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People

Kensington has an active board of directors with business leaders from diverse backgrounds providing strategic advice to our firm. The board of directors holds formal meetings on a quarterly basis, with more frequent interactions on an ad hoc basis relating to specific issues. Our board of directors also provides advice to the Kensington managing directors where we encounter real or potential conflicts of interest. The thoughtful outside perspective of the Kensington board of directors is intended to ensure that Kensington consistently does the right thing with respect to its investors, its investments, and its other stakeholders.

Creating Value through Partnerships

Get to know our diverse portfolio of companies made of incredible people and businesses

Ash Lawrence MBA

Head of AGF Capital Partners
AGF Management Limited

Ash Lawrence is Head of AGF Capital Partners, AGF Management Limited’s (AGF) multi-boutique alternatives business with extensive capabilities across both private assets and alternative strategies. Ash is also a member of AGF’s Executive Management Team (EMT) where he participates in the development and execution of AGF’s overall business strategy providing insight and vision that promotes AGF’s long-term growth. Additionally, he chairs the boards of AGF Kensington Capital Partners and New Holland Capital.

As Head of AGF Capital Partners, Ash and his team identify tenured managers with demonstrated investment expertise in their fields, structuring partnerships to offer long-term strategic support, resources and capital to sustain and enhance the partners’ growth. They are continually looking to diversify and expand the business’ capabilities and alternatives offerings to meet clients’ evolving needs.

Ash is a seasoned leader with over two decades of experience in alternative and private market investments across sectors. Prior to joining AGF, Ash worked for Brookfield Asset Management, focused on real estate private equity investments and portfolio management in the Americas, ultimately leading the Canadian real estate business.

He earned an MBA from the Rotman School of Management and a Bachelor of Applied Science in Civil Engineering from the University of Waterloo.

Ash is a Global Governing Trustee for the Urban Land Institute and sits on the Board of Directors for UNICEF Canada.

Ken Tsang CFA®, MBA

Chief Financial Officer
AGF Management Limited

Ken brings expertise in wealth management, retail banking and capital markets, including private markets experience and also has global experience working in established and start-up environments in Canada, the U.S. and Asia.

Ken Tsang was appointed Chief Financial Officer, AGF Management Limited in June 2023. In this role, he is responsible for the oversight of AGF’s financial management, corporate development, financial reporting and controls, accounting and taxation as well as the firm’s Investor Relations function. He is also a member of AGF’s Executive Management Team.

He was most recently the Chief Financial Officer, Head of Strategy & Business Development at Capital One Canada. Prior to this, Ken was a Vice President of Strategy at BMO Financial Group and was part of the Financial Institutions practice of McKinsey & Company and the Investment Banking Division of Credit Suisse First Boston.

Ken has an Honours Bachelor of Arts, Chartered Accountancy from the University of Waterloo and a Master of Business Administration from The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania. He is also a CFA® and Chartered Accountant.

CFA® and Chartered Financial Analyst® are registered trademarks owned by CFA Institute.

Chris Jackson

President and Chief
Operating Officer
AGF Management Limited

Reporting to the CEO, Chris oversees the execution of strategic plans in support of business priorities and provides counsel on business planning and direction for corporate initiatives to AGF’s leadership team. Chris has been a member of AGF’s Executive Management Team since 2018.

As Chief Operating Officer, Chris provides strategic leadership and vision to promote AGF’s operational effectiveness and long-term growth. He oversees Operations, Technology and Fund Administration for the firm and is also responsible for leading the firm’s Legal & Compliance, Product & Marketing teams and AGF’s Private Wealth business, which includes Cypress, Doherty and Highstreet.

Chris has more than 35 years of varied experience leading organizations in the financial services and technology industries, including 14 years at AGF in progressively senior roles.

Prior to joining AGF, he managed the Canadian and technology operations for Belzberg Technologies, an equity and options trading software and electronic brokerage firm. He was also the President and CEO of IA Sciences, an investment operations outsourcer for separately managed wrap programs and held senior executive positions at Financial Models Corporation and Deloitte Consulting.

Chris has been a Board Member of Fundserv since April 2017 and currently serves as Chair. Chris was a coach with Oakville minor hockey and Halton Roller Hockey for over a decade.

He graduated with an Honours Bachelor of Mathematics from the University of Waterloo.

Richard Nathan

Senior Managing Director
Kensington Capital Partners

Senior Managing Director

Rick Nathan leads Kensington’s venture capital investment program as a Senior Managing Director and member of the firm’s Investment Committee. His career spans many years across the private equity and venture market as an industry leader, investor and professional advisor. Rick currently serves as an active board member of several companies within the Kensington venture portfolio, and as a member of the investor advisory committee of several of Canada’s leading venture funds.

Rick began his career as a corporate and securities lawyer at Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP, where he practiced law for 12 years, including as head of the firm’s Technology Business Group from 1995 to 1999. He then entered the investment industry as a Co-founding Partner of Brightspark Ventures, an early-stage venture capital firm. Rick served as President and Chair of CVCA- Canada’s Venture Capital and Private Equity Association from 2005 to 2012, and was a founding Co-Chair of CIX- Canadian Innovation Exchange from 2008 to 2016. Rick joined Kensington in 2005.

Rick is a graduate of Dartmouth College (Computer Science) and the University of Toronto Faculty of Law.

Thomas Kennedy

Senior Managing Director
Kensington Capital Partners

Tom Kennedy is the founder of Kensington Capital Partners and Chair of the Investment Committee.

Tom serves on the Advisory Boards of several private equity funds and private companies and has been an active supporter of the Private Equity and Venture Capital business in Canada. His public service and philanthropic work has been a longstanding, and focused on education and healthcare.

Tom’s previous experience includes 10 years in operational and management positions with Consolidation Coal Co. and Alberta Energy Company. He has investment banking experience as a senior executive with Bunting Warburg, Lancaster and TD Securities.

Tom holds a B.Sc.Eng. (Mining) from Queen’s University and a D.B.A. from the University of Edinburgh and is a professional engineer.

Eamonn McConnell

Senior Managing Director
Kensington Capital Partners

Eamonn McConnell is a Kensington Senior Managing Director and the Chief Investment Officer.

For over 35 years, Eamonn McConnell has been involved in the investment banking and global fund management business. Eamonn has worked in Canada, the UK and Asia during his career. He has worked for many large international institutions including Barclays Global Investors, Deutsche Bank and Merrill Lynch. In the late 1990s through 2002, he was a Managing Director at Deutsche Bank responsible for the pricing, underwriting and risk management of Deutsche Bank’s debt new issue business (Asia and Europe).

His areas of activity have ranged from capital markets work in both debt and equity products, the establishment of a mutual fund investment management company and the subsequent launch of several funds, to the establishment of a private equity fund management company. Eamonn has been an active investor in all types of assets and the management of risk products. He is currently a director of Gryphus Capital, a private equity firm he co-founded in 2002, which is based in Singapore. Eamonn served as the Deputy Chairman of the Alternative Investment Management Association (AIMA) Canada from 2008 – 2013.

Eamonn has an MBA from McGill University and HEC France, and the CAIA designation.