Credit Suisse hires former Pomona exec

Credit Suisse has appointed former Pomona Capital executive Mark McDonald as a director for its secondaries advisory activities in Europe, according to a statement from the bank.

This spring, the bank had said it wanted to increase its secondaries focus and it announced plans to hire an executive to help “round out their secondary capabilities”. McDonald will focus on the bank’s activities in Europe, Middle East, Africa and Asia. He will work alongside, Jonathan Abecassis, who has been the group’s vice president since 2006, according to his LinkedIn profile.

Prior to joining Credit Suisse, McDonald was a principal investor at firms including Keyhaven Capital and Pomona Capital, according to the statement. McDonald has previously focused on direct secondaries transactions and over the past decade deployed over $1.5 billion in commitments. His experience also includes working for Barclays Capital in Europe and Asia, the statement read.

Credit Suisse’s private fund group is undergoing organisational changes this year. The group’s co-heads John Robertshaw and Anthony Bowe will transition out of day-to-day leadership at the end of the year, Private Equity International previously wrote. Michael Murphy and Kevin Naughton will become the new co-heads, while Robertshaw becomes chairman. It is unclear what type of role Bowe will step into but he will remain with the team to ensure a seamless transition, a Credit Suisse spokesperson told PEI earlier.

Credit Suisse’s private fund group raises capital for primary and secondary private equity investments. Since its inception, it has placed close to $400 billion in private fund interests.