Meet our team

Our core team

Lisa Smith

Dr Lisa Smith

CEO
Lisa has over 25 years global investment experience, and has conceived of and/or fundraised 5 funds. An engineer by training, she maintains an advisory role in sustainability as part of Cambridge Institute for Sustainable Leadership. She is an alumnus of Harvard Business School, and formerly led teams at Unilever and BTommorow.
Jonny Potter

Jonny Potter

CFO
Jonny is an experienced Capital Markets and Sustainable Finance executive. He was previously Global Head of Distribution for Equities at Deutsche Bank and an investment consultant at Oxford Sciences Enterprises. Jonny is a Birmingham University alum and a qualified Chartered Accountant.
Liz Dainty

Liz Dainty

Finance Director
Liz is a chartered accountant with over 25 years of experience in both large corporate entities and small start-ups. For the last 10 years she has worked with a number of University spinouts helping to secure both private and grant funding and managing the financial and governance aspects of the companies.
Amanda Marie Cardinale

Amanda M. Cardinale

Health & Life Sciences Lead
Amanda is a health and life sciences investor and consultant with 18 years of experience across finance, neuroscience, and health care innovation. She has worked with a range of companies from early-stage start-ups to large international institutions, is an advisor to the American Cancer Society's entrepreneur programme, and was an adjunct faculty member at Columbia University. Amanda previously led a team at Health 2.0’s digital health consulting arm and spent eight years with Merrill Lynch/Bank of America originating alternative investments for a $30B platform. She holds an M.Sc. in Neuroscience from Columbia University and a B.Sc. in Finance from St. John's University.
Daniel Carew

Daniel Carew

Deep Tech Lead
Daniel is an experienced deeptech investor across multiple sectors, with an Engineering degree from the University of Toronto, and a PhD from the University of Bristol, specialising in Materials Chemistry. He has experience in DeepTech through roles at Seraphim Space Fund where he invested across Europe at Series A-C; and at IQ Capital, a fund focused on Seed- Series A investments in University spinouts.
Jessica Zoutsos

Jessica Zoutsos

Investment Advisor
Jess has investment experience spanning the early to late stages through roles with BGF, Northern Gritstone and Goldman Sachs. She is currently Executive Chair of Capitalex and NED for SMEs in law and real estate. She holds degrees in civil engineering and finance from UCL and LSE.
Chloe Hall

Chloe Hall

Investment Associate
Chloe holds a PhD in Neuroscience and Engineering from the University of Brighton and UCL, and postdoc experience in Mainz, Germany. She has experience in deep-tech venture investing through Empirical Ventures and has worked in operational roles at early-stage biotech companies and with Alma Angels, an angel investing community focused on female founders.
Priya Reddy

Priya Reddy

Investor
Priya is an investor focused on healthcare, life sciences, and climate tech innovation. She has backed early-stage and growth companies at venture capital funds across the UK and US, with prior experience spanning impact investing and healthcare investment banking. She holds an MBA from London Business School.

Our Board

Mike Rees

Michael Rees

Chairman
Deputy Chair of the Supervisory Board, and Chair of the Board Risk Committee at ING Bank. Chair of the board of Travelex and Chair of the Board of the Mauritius Africa Fintech Association. Until 2016, he was the Deputy Group Chief Executive Officer of Standard Chartered Bank. In 2019, Mike authored the UKRI report investigating ways of strengthening university access to finance in a way that supports spinout company formation and university-investor relationships. Fellow of both university and commercial boards and Mindforge's boards.
Christina McComb

Christina McComb

OBE
Non-Executive Director
Christina McComb is currently the Chair of Aegon UK, a leading UK pensions and insurance company. She is a highly experienced director, including NED / Chair roles at Seraphim, Nesta and Big Society Capital, and a former Senior Ind. Director role at British Business Bank. She was also CEO at C5Capital, where she invested in cyber, space and energy security.
Nick Jennings

Prof Nick Jennings

Non-Executive Director
Nick Jennings is the vice-provost for research and enterprise at Imperial College London. He is a professor in the field of artificial intelligence and has published numerous studies and papers in the area.
Erica Conway

Erica Conway

Non-Executive Director
Erica is a Chartered Accountant, who has been at University of Birmingham since 2010, becoming CFO in 2022. She is also Chair of the British Universities Finance Directors Group (BUFDG). She has spearheaded initiatives such as development of the Dubai campus, a student housing scheme and exanded online education.
Richard Swann

Richard Swann

Non-Executive Director
Richard is the Chair of UK Private Equity, a Partner at Inflexion Private Equity and Chair of the investment committee. He is a member of the Council of University of Birmingham, and was previously a partner with Deloitte and it's predeccessor firm, Arthur Andersen.
Yewande Akinola

Yewande Akinola

MBE
Non-Executive Director
Yewande Akinola brings considerable industry experience and has been a champion of innovative businesses throughout her career. She currently serves as VP for the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET), is an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering, and is an alum of both Warwick and Cranfield. .
Nik Kotecha

Nik Kotecha

OBE DL
Non-Executive Director
Nik is the Pro-Chancellor of De Montfort University, as well as being an internationally renowned businessman, scientist, influencer and serial entrepreneur. He founded and led the growth of leading Midlands-based developer and manufacturer of generic medicines, Morningside Pharmaceuticals Ltd, and is Founder and Chairman of RandalSun Capital. He holds many national and regional roles on boards as diverse as The Prince's Trust Council and the Centre for Social Justice. He was awarded an honorary Doctor of Science by the University of Leicester, and is an Honorary Professor for De Montfort University, recognising his contributions to entrepreneurship, innovation and the scientific community.
Jamie Clyde

Jamie Clyde

Non-Executive Director
Jamie is a strategic advisor to West Midlands Combined Authority, West Midlands Growth Company and The Rigby Group on innovation, investment and economic development. He was previously a director of Bruntwood SciTech, running Innovation Birmingham and Melbourne Science Park in Cambridge while managing business and investment support services across Bruntwood's network of six regional innovation districts. Jamie was appointed by EMCCA, Rigby and WMCA as part of the Advance Raise.
Expert Guidance

Our dedicated Scientific Advisory Council

Prof David Haddleton

Prof David Haddleton

Chemistry & Polymer Science
Professor David Haddleton is a distinguished chemist specialising in polymer synthesis and catalysis. His research has pioneered new techniques in controlled radical polymerisation with applications across materials science.
Prof Christine Foyer

Prof Christine Foyer

Plant Science & Agriculture
Professor Christine Foyer is an internationally recognised expert in plant biology and crop improvement. Her work on antioxidant metabolism has major implications for food security and sustainable agriculture.
Prof Pete Scott

Prof Pete Scott

Chemistry & Innovation
Professor Pete Scott combines expertise in synthetic chemistry with a deep interest in innovation and knowledge exchange, bridging academic research and commercial application.
Prof Sir Jonathan Van Tam

Prof Sir Jonathan Van Tam

Public Health & Epidemiology
Professor Sir Jonathan Van Tam served as England's Deputy Chief Medical Officer during the Covid-19 pandemic. He is a leading authority on influenza and respiratory viruses at the University of Nottingham.
Prof Chris Brightling

Prof Chris Brightling

Public Health & Epidemiology
Professor Chris Brightling is a leading expert on clinical management and understanding immunopathogenesis of respiratory diseases. He is a fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences and senior investigator for the NIHR.
Prof Yulong Ding

Prof Yulong Ding

Energy & Engineering
Professor Yulong Ding FREng is a leading expert in energy storage and clean energy technologies. His research at Birmingham focuses on thermal energy storage and cryogenic energy systems.
Prof Anna Hine

Prof Anna Hine

Biotechnology
Professor Anna Hine is a biotechnology expert specialising in protein engineering, diagnostics, and molecular biology with extensive experience in translating research into commercial applications.