Ryan Terpstra Chief Product Officer ION Analytics

Ryan Terpstra is the Chief Product Officer of ION Analytics and the former Chief Technology Officer of Acuris. Prior, he was Founder & CEO of Selerity, an AI powered contextual search and analytics company until its successful sale to Dealogic, an ION Analytics company. Before Selerity, Terpstra held several senior roles at Thomson Reuters including Director of Quantitative News and a Senior Strategist in the Corporate Strategy group. Terpstra also worked for the World Economic Forum in the Center for Global Industries, working on projects for the Forum’s financial services and alternative investment members. He was a New York Power 30 Under 30 and holds a B.A. in Finance & Entrepreneurship, graduating with honors from Miami University (Ohio).

Holger Kleingarn Managing Director H.I.G. Capital Partners

Holger Kleingarn, Managing Director, is a German national who has been working in the Private Equity Industry since over ten years. Throughout his private equity career Dr. Kleingarn has emphasized on mid cap buyouts, growth investments and turnarounds across Europe with a focus on the German-speaking countries. Prior to joining H.I.G. Capital, he was a Partner and Member of the Management Committee at London-based Palamon Capital Partners, a private equity group focusing on mid-sized companies across Europe. Previously Holger has lead the management-buy-out of a Mittelstand software company as CEO. He started his career in strategic management consulting with Bain & Company and Roland Berger, latterly as Partner and member of its financial services management team. Holger holds a doctoral degree in business administration and graduated from the University of Hamburg.

Dr. Malte Bruhns Partner, Co-Head of the CMS Corporate/M&A Group CMS

Malte is a corporate lawyer at CMS and serves as the firm’s Global Co-Head for Corporate M&A. For nearly 20 years he has advised strategic and financial investors on numerous complex and high-value transactions across various business sectors.

Malte joined CMS in 2005 and was elected partner in 2011. He is often recommended by clients and competitors in leading industry publications for his competent, professional and efficient transaction advice.

Tobias Levedag Partner, Mergers & Acquisitions TD Cowen

Tobias Levedag is Managing Director of Investment Banking at Cowen Europe. Based in Munich, he has over 13 years of experience providing M&A advice and fundraising services to companies and shareholders in the natural resources, consumer and healthcare industries.

At Cowen he is responsible for the coverage of the healthcare provider and life sciences and pharma space in Europe.

Mr. Levedag holds an LLB from King’s College London and an MBA from Columbia Business School.

Carsten Brzeski Global Head of Macro ING Research

Carsten Brzeski is the Global Head of Macro for ING Research. Previously, he worked at ABN Amro, the Dutch Ministry of Finance and the European Commission. He is a 2019 JFK Memorial Policy Fellow at Harvard University and member of the Advisory Council on International Affairs for the Dutch government and Parliament. Carsten has studied at the Free University of Berlin, Northeastern University in Boston and Harvard University in Cambridge, USA.

Hartwig Ostermeyer Partner Active Capital Company

Hartwig Ostermeyer is Partner at Active Capital Company. He is leading our German operations in Munich being responsible for local deal sourcing, screening of investment opportunities and portfolio management.

Hartwig started his professional career in M&A advisory in London focusing on the energy sector. After that, he worked as a project leader at Boston Consulting Group in the Munich office and gained operational experience as a manager at Sixt. Hartwig holds a 'Diplom-Ingenieur' from Technische Universität Berlin.

Dr. Stefan Sambol Partner / Co-Founder OMMAX – BUILDING DIGITAL LEADERS

Digital expert with +15 years of expertise in accelerating growth of digital business models, developing digital growth strategies, customer engagement models in sales and marketing, and scaling digital products. Focus is executing the digital transformation for leading Private Equity firms and drive enterprise value. Work-experience spans across leading consulting and company builder enterprises (Rocket Internet). Responsibility for local and global digital strategy setting and executions across +30 countries. Accountability for data analytics and competitive insights. Proven records of entrepreneurial innovations in the digital world and successfull D2C business models.

BUILDING DIGITAL LEADERS in TECH: We believe that every company can become a digital leader!

OMMAX is a fast-growing digital strategy consultancy in Europe, specializing in transaction advisory, strategy and end-to-end execution of digital initiatives. The vision of OMMAX is building digital leaders in Europe with the overall objective of driving innovation and accelerating digital growth and profitability. Over the last 10 years, OMMAX realized 200+ M&A deals with >€15B deal value, and 1500+ international value creation projects in 7 industries for leading private equity firms in the areas of strategy, digital operational excellence, advanced data strategy and analytics, tech and automation. We achieved high returns (>40% IRR) for PE investments by building strong digital equity stories. As a front-runner for holistic data-driven strategy consulting and end-to-end execution, OMMAX is the leading consultancy within the European Private Equity sphere, specialized as both the architect and the executor of best-in-class value creation.

Andrejs Klisans Country Manager 36Brains

With a multi-jurisdictional background in law, Andrejs displayed a keen and early interest for corporate investigations. Having worked in high-profile Southern European investigations for many years, he is now spearheading efforts to expand 36Brains' presence in Germany and Central Europe.

Philip Whitchelo Chief Marketing & Strategy Officer STERLING TECHNOLOGY

Philip is chief strategy & marketing officer at Sterling Technology, a premium provider of virtual data room solutions for M&A, capital markets, and real estate. He has more than 30 years' experience working in strategy, M&A, corporate development, and corporate finance leadership roles in management consulting, investment banking, public companies, and private equity backed firms. Philip is a non-executive adviser to startups, investment management and private equity firms. He has served as an honorary visiting fellow in finance, and as a member of the advisory board of the M&A Research Centre, at Cass Business School. He is a co-author of over a dozen published M&A research studies and papers, as well as a co-inventor and patent holder for computerised, networked secure collaboration technology. Philip graduated from the University of London with Masters degrees in computer science and finance.

Steven Roberts Private Equity Leader PwC Germany

Steve joined PwC in the UK in 1993, and qualified as an ACA in 1996. He joined the Transaction Services team in January 1997 and has worked exclusively within the M&A field since that date.

Having primarily worked on cross border transactions during his time in the UK, he transferred to the Frankfurt office in July 2001 where he has focused upon serving the private equity market and was promoted to partner in July 2005.With a wide exposure to various industries advising on both the buy-side and sell-side, Steve has significant experience in large cross border deals for private equity and corporate clients.Since 2012 Steve leads the PwC Private Equity Practice for PwC Germany and is a member of ‎the PwC Global Private Equity Board.

Mario Sabljo Principal EMH Partners

Mario Sabljo is Principal at EMH.
Before joining EMH, Mario was a Principal at Paragon Partners for almost 9 years leading many successful investments in the German speaking region as well as the BeNeLux. He started his career at UniCredit Group‘s investment banking division advising clients on corporate finance and M&A matters. After that he spend 5 years at Investmentbank boutique Ferber&Co advising clients on cross border M&A transactions, successions and financing projects. In his entire career Mario has put his focus on medium-sized companies and entrepreneurs understanding the need of the Mittelstand.
Mario studied at Leibniz University Hannover as well as at San Francisco State University and holds a graduate degree in Economics and Business Administration.

Stephan Werlen Partner CMS Switzerland

Stephan Werlen focuses on M&A and corporate law, joint ventures, MBOs, acquisition finance, venture capital transactions, corporate restructuring and corporate relocation. He has broad experience both in domestic and international mergers and acquisitions (including auction processes) and the financing of such transactions. In addition, he is an expert in W&I insurance transactions (M&A insurance) with a long track record in this area. Stephan Werlen also regularly advises foreign companies on their relocation to Switzerland and assists companies in their ongoing corporate and commercial activities (e.g. shareholders' agreements, capital measures and other corporate housekeeping matters, supply contracts, general terms & conditions, etc.).

Inna Gehrt Managing Partner Mindful Capital Partners

In MCP since 2016, Inna Gehrt is a Managing Partner and member of the Advisory Committee.

Inna is part of the investment team serving the DACH region (Germany, Austria and Switzerland), dealing with origination, structuring, negotiation, execution and monitoring of investments. Currently, she manages MCP’s investment in Klapp, as well as the fund-raising activity in the German market.

Inna has over fifteen years of experience in private equity and corporate finance. Before joining MCP, Inna worked for over ten years at Quadriga, a German private equity fund, and as an independent advisor to the Swiss family office, Jacobs Holding AG. Inna holds an MBA from the University of Mannheim and the University of North Carolina.

Teresa Schawe Partner Strategy& Germany

Teresa Schawe is a leading practitioner in M&A strategies, business services and private equity. She is a Partner at Strategy& Germany, and based in Frankfurt. As a member of the firm's Deals practice, she advises international clients on medium to large-scale transactions and value enhancement programs.

With more than 14 years of professional experience in investment banking and consulting, Teresa has a broad network, strategic skills and an in-depth expertise in the international transaction market.

Prior to joining Strategy&, Teresa worked for an investment bank and successfully led the Private Equity business of an international management consultancy in Germany.

Teresa holds a diploma in economics from the University of Cologne.

Janin Kauffmann Director, M&A Germany and Austria, Corporate Risk and Broking WTW

Janin Kauffmann LL.M. is a Director in the M&A Team of Willis Towers Watson and responsible for Transactional Risk Insurance in Germany and Austria. She is a fully qualified lawyer in Germany, with a Master of Law in International Trade law from Stellenbosch University, South Africa. Before starting at Willis Towers Watson Janin was an M&A underwriter for DUAL and Zurich for around 5 years. Janin underwrote M&A risks across all European jurisdictions and for both Private Equity as well as strategic investors. Besides W&I policies she underwrote numerous identified / contingent transactional risks, such as known tax and litigation risks. 

Janin Kauffmann LL.M. is a Director in the M&A Team of Willis Towers Watson and responsible for Transactional Risk Insurance in Germany and Austria. She is a fully qualified lawyer in Germany, with a Master of Law in International Trade law from Stellenbosch University, South Africa. Before starting at Willis Towers Watson Janin was an M&A underwriter for DUAL and Zurich for around 5 years. Janin underwrote M&A risks across all European jurisdictions and for both Private Equity as well as strategic investors. Besides W&I policies she underwrote numerous identified / contingent transactional risks, such as known tax and litigation risks. 

Dr. Kai Wallisch Partner CMS

Corporate and M&A lawyer Kai Wallisch focusses on advising internationally operating companies in the industrial and automotive sector, often from the US. He is experienced in advising clients on the sale and acquisition of shareholdings as well as on global carve-outs and M&A transactions. He also regularly assists companies in other sectors with M&A transactions and corporate law matters.

Kai joined CMS in 2010 and has been a partner since 2021. He is a lecturer at the Stuttgart Bar Association and Stuttgart Higher Regional Court and acts as examiner in the context of the second state examination in law (final exam in German legal training). In the past, he also lectured at Steinbeis University Berlin.

Philipp Melzer Partner CMS

Philipp Melzer has extensive experience in advising issuers, issuing banks and existing shareholders on IPOs, capital increases and secondary offerings. Clients also regularly seek his advice on bonds (especially green bonds), issuance programs and structured financial products such as asset-backed securities or derivatives. He is responsible for the DCM area and, together with Andreas Zanner, also for the ECM area of CMS in Frankfurt and, in addition to his legal work, regularly lectures on ESG compliance and capital market law issues.

Following his banking apprenticeship and training as a financial assistant at Kreissparkasse Ravensburg (1994), Philipp Melzer completed his law studies at the Albert-Ludwigs-University in Freiburg in 1998 and completed his legal clerkship in Freiburg in 2001. He joined CMS in 2001 and has been a partner since 2008.

Sven Steinbach Head of M&A Compliance Volkswagen

Sven Steinbach is Head of M&A Compliance at Volkswagen. In this role he is responsible for Compliance related matters regarding global M&A activities of Volkswagen Group, as well as strategic cooperations and industrialization projects.

 Before joining Volkswagen, he worked in corporate banking in an international bank in Frankfurt. He started his career working in debt capital markets at a Magic Circle law firm also in Frankurt.

Alice Hohenlohe Impact Manager Trill Impact

Alice is an Impact Manager focused on Private Equity. Before joining Trill Impact, she was a Consultant at the Boston Consulting Group specialising in Industrial Goods, with a focus on strategy and sustainability.  She has further professional experience from her internships in strategy and consulting (Kearney, KPMG Strategy and Novartis).

Alice holds a M.Sc. in Management from London Business School and a B.Sc. in Business Administration from University of Manheim.

Hetal Damani Impact Partner Trill Impact

Hetal is an Impact Partner focusing on private equity.  She has more than 18 years of industry experience within impact and ESG investing across public equities, private equity and private debt. Before joining Trill Impact, she was a Portfolio Manager for the Microfinance funds and Private Equity ESG specialist at SEB Investment Management. She has further professional experience as Co-Head of Responsible Investments and as Senior Analyst at Nordea Asset Management specialised in ESG analysis and active ownership for the Nordea Stars fund range (Global and Emerging Markets equities), ESG Consultant to Litorina Capital Advisors, ESG Manager at 3i Group plc and as Sustainability Coordinator at ABN AMRO Bank.

Hetal holds a Bachelor of Commerce in Business Technology Management from Toronto Metropolitan University.

Dr. Michael Rolle CFO & Managing Director DHL Supply Chain

Dr. Michael Rolle is Chief Financial Officer and Managing Director at DHL Supply Chain. He previously held various positions within Deutsche Post DHL Group, including Group Head of Mergers&Acquisitions and SVP Corporate Development. Michael started his career in 2001 with Private Equity Firm Apax Partners where he spent 6 years focusing on Buy-Outs in Business Services and Retail. He completed his PhD in Econometrics at Cologne and Harvard University and holds a CEMS MBA Master from HEC (Paris) and ESADE (Barcelona).

Andrew Probert EMEA Head of ESG Advisory Kroll

Andrew Probert is a managing director in the Growth Team, based in the London office where he is the Deputy City Leader. Andrew leads Kroll’s EMEA business development, enterprise sales and account management strategy, and also our environmental, social and governance (ESG) advisory services in EMEA. He has over 20 years of experience working on a range of client engagements involving corporate transactions, accounting structuring, and ESG projects.

Dr Christoph Schröder Counsel CMS

Christoph Schröder advises companies on commercial and corporate law.

He is an expert in supply chain compliance. This includes the German Supply Chain Act as well as Europe-wide and foreign regulations on corporate due diligence and reporting obligations. In this area, he supports clients, for example, in determining the applicability of legal regimes, setting up a risk management system, conducting risk analyses, drafting contracts and internal guidelines, as well as in infringement and liability cases.

Another focus of Christoph’s work is the China business. He has been assisting German and Chinese companies with their investments and other activities in the respective other country for many years. He is familiar with the typical expectations and business customs in both countries and brings his experience to bear in mutual communication. This is often of decisive importance for the successful conclusion of a transaction. He often negotiates, presents and communicates in Chinese.

Christoph has been a lawyer at CMS in Hamburg since 2006. From 2012 to 2020, he worked in our Shanghai office.

He gives presentations and publishes articles, in particular on investments in Germany and on supply chain compliance.

Samuel Kerr Senior ECM Editor Mergermarket and Dealogic

I am the senior ECM editor at Ion Analytics working on producing equity capital markets intelligence for Dealogic and Mergermarket. 

Daniel Heine Co-Founder, Managing Director, Private Debt Division Patrimonium

Daniel Heine is a co-founder of Patrimonium and Managing Director of the company’s Private Debt division. Prior to the company’s formation he worked as a Financial Consultant for Merrill Lynch International and before that, as a management consultant at A.T. Kearney. He studied Business Administration at the University of St. Gallen and received a Master of Arts from the University of Oxford. He also holds a Ph.D. of the University of St. Gallen.

Thomas PÖHLER Head of Germany Kartesia

Thomas is a senior member of Kartesia’s Investment Team with 15 years of experience in leveraged finance and private equity, sourcing, executing and monitoring investments across Europe, with a specific focus on the DACH region, where he is also heading the Munich office. 

Since joining in 2013 from Commerzbank, where he started his career in leveraged finance, he helped building Kartesia’s franchise in the German-speaking countries, raised the firm’s first fund financings and also established the first hedging programme for funds raised. 

Thomas holds a M.Sc. degree in Finance from Frankfurt School.

He lives with his family in Munich and London.

Rene Hartert Head of Direct Lending Origination DACH DWS Investment

Rene is Head of Origination Direct Lending (DACH) at DWS Group. He has 20 years of experience in origination and execution of financial sponsor driven leveraged finance transactions with a focus on the German midmarket.

Prior to joining DWS in 2022, he worked for Natixis CIB as the Head of Sponsor Coverage for the DACH & Nordic region and before that as Director Leveraged Finance at Commerzbank.

Rene studied Business Administration at HAWK Hildesheim and is a CFA Charterholder

Michael Schulze Director- Leveraged Finance BofA Securities

Michael is a Director in the EMEA Leveraged Finance team and based in Frankfurt. In his current role he is responsible

for managing the bank's Leveraged Finance origination efforts in DACH region for Germany, Austria and Switzerland. He

is involved in sourcing and executing leveraged loans and high yield bonds for sponsor portfolio companies and

corporates in the region.

Prior to joining Bank of America in July 2021, Michael spent more than 10 years at Credit Suisse in London and

Frankfurt, where he worked in the Leveraged Finance team for EMEA with a particular focus on German clients and in

the Financial Sponsor Group dealing with Leveraged Finance for sponsor clients and sponsor coverage.

Approx. 75 financings for acquisitions, re-pricings and add-ons for financial sponsor owned portfolio companies and

corporates with a focus on the DACH region.

Michael holds a Master in Finance and Investments from the European Business School ("ebs") in Oestrich-Winkel and

the Stockholm School of Economics.

Franziska Rupp Policy Officer European Commission

Franziska Rupp-Solaroli di Briona is a Policy Officer at the European Commission, Directorate General for Competition, Unit A-2 Mergers Case Support and Policy. 

Prior to joining the European Commission, she was an associate at an international law firm’s EU and international antitrust law practice. 

Franziska is a graduate of the French-German law study program of the Universities of Paris Ouest Nanterre and Potsdam. She holds an LL.M degree from the College of Europe (Bruges, 2011) and obtained her Second State Exam (Berlin, 2014).