Morrison announces that accomplished alternative investments capital formation and strategy professional, Melissa Richards, has joined the firm as a Partner and Head of Strategy, Product & Growth, effective 27 March. Based in New York, Ms Richards will oversee Morrison & Co’s global strategy as the firm continues to expand its footprint for the benefit of its global institutional investor clients.
Ms Richards has over 15 years of private markets experience, working across infrastructure, real estate, private equity and credit on behalf of both institutional and private wealth clients. Throughout her career, she has developed strategies for new investment platforms, and launched several fund products across multiple asset classes.
“Melissa is an internationally experienced senior executive who’s helped build significant global businesses in our sector,” said Paul Newfield, Partner and Chief Executive Officer of Morrison.
“Her collaborative approach, intellectual curiosity and long-standing industry relationships are a great fit with our culture. We’re excited to welcome her to our Partnership.”
Ms Richards added, "A pioneer in infrastructure investments worldwide, Morrison is at an exciting point in its evolution as the firm continues to expand its geographic presence, develop new products, and broaden its investor base. I'm thrilled to be part of the growing boots-on-the-ground team in the US and look forward to working alongside the entire Morrison team to strategically scale the business."
“We’re excited to attract a professional of Melissa’s caliber to our New York-based team. We look forward to leveraging her fund formation and strategy expertise as well as her global network to further cement Morrison’s position as a leading player in infrastructure investing,” concluded Perry Offutt, Morrison & Co Partner, and Head of North America.
Ms Richards was most recently Senior Vice President and Head of Product Strategy and Client Solutions at Brookfield Oaktree Wealth Solutions in New York. Prior to that she was Brookfield’s Head of Infrastructure Project Management. In these roles she developed fundraising strategies and investment vehicles to access capital in several of Brookfield’s growth areas.
Prior to her tenure at Brookfield Asset Management, she served as Executive Director and Infrastructure Fund Portfolio Specialist at Morgan Stanley, where she managed a diverse investor portfolio representing major pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, financial institutions, and high-net-worth individuals. Earlier in her career, she served as Vice President of Corporate Foreign Exchange Sales at BNP Paribas. Ms Richards earned a Bachelor of Science in Finance from the University of Colorado.
Morrison & Co also recently announced the appointment of Geraldine Buckingham, formerly BlackRock's Global Head of Corporate Strategy and Chair of Asia-Pacific, to its global board.
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