A global secondaries firm that harnesses next generation technology
Our firm
Clipway is a global private equity secondaries firm that leverages proprietary technology to optimize its investment decisions. Clipway was founded by seasoned investors and data scientists who identified an opportunity to apply technology to improve traditional secondaries investing.
The firm is focused on investing in LP portfolios of quality buyout and growth managers principally in North America and Western Europe. Clipway’s investment process is supported by its Tech-Enabled Secondaries System (TESS) – a next-generation, fully integrated investment tool, with a focus on precision, speed and continuous learning.
The partners at Clipway have a history of building trusted relationships with some of the world’s largest investment institutions and are focused on long-term strategic partnerships. Clipway aims to deliver the most attractive private equity risk-adjusted returns to our investors.
The firm has a global presence with headquarters in London and an office New York.
The firm was founded on the principles of independence, innovation, and partnership.
Strategy
Clipway harnesses the latest innovations in data science to invest in LP-led secondary opportunities.
Focus on LP-Led Secondaries
Clipway is focused on acquiring high-quality, diversified LP-led portfolios on the secondary market, principally consisting of blue-chip private equity buyout and growth funds in North America and Western Europe.
Tech-Enabled Secondaries System (TESS)
Clipway’s investment process is supported by its Tech-Enabled Secondaries System (TESS) – a next-generation, fully integrated investment and monitoring tool, with a focus on increasing precision, speed and continuous learning.
Leadership team
Clipway’s team consists of veteran secondaries investors, institutional asset allocators and data scientists who are harnessing proprietary technology to improve traditional secondaries investing.
Vincent Gombault
Managing Partner • London
Vincent is a Managing Partner and member of the founding team of Clipway.
Prior to Clipway, Vincent co-founded Ardian (previously AXA Private Equity), having joined AXA Private Equity in 1998. He was an Executive Board Member and the Global Head of Funds of Funds and Private Debt at Ardian until his departure in December 2020.
As Head of Ardian Fund of Funds, he led the creation of the platform, developing both the primary and secondary activities from their origin. As such he was involved in all aspects of investment and corporate management, from organization, fundraising, execution, monitoring and new product launches. He chaired the Fund of Funds investment committees, and was a member of the co-investment, private debt, infrastructure, and buyout committees. As Executive Board member at Ardian, he oversaw and managed the company’s growth and spin-out from AXA Private Equity.
He has previously worked at Compagnie Industrielle du Levant and in M&A at Société Générale. He started his career in the French Trade Commission in Detroit in 1990.
Vincent holds a Master’s in Finance from ESSEC Business school (where he was subsequently a professor and continues to hold an annual lecture) and a Law degree from Paris X.
Ingmar Vallano
Managing Partner • London
Ingmar is a Managing Partner and member of the founding team of Clipway.
Prior to Clipway, he worked at Ardian (previously AXA Private Equity), which he joined in 2005. He was a Senior Managing Director at Ardian focusing on Fund-of-Funds and Co-investment until his departure in May 2021. In addition to his role in sourcing and executing transactions, he was involved in all organizational aspects of the Fund-of-funds business, from to risk management to fund finance, IT, legal and compliance.
He holds a Master’s degree from ESSEC Business school where he currently holds an annual lecture.
J David Enriquez
Partner • New York
David is a Partner and member of the founding team of Clipway.
Prior to Clipway, David was a Managing Director at Rothschild Five Arrows. As Head of U.S. Origination, he sourced private equity deal flow across secondaries, primaries and co-investments.
Before joining Rothschild, he was Head of Private Equity for the Bureau of Asset Management in the Office of the New York City Comptroller. In this role, he managed a $23 billion private equity portfolio for the five New York City retirement systems (Teachers, Employees, Fire, Police and Board of Education) and successfully established a private equity co-investment program.
Previously, he was an investment banker at Rothschild & Co, Merrill Lynch and Bear Stearns where he worked on financing and strategic advisory transactions. David began his career as an M&A lawyer at Sullivan & Cromwell.
David holds an A.B. from Brown University, magna cum laude; an M.P.A. from Princeton University’s School of Public and International Affairs; and, a J.D. from Columbia Law School, where he was a Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar.
Inigo Weston
Partner • London
Inigo is a Partner and member of the founding team of Clipway.
Prior to Clipway, Inigo was a Managing Director in the Fund of Funds team at Ardian, where he was responsible for primary and secondary investments in private equity and infrastructure funds.
Alongside his principal role executing secondary private equity deals at Ardian, he had numerous additional responsibilities across the group from HR and sustainability to risk management and new product launches. He was a board member of the Ardian Foundation and member of the Ardian Carbon Group.
Inigo holds a first-class MA (Hons.) History degree from the University of Cambridge, where he was awarded the highest undergraduate degree and the Senior Tutor’s prize at Homerton College. He also holds an MSc in Biodiversity, Wildlife and Ecosystem Health from the University of Edinburgh.
Jonathan Hillgarth-Williams
Partner • London
Jonathan Hillgarth-Williams is a Partner and member of the founding team of Clipway.
Prior to Clipway, Jonathan was a Director and member of the Fund of Funds team at Ardian for 10 years, where he was responsible for primary and secondary investments in private equity and infrastructure funds.
Jonathan holds a first-class MA (Hons.) in Music degree from the University of Cambridge, where he was a Sophia Turle Scholar and was awarded the highest undergraduate prize of Girton College, Cambridge.
Joshua Manasseh
Partner • London
Joshua is a Partner and member of the founding team of Clipway.
Prior to Clipway, Joshua was a Senior Investment Manager in the Fund of Funds team at Ardian, where he was responsible for primary and secondary investments in private equity and infrastructure funds.
Joshua holds an MA (Hons.) in Politics, Psychology and Sociology from the University of Cambridge, where he was a Scholar of St John’s College at the Wright Level awarded for undergraduate performance. Following Cambridge, Joshua completed a Master’s in Management at London Business School.
Harry Vander Elst
Partner • Brussels & London
Harry is a Partner and member of the founding team of Clipway.
Prior to Clipway, Harry was the founder and CEO of RockSling Analytics, a company specialized in artificial intelligence for private equity. Harry created advanced machine learning frameworks for large institutional investors that have been used to analyze more than $100 billion of exposure across thousands of private equity funds.
Before founding RockSling Analytics, he worked for Coller Capital in London as a Data Scientist in the investment team. He oversaw the development of quantitative solutions that have been used globally to price opportunities in the secondary market.
Harry started his career in London as a quantitative analyst within the Alternative Modeling Group of Bank of America Merrill Lynch.
Harry holds a PhD in econometrics from Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB); a MSc in statistics from ULB, summa cum laude; and an MSc in Finance from the Solvay Brussels School, magna cum laude.
Franck Nguyen
Senior Advisor • London
Franck is a Senior Advisor and a member of the founding team of Clipway.
Prior to Clipway, Franck was a Senior Managing Director at Ardian based in Paris and subsequently in London. He participated in the creation of the private equity Fund of Funds platform, developing the primary and secondary activities from their origin in 1997. As such he was involved in all aspects of the business, from organization, fundraising, investment and monitoring. He was member of the Ardian Fund of Funds investment committees, and of the co-investment, private debt and infrastructure committees.
Franck began his professional career as an analyst at GAN Private Equity. He holds a MBA in Financial Engineering from ESLSCA and a Bachelor in Management and Finance from ESG.