richard was appointed Head of Institutional Business at Credit Suisse Asset Management, Australia where he was responsible for the reorganisation and management of the business development and client service structure. CSAM Australia utilised, at that time, the services of Capital International for global equities management, and was one of the 10 largest clients of Capital International with over A$7 billion assets under management. Richard’s team was responsible for business acquisition for this product as well as liaising between the clients and the US domiciled fund managers. Richard has now retired from day to day line management responsibilities at Ambassador and, as of 1 January 2010, has been appointed Chairman. In this capacity he works part time and plays more of a macro role in helping direct the company’s business. He is well known and respected amongst clients and asset consultants. Back to Top Peter Tiffin (B Comm. ASIA, GAICD, MBA, ACA) Director After spending a number of years with Price Waterhouse and being admitted to the Australian Institute of Chartered Accountants, Peter ventured into the world of entertainment working for one of Australia’s leading entertainment impresarios, Paul Dainty. Peter then moved to the financial industry where he has subsequently had over 15 years experience which has included working for the asset management arms of two global powerhouses, HSBC and Credit Suisse. Over this time he has built strong relationships with many of the leading researchers and asset consultants as well as the gate keepers to many of the largest and most influential superannuation funds. Peter has been instrumental in the launch of several successful income focused products in Australia including Syndicated/(Leveraged) Loans, Hybrids and High Yield funds. A firm believer in the benefits of education for clients, Peter successfully launched a number of such initiatives at Credit Suisse which have been directly attributed to mandate wins by the clients. Peter has extensive marketing experience of the listed property, direct property and fixed interest asset classes. In addition to being a Chartered Accountant, he is a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, a holder of the Graduate Diploma in Applied Finance and Investment from the Australian Securities Institute and was awarded an MBA from the MGSM (Macquarie). Back to Top David Twiss  Director David has over 22 years financial markets experience gained in Australia, the U.S and U.K where he held senior management and marketing and sales positions. Over his career he has demonstrated a strong track record in asset gathering and client retention. In addition he has consulted on marketing and sales strategies, engaged in market research and product development and the establishment of domestic and offshore investment vehicles. In addition to successfully establishing his own specialist consulting practice directed towards the investment management industry David was a Founding Principal of a specialist Australian equity boutique investment manager. In this capacity David was instrumental in the establishment and development of all aspects of the company’s business including sales and marketing, product development, business management and investment operations. Prior to this David spent 10 years at HSBC Asset Management where he was Head of Institutional Business at HSBC Asset Management (Americas) Inc, New York and an Associate Director at their Melbourne operation. At HSBC, David was pivotal in building new institutional business in both traditional and alternative investment offerings and key client retention. David also spent five years in London, as General Manager of MAP Fund Managers Ltd (London), a joint venture company between Spain's largest insurance company MAPFRE and Skandia Life of Sweden. Previous to this he was responsible for investment marketing at Paribas Asset Management (U.K) Ltd. In both roles he was responsible for the sales and marketing of traditional and quantitative investment management products to U.K, Irish and European institutional investors. Back to Top Andrew Vrech (BEng(Hons)) Director Andrew had ten years experience at William M. Mercer working in a variety of roles including actuarial analyst, administration project manager, pension consultant and investment consultant. In 1993 he was selected to establish an investment consulting practice in the Mercer Hong Kong office. Over two and a half years there he built the practice into a credible alternative in the marketplace and won a number of major clients. In 1997 Andrew moved to Fidelity Investments as Manager, Business Development where he was involved in all aspects of business development and client servicing. Whilst at Fidelity funds under management went from A$0.5bn to $A7bn and Andrew was responsible for the attainment of a number of blue-chip clients. Andrew has a strong reputation in the market with both the investment consultant fraternity that he understands well and the key decision makers at the major superannuation funds. Back to Top Angus Carson (B.Bus, F Fin) Associate Director Angus has over 13 years of broad experience in the financial services industry, including roles in custody, middle and front office funds management, investment consulting and institutional business development, both in Australia and overseas. Prior to joining the financial services industry Angus spent 6 years in chartered accounting. Following 6 years in Chartered Accounting Angus moved to a tax and accounting role with State Street Custodians in Sydney in 1994. Angus then joined Bankers Trust Funds Management in 1995, initially as a Fund Accountant, and then as a Business Manager for their international equities division. Angus then relocated to the UK and worked for a number of firms on contracting assignments before moving to Tokyo in 2000 with Deutsche Asset Management as an Investment Specialist for their Japanese equities business. Angus returned to Australia and joined Intech Investment Consulting in 2004, as a Senior Consultant, before moving to Merrill Lynch Investment Managers as the Investment Specialist for their Australian Equity teams. In late 2006 Angus joined Macquarie Bank to establish and head up the institutional sales function for the Macquarie Professional Series range of fund managers. Within the investment management industry Angus has strong product knowledge across a range of strategies including fundamental and quantitative approaches in equities, hedge funds, multi-manager funds, and property. Angus has a strong track record in client service and sales, and has built a sound reputation amongst asset consultants and institutional investors, both in Australia and overseas. . Back to Top Christina Yip Client Service and Office Manager Christina has 15 years administration and client service experience. Prior to joining Ambassador Funds Management Services, Christina worked with Richard Darke and Andrew Vrech in the Sydney office of Fidelity Investments where she was responsible for office management. Christina brings to Ambassador strong experience and skills in customer and sales support. Amongst other client service duties, Christina is responsible for liaising between the fund managers and the investors, ensuring reports are accurate and received on a timely basis.