Direct Investment Group

Overview

Our Direct Investment Group comprises specialist teams that sit alongside our Advisory Group and Chief Investment Office.

They assist clients seeking to complement their core portfolio with institutional-quality direct private and public investments.

The Group offers services in two discrete areas – direct investment opportunities and direct fixed income.
Direct Investment Opportunities

Direct investment opportunities can benefit clients looking to complement their portfolios with tactical investments that have a higher risk and return profile. The team has particular expertise in identifying and structuring such opportunities, including off-market deals that are ordinarily difficult to access.

Direct investments in the private sector can include early-stage private equity, private debt, and property projects.

Public investments can include equity IPOs or pre-IPO offerings, listed property deals and listed hybrid issuance.

Meet Ed Brooke

Investment Advisor / Partner

“Our direct investment team provides guided access to direct senior and subordinated debt, hybrid securities, asset-backed securities, and private debt and equity transactions. We believe this offering is unique to Escala and enables us to provide the most comprehensive investment options to our clients.”

Meet Simon Dawkins

Head – Capital Markets / Partner

“The core of every successful client relationship is trust and a true understanding of a client’s risk/return profile. This not only requires a thorough understanding of the direct investment market but the old-fashioned ability to really listen and respond to a client’s needs.”

Meet Henry Moore

Advisor – Capital Markets

“Henry began his career in accounting and financial services in 2017 and has a deep understanding of Australian wholesale fixed income and private debt markets. Working with our Direct Investments Team, he is assisting the delivery of bespoke outcomes for clients through direct investment opportunities, in particular our fixed-income curated portfolio offering.”

Meet Stephen Dickinson

Investment Analyst / Partner

“The collaborative nature of the group, the quality of staff, and the overarching culture of excellence are some of the key differences at Escala. This, coupled with the rigorous, independent and high-quality research process, is what attracted me to the firm.”

Meet Sandy Hartley

Associate – Capital Markets

“Prior to joining our direct investment group in 2018, Sandy was a foreign exchange dealer with the mining company Orica, responsible for the funding of their daily operational requirements, the execution of trades, and issuance of debt in the financial market.”

Direct Fixed Income

This service can suit clients exploring investments to meet their targeted objectives with regard to capital stability, income stream, liquidity levels, risk, and return.

Direct fixed income investments can range from direct bonds to senior and subordinated debt and hybrid securities.

Applying their specialist expertise, the team can call on institutional markets and pricing to curate fixed income portfolios that are secure and transparent, and structured to optimise client returns.