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Founding Partners

Ross Alexander, a Partner at DAC Capital.
Ross Alexander, a Partner at DAC Capital.
Piers Dawson, a Partner at DAC Capital.

  • Ross is a Partner at DAC Capital, which he co-founded. Prior to this, Ross was the majority shareholder and Executive Chairman of a leading Africa-focused advisory firm – a company of which he led a management buyout and later sold to a private equity backed global consultancy.

    Ross has almost two decades’ experience of supporting investors in Africa, particularly in the energy and FMCG sectors. He also has excellent political and private sector networks in the UK and Europe. Ross is an active investor in early-stage businesses.

    Ross started his career at UBS and then PepsiCo. He is a graduate of the University of Leeds.

Piers Dawson, a Partner at DAC Capital.

  • Piers is a Partner at DAC Capital. Before co-founding DAC Capital, Piers held senior roles in global and boutique advisory firms, supporting multinational clients operating in emerging markets. This included co-owning, leading, and selling a prominent Africa-focused consultancy.

    Piers has an extensive track record of operating at the nexus of business and politics in many African countries. He has worked with multinational companies, African listed corporates, and governments on various major investments and disputes.

    Piers began his career at Lloyds Banking Group. He holds degrees from the University of Cambridge and King’s College London.

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Chairman

  • Raphael is a global energy executive with four decades’ experience in leadership roles in the international oil and gas sector. He currently serves as a Non-Executive Director and Lead Independent Director at the Italian oil and gas major ENI S.p.A. 

    During his career, Raphael held various senior executive roles at ConocoPhillips. These included Vice President of Government Affairs and President of Operations in Nigeria and in Turkey. Raphael has also served as the Chairman of the International Association of Oil and Gas Producers, Chairman of IP Week, and as a Senior Advisor to AngloAmerican.

    Raphael was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) for his outstanding contribution to the energy sector in 2008. Since 2022, Raphael has been President of Malteser International, a global humanitarian organisation.

Advisors

  • Paul is a former senior British diplomat and a Non-Executive Director of the FTSE 100 company Africa Airtel Plc. Between 2015 and 2018, Paul was the British High Commissioner to Nigeria. Throughout his career, Paul held various other distinguished roles within the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) including CEO of the UK-Africa Investment Summit, UK Government COP26 Regional Ambassador for Sub-Saharan Africa, and British Ambassador to the Kingdom of the Netherlands.

    Following his retirement from the Diplomatic Service in 2020, Paul founded the consultancy Arkwright Advisory Ltd, which DAC Capital collaborates with on Africa-related transactions.

    Paul was appointed Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George (CMG) for services to foreign policy in 2016.

  • Kirsten is a senior leader in UK and European pre-seed venture capital. She is a Partner at Octopus Ventures — one of Europe’s largest and most active venture investors — having joined the company in 2021 to launch and lead its First Cheque Fund. Prior to this, Kirsten was Managing Director of CyLon, Europe’s first cybersecurity and deep tech accelerator, where she invested in and supported more than 60 startups.

    Kirsten has held various other senior positions focused on early-stage investing. She was part of the original team and General Manager at Seedcamp Investment Management, which backed trailblazing companies such as Revolut and Wise. Kirsten also served as a board member of Capital for Enterprise, a UK government-owned company that invested £1.8 billion in British SMEs.

  • Patrick is one of East Africa’s leading entrepreneurs and businesspeople. He is the founder, Chairman, and CEO of the Simba Group of Companies, an East Africa conglomerate with companies spanning telecommunications, real estate, power generation, agro-business, mining, tourism, and media. 

    Patrick is the Chairman of Umeme Limited and a board member of various other organisations including Bolloré Logistics Uganda and Mulago National Hospital. Previously Patrick was the Chairman of the Uganda Private Sector Foundation and Chairman of the Uganda Investment Authority.