Tony Ashraf, Managing Director, is Head of Technology and Operations for BlackRock across the Middle East and Africa, driving the region’s growth through a scalable, client-centric, and innovation-led platform.  Additionally, Tony supports the firms digital asset strategy, collaborating across BlackRock and the broader industry to harness blockchain in reshaping traditional operating models.  His focus spans strategic partnerships, scaling solutions, and product innovation, with key initiatives in DLT-powered market infrastructure, tokenisation, and institutional-grade crypto-asset development. 

Tony brings a global perspective, with experience across buy-side and sell-side roles in Operations, Technology, Project Management, Business Management, and Client Service - spanning the UK, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East.

Pavlos Anagnou is a Managing Director on the Client Relationship Group (CRG), based in our London office. He joined BAM as a Director in March 2019 from Aquila Capital where he was the Director of Sales in the Financial Asset Group. Prior to his role with Aquila, Pavlos was VP in the Client and Partner Group at Citadel in London. His other experience includes roles with Byron Capital Partners and Alliance Bernstein. Pavlos holds a Master of Arts degree in War Studies from King’s College of London and a Bachelor of Arts in Politics and International Relations from University of Kent. He is CAIA and IMC certificate holder and is fluent in Greek languages, conversational in French and Polish languages. 

Nurzhan Tursunkhanov graduated from the University of Nottingham in 2003 with a degree in Economics. In 2020, he completed the Executive MBA (“Business Administration for Executives”) program at Nazarbayev University.

Mr. Tursunkhanov began his professional career in 2003 at HSBC Bank Kazakhstan (Subsidiary Bank JSC), where he served as a trader in the Treasury Department.

From 2004 to 2012, he held the positions of Chief Dealer and Deputy Head of the Dealing Operations Division within the Monetary Operations Department of the National Bank of Kazakhstan.

Between 2012 and 2015, he served as Deputy Chairman of National Investment Corporation of the National Bank of Kazakhstan JSC.

From June to December 2015, he served as Deputy Chairman of Social-Entrepreneurial Corporation “Almaty” JSC.

 Between 2015 and 2019, he held the positions of Head of Pension Assets Management and Deputy Director of the Monetary Operations Department of the National Bank of Kazakhstan. Since December 2019, he has also served as a member of the Board of Directors of National Investment Corporation of the National Bank of Kazakhstan JSC.

From December 2019 to January 2026, he served as Head of the Monetary Operations Department of the National Bank of Kazakhstan, overseeing the management of the National Bank’s gold and foreign exchange reserves, the assets of the National Fund of the Republic of Kazakhstan, pension assets of the Unified Accumulative Pension Fund, as well as client assets of the National Bank. He also supervised financial market operations in support of monetary policy implementation, ensured the supply of cash foreign currency, and oversaw the exercise of the state’s pre-emptive right to acquire refined gold.

During the same period (December 2019 to January 2026), he also served as a member of the Board of Directors of National Investment Corporation of the National Bank of Kazakhstan JSC.

He has been awarded the state decoration “Yeren Enbegi Ushin” (“For Distinguished Labor”), commemorative medals “20 Years of the Tenge”, “25 Years of the Constitution of Kazakhstan”, and “30 Years of the Tenge”, as well as the badge “Honored Employee of the National Bank of the Republic of Kazakhstan” and commendations from the Chairman of the National Bank.

By Presidential Decree dated January 16, 2026, Nurzhan Tursunkhanov was appointed Deputy Chairman of the Agency of the Republic of Kazakhstan for Regulation and Development of the Financial Market.

Vidit Jain joined Hamilton Lane in June 2021 and sits within the Fund Investments & Managed Solutions team, based out of London, UK. Vidit is responsible for overseeing managed account relationships across EMEA and supporting with diligences on primary fund managers based in Europe.

Prior to joining Hamilton Lane, Vidit worked for Barclays in the Wealth & Investment Management team covering (U)HNW clients.

Vidit has a BSc degree in Accounting and Finance from the University of Warwick and is a CFA® Charterholder.

Adil Mukhamedzhanov has over 20 years of experience in the financial sector. He began his career at the National Bank of the Republic of Kazakhstan, where he progressed from Chief Economist to Deputy Director of the Monetary Operations Department.

In 2019–2020, he served as Managing Director at First Heartland Securities. From 2020 to 2021, he served as Deputy Chairman of the Management Board of the Kazakhstan Stock Exchange (KASE). Between 2021 and 2025, he served as Chairman of the Management Board of the Central Securities Depository.

Adil Mukhamedzhanov graduated from the Kazakh Academy of Labour and Social Relations with a degree in International Economics (2002). He also completed the Executive MBA (EMBA) program at the Nazarbayev University Graduate School of Business in 2019.

Marcia Favale is a global finance and technology leader, entrepreneur, author, and inventor who builds platforms at the intersection of capital, innovation, and economic transformation. With over three decades of experience across investment banking, asset management, sovereign advisory, and private capital, she has consistently moved from advising markets to creating and scaling businesses within them.

She is Vice Chair (Central Asia) at Clearbrook Global, Chair of Investment and Business Development at Artex Industrial Holdings, and an Independent Board Member of the Qazaqstan Investment Corporation. Marcia devised and implemented Kazakhstan’s $30 billion Burden-Sharing Restructuring Framework—now an international benchmark.

She is the founder and CEO of Blingby and Agorawalk.ai. A former senior leader at UBS, Merrill Lynch, and Brevan Howard, she lectures at Saïd Business School and holds degrees from New York University and the University of Oxford. A TEDx speaker, she holds over 15 global patents.

Daniel is a Principal in the Client Solutions Group based in the firm’s London office.

Prior to joining Hamilton Lane in 2007, Daniel was a Senior Vice President in charge of asset owners and investment consultants in Europe and Africa at Morgan Stanley Capital International in London. Previously, he worked as an institutional advisor at the German bank, Metzler, and prior to that, he spent more than eight years at the advisory and brokerage firm, Hall International Partners in the Netherlands. Daniel began his career as a research analyst at the Dutch bank ABN Amro in Amsterdam.

Daniel received an M.B.A. from Henley Management College in London and a B.S. in Finance from Roosevelt University in Chicago.

Timur Akazhanov is a General Partner at B Capital and is focused on strategic minority and control investments in technology and tech-enabled services companies.

He has more than 15 years of private equity experience covering technology and a broad range of other industries.

Before joining B Capital, he was a Managing Director at H.I.G. Capital focusing on technology and tech-enabled Services. Prior to that he was a Managing Director at Blackstone, a Vice President at Bain Capital and a Business Analyst at McKinsey & Company.

Timur holds a BA Magna Cum Laude in Economics from Harvard University and an MBA from Harvard Business School, where he was a Baker and Ford Scholar. Originally from Almaty, Kazakhstan, he is based in New York

In 2010, he moved to Astana to pursue a degree in Computer Engineering and Software at L.N. Gumilyov Eurasian National University.

From 2013 to 2014, he worked at Electronic Commerce Center LLP under the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Kazakhstan, serving as Assistant to the Chairman of the Board.

Between 2014 and 2019, he held a number of management roles at Isker Akparat LLP, gaining broad experience in operational and strategic functions.

In 2019, he was a research fellow at the Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences, New York University. In January 2020, he commenced his master’s degree in Information Systems under the Bolashak program. During this period, he also served concurrently as a remote freelance advisor to the Chairman of the National Bank of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

From March 2021 to February 2023, he served as Chairman of the Board of the Center for Development of Payment and Financial Technologies of the NBRK JSC.

From February 2023 to September 2024, he served as Chairman of the Board of the National Payment Corporation of the National Bank of the Republic of Kazakhstan JSC.

From September 24, 2024 to March 13, 2026, he served as Advisor to the Chairman – Chief Digital Transformation Officer of the National Bank of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

On March 13, 2026, he was appointed Deputy Governor of the National Bank of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

Michael Zhao is a serial entrepreneur spanning both traditional finance (TradFi) and Web 3.0. He is the Founder and CEO of Klickl Group, a premier Web 3.0 Open Finance platform headquartered in the UAE, dedicated to bridging digital assets with traditional banking and positioning Klickl as a foundational infrastructure bank for the Web 3.0 sector.

He previously held derivatives trading and risk management roles at UBS Investment Bank, China Merchants Bank, and Intesa Sanpaolo, and served as a regulator at the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) under the Central Bank of China, where he contributed to the formulation of national foreign exchange policies and risk management strategies.

Michael spearheaded the creation of the world’s first SPAC focused on digital assets — Crypto 1 Acquisition Corp (NASDAQ: DAOO) — and co-founded the C1 Closed-End Fund (NYSE: CFND), which invests in high-growth digital asset service and technology companies. He also served as Co-Chairman of the Hong Kong Blockchain Association, promoting blockchain adoption and regulatory dialogue.

Currently, he is leading Klickl’s strategic focus on the Middle Eastern and African markets, building a compliant global stablecoin ecosystem and driving the mission of bringing the next billion users into Web3.0.

Dermot Mayes is CEO and Board Member of Klickl International Ltd, overseeing the company’s UAE operations and contributing to its global strategic direction. He is responsible for driving institutional partnerships, regulatory engagement, and the development of compliant Web3 financial infrastructure across the region.

Prior to Klickl, Dermot held senior leadership roles at global financial institutions including JP Morgan, UBS, Dresdner Kleinwort, and Nomura, where he focused on emerging markets, capital markets, and cross-border finance across Europe, Asia, and the Middle East.

He later founded Lapwing Advisers in London, advising on international strategy and cross-border partnerships.

Gabbas Yerzhanov has nearly 20 years of experience in the financial sector, including both private business structures and quasi-government institutions. He was born on January 13, 1983. He began his professional career in 2005 as a volunteer at the Center for International Programs LLP in Astana.

In 2006, he joined Kazakhstan Temir Zholy JSC, where over eight years he progressed from Chief Specialist of the Personnel Development Department to First-Level Manager in the Investment Policy Department.

From 2014 to 2016, he worked at Baiterek National Managing Holding JSC, followed by senior management positions at Almex-Baiterek Fund LLP and the Institute for Economic Research JSC.

Between 2018 and 2020, he served as Managing Director at Kazyna Capital Management JSC (now Qazaqstan Investment Corporation).

Prior to his current role, he served as Managing Director for Finance and Corporate Development at Business Expo Group.

Mr. Yerzhanov holds a Master of Public Administration (Finance and Fiscal Policy) from Cornell University (USA, 2011) and a Bachelor’s degree in Public Administration from L.N. Gumilyov Eurasian National University (2005).

Paul Farley is a senior intelligence executive with over 32 years of experience in national security, intelligence, and interagency coordination. He currently serves as Senior Advisor at WestExec Advisors, advising on geopolitical risk, security, and strategy.

Previously, he served as Assistant Director of the CIA for South & Central Asia and for the Western Hemisphere, leading large teams and substantial budgets across some of the world’s most complex geopolitical environments. His earlier experience also includes service as Chief of Station in the Near East and North Africa, Deputy Director of the CIA’s Special Activities Center, and Foreign Service Officer at the U.S. Department of State, including overseas assignments in Latin America.

He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Wayne State University, is fluent in Spanish, and has received numerous high-level state and agency honors, including the Distinguished Career Intelligence Medal, the Presidential Rank Award, and the CIA Director’s Award for Distinguished Service.

Abel is the Head of APAC at BitGo.

He is responsible for commercial matters relating to BitGo’s businesses across the APAC region.

Prior to joining BitGo, Abel had a career in wealth management, and was most recently a private banker at Bank of Singapore. He started his career at Rothschild & Co in London after completing an MSc at Imperial College London.

Asyl is the CPO at Altbridge, an investment firm that develops internal AI infrastructure for investment research. He is responsible for developing this platform as a product used by the investment team.

Before joining Altbridge in 2024, he served as an Advisor at Optima Bank, where he established the bank’s Project Office and led the implementation of a credit decision-making system based on ML models, an anti-money laundering (AML) system, and an electronic customer profile system.

Previously, for over 15 years, he worked on digital transformation and the implementation of corporate systems at the National Bank of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Transtelecom JSC, Kazakhtelecom JSC, Samruk-Kazyna JSC, and Kazakhstan Railways JSC.

Robin Butler is a Partner at Sturgeon Capital, a London-headquartered investment firm that invests in teams building transformative businesses in emerging markets.

Sturgeon manages over $300m in AUM across Private Equity and Venture Capital strategies, for institutions such as the IFC, SBI Holdings, the Qazaqstan Investment Corporation (QIC) and Chevron.

Robin leads Sturgeon's VC team, backing early-stage companies in Emerging Asia.

 Basak Edizgil is an economist at Goldman Sachs Global Investment Research. As a member of the CEEMEA Economics team, Basak specializes in macroeconomic forecasting and data-driven insights for the region, specialising in Turkiye and Kazakhstan. Basak studied international economics and data science at the Stockholm School of Economics and Georgetown University.

Vlad Paddack is a political risk analyst specializing in security and political affairs across Russia, Ukraine, Eastern Europe, the Caucasus, and Central Asia, with particular expertise at the intersection of energy and geopolitics. His work focuses on delivering accurate and unbiased analysis for clients operating in complex and high-risk environments through daily risk updates, analytical briefings, and specialized reporting.

Since 2025, he has served as Senior Analyst at AKE International, where he works on the Europe & Eurasia desk, advising clients exposed to geopolitical and operational risk. His research covers Ukraine, Russia, the Caucasus, and Central Asia, as well as global oil and European gas markets.

Previously, he held analyst and researcher roles at AKE International and worked with the Hanns Seidel Foundation on Russian-Mongolian relations, energy, and natural resources. Earlier in his career, he gained research and policy experience through positions with the International Commission of Jurists, Hanns Seidel Foundation Korea, The Korea Times, WWF-China, and TBL.

Vlad holds a Master in International and Development Studies from the Geneva Graduate Institute, with a concentration in Conflict, Peace and Security, and a Bachelor’s degree in International Relations from King’s College London, where he graduated with First Class Honours. He is fluent in English, French, and Russian.

Han Ilhan is a recognized executive manager in the mining industry and natural resource development. His experiences span the entire mine life cycle from Project Finance, scoping, exploration, reserve validation, feasibility, licensing & permitting, design, construction, supply chain, commissioning, financial management, management of operations, maintenance, and reclamation. Mr. Ilhan is a recognized leader as a subject matter expert (SME) for Project Finance, Business Planning and Risk Management, and Business Partnerships through his wide global contacts.

 Mr. Ilhan’s Project Finance experience and in-depth knowledge covers all types of financial instruments such as debt, streaming, offtakes, equity, convertibles, royalty, NSR, NPI etc. He has been instrumental in accessing capital including, Private Equity firms, Streaming firms, Offtake providers, Hedge Funds, Equity Investors, and Wealth Funds. He has worked closely with financial institutions in North America, Europe Middle East and Asia.

Mr. Ilhan has through strategic business planning and implementation have formed partnership with large global financial organizations such as Orion Resource Partners and Trafigura. He has in-depth knowledge on the structure, operation, and governance of Publicly Listed Companies. His knowledge also covers Company/Project valuations through detail Financial Modeling, Enterprise Risk Management, and Detailed Due Diligence.

 Mr. Ilhan currently serves in various executive roles, including: Managing Director of Catalis Strategies, USA and Advisor to the Chairman of TMK (Uzbekistan Technological Metals Company), Uzbekistan.

Eldaniz Gusseinov specializes in political foresight and geopolitical analysis, with a focus on Central Asia, the South Caucasus, and the wider Eurasian space. At Nightingale International, he leads the research function, delivering data-driven insights on foreign policy, diplomacy, security, and economic development.

 In addition to his role at Nightingale, he serves as a Non-Resident Research Fellow at the Haydar Aliyev Center for Eurasian Studies at Ibn Haldun University, Political Researcher at Outpost | Eurasia, Head of Research Project at PeaceNexus Foundation, and a member of the Azerbaijan-Central Asia Expert Community. Earlier in his career, he produced analysis for Cabar.asia and other analytical platforms, wrote as a columnist for Daryo Central Asia & Afghanistan, and completed a placement at the German Bundestag.

 He holds a Master’s degree in International Relations from Andrássy University Budapest and also studied Political Science at the University of Wuppertal as part of a dual degree program. He also holds a Bachelor’s degree in International Relations and Affairs from German-Kazakh University and completed an academic exchange in Political Science at the University of Hamburg.

Roger Holland is the Founder & Managing Partner of Scot Holland | CBRE Preferred Partner in Kazakhstan & Kyrgyzstan covering Central Asia, the Caucasus and Mongolia. Real estate services include: -strategic consulting, market research, feasibility studies, facility management, brokerage, office agency, investment projects and valuation.

www.shre.kz 

Mr. Holland represents Gryphon Holdings a British investment company and trusted partner in businesses across 10 emerging market countries since 1991. Gryphon actively seeks dynamic ambitious founders in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan who need fast-growth capital, specific business expertise and an excellent international network.

www.gryphco.com

Mr. Holland represents Portland Advisers who are a British financial advisory boutique providing expert, value-added advice on all aspects of the financing of major infrastructure, power, oil & gas, renewable energy, mining and telecomms projects globally.

www.portlandadvisers.com

Mr. Holland works closely with a local boutique investment banking firm helping to source both international investors and viable investment projects.

Has over 15 years of experience in the financial sector (Zurich Invest Management JSC, CAEPCO JSC, NGSK KazStroyService JSC, Baitak Finance LLP, Tron Capital JSC, Sanity Capital Ltd.). Has knowledge and experience in trading, working with securities, investment management.

He was born in 1982 in Almaty and graduated from Al-Farabi Kazakh National University and the Illinois Institute of Technology (USA).

He began his professional career in 2004 as a manager at JSC «National Innovation Fund» in Almaty.

From 2007 to 2008, he interned at the venture capital firm «Flagship Ventures» in Cambridge (USA) and the international investment firm «Small Enterprise Assistance Funds» in Washington (USA).

From 2008 to 2010, he worked as a project manager at JSC «Kazakhstan Investment Fund», a consultant at the World Bank Representative Office in Central Asia, a consultant at the Asian Development Bank Representative Office in Kazakhstan, and Deputy Director of the «Center for World Economy Research».

2010–2015 – Inspector, Head of Sector of the Secretariat of the Security Council of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Astana.

2015–2021 – Head of Sector of the Security Council Office of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Astana.

2021–2023 – Deputy Head of the General Security Affairs Department of the Security Council of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Astana.

From 2023 to January 2025 – Deputy Head of the Current Security Affairs Department of the Security Council of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Astana.

He was born on November 14, 1983, in Atyrau. He graduated from Tomsk State University in 2006 with degrees in “Finance and Credit” and “Linguistics and Intercultural Communication.” In 2010, he received a Master’s degree in Applied Economics from the University of Michigan through the Bolashak program.

He began his career in 2005 as a leading specialist in the Department of Internal Administration and the Department of International Relations at the Ministry of Economy and Budget Planning of the Republic of Kazakhstan. From 2006 to 2010, he worked as an expert and chief expert in the Department of Investment Policy and Planning at the Ministry of Economy and Budget Planning (MEBP) and the Ministry of Economy and Trade (MET).

Since 2010, he has held the positions of Head of the Strategic Development Division within the Department of Strategic Planning and Analysis at the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade of the Republic of Kazakhstan and Deputy Director of the Department of Budget Policy and Planning at the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

In February 2013, he was appointed Deputy Chairman of the Committee on Geology and Subsurface Use at the Ministry of Industry and New Technologies of the Republic of Kazakhstan, and from June 2013 to April 2019, he served as Deputy Head of the Center for Strategic Development and Analysis, and Deputy Head of the Department of Socio-Economic Monitoring at the Administration of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

From April 2019 to February 2021, he served as Deputy Head of the Analytical Department of the Office of the First President of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

In February 2021, he became Deputy Minister of National Economy, and from January 2022 to February 2024, he served as Minister of National Economy of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

Prior to his appointment as Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan in April 2024, he served as CEO of the KAZENERGY Association.

He is fluent in English, Spanish, and German.