Team Members

Carolyn Battersby joined UK Government Investments (formerly the Shareholder Executive) in 2011. Carolyn has worked on a range of asset sales and governance projects in the transport, energy, defence and housing sectors. She is a Non-Executive Director on the boards of Network Rail and Defence, Equipment and Support. She previously served on the board of National Highways.

Before working in government, Carolyn had a career in finance and strategy at Tesco, The Prince’s Trust, Permira and Schroders.

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Andy joined UKGI in December 2016 and is the head of our Corporate Governance practice, supporting HMG’s effective ownership of its arm’s length bodies. He currently sits on the Board of The Royal Mint Limited.

Previously Andy has worked in UKGI’s Special Situations Group which focuses on sectors and corporates where there is a risk of economic shock impact to major employment or assets of national interest.  He has also worked within UKGI’s housing activities with MHCLG, delivered a number of projects with the UKGI Defence team and led UKGI’s governance team working on UK Export Finance.

Andy is a FCA and prior to joining UKGI was an M&A Director at Deloitte specialising in advising on non-standard and accelerated M&A transactions, many of which involved advising companies, investors and lenders on maximising value in constrained, challenging or time-critical situations.

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Richard currently works within UKGI’s joint unit with the Ministry of Defence, which provides corporate finance and governance advice on a range of issues facing the MOD. He currently leads two shareholder teams at defence, and led the nationalisation of Sheffield Forgemasters. Richard previously led the Green Investment Bank and Post Office Shareholder teams, and was the shareholder representative NED on the Post Office Board. He also led the establishment of one of the UK’s largest employee shares schemes during the privatisation of Royal Mail.

Richard joined UKGI from Deloitte, where he advised on public-private finance deals. He is a Chartered Accountant by background.

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Daniela joined UKGI (formerly the Shareholder Executive) in 2013 following 12 years working in Equity Capital Markets for Citigroup.

Daniela has complemented her banking experience with further transaction work from a government perspective. This includes the multi-billion pound sale of NatWest Group shares and two Student Loans securitisation transactions. She was previously involved in the privatisation of Royal Mail. Daniela also worked on a range of governance assignments, including heading the shareholder team for the National Energy System Operator (NESO), and policy development projects such as the Shaw Report on Network Rail.

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Hannah joined UKGI in 2017 and leads the UKGI Special Situations team. The Special Situations team combines civil servants and restructuring/insolvency professionals who focus on sectors and corporates where there is the risk of economic shock impact to major employment or assets of national interest. Hannah has provided debt and balance sheet advice to stressed and distressed corporates since 2001. She is a highly experienced advisor, having worked on a wide range of projects covering strategic balance sheet reviews, recapitalisations, debt-for-equity swaps, creditor representation, covenant renegotiations, securitisation advisory, high yield bond issuance, rights offerings, private debt placements and stressed M&A. Hannah is a FCA and has previously worked for Deloitte, UBS, Rothschild and PwC.

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Tim joined UKGI (formerly the Shareholder Executive (ShEx)) in 2005  following a long career in investment banking and five years at the Office of Rail Regulation as Director of Economics and Finance. Tim began his career as a corporate lawyer with Allen&Overy where he worked on a variety of corporate transactions, including public sector investment and financing. As an investment banker, Tim advised either Government and industry on many of the main utility privatisations, as well as a number of M&A transactions.

In ShEx, Tim initially advised on setting up the governance arrangements for the publicly-owned water companies in Scotland and Northern Ireland and a number of commercial transactions, including major land sales for the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority. Until recently he sat on the Board of the Royal Mint and sits as on several project boards across Government. He is currently advising on some major financial issues for Government relating to the oil and gas and steel industries and is a member of the UKGI specialist corporate governance group.

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James is the Deputy Chairman of UKGI, and non-Executive Chairman of RIT Capital Partners plc.

James was the Chairman of UK Financial Investments (UKFI) until its dissolution in 2019. He joined UKFI as Chief Executive in October 2013 and served as Executive Chairman of the organisation from January 2014 – March 2016.

Before joining UKFI, James was Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Credit Suisse in the United Kingdom, based in London. James held several senior roles within Credit Suisse’s Investment Banking Department, including Head of European Investment Banking Department, Head of European Equity Capital Markets and Chairman of UK Investment Banking. He joined Credit Suisse First Boston (CSFB) in 1994. Prior to joining CSFB, he was a Director of S.G. Warburg Securities, where he worked for 15 years.

James is Chairman of the Trustees of the Charities Aid Foundation and The Royal Collection Trust, and a trustee of The Alnwick Garden Trust.

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Jane was appointed Non-Executive Director of UK Government Investments in February 2016. She is also the Senior Independent Director, Chair of the CLCC Committee and Chair of the Audit and Risk Committee.
Jane spent 15 years with Bank of America Merrill Lynch where she held various roles in London and New York. She was Chief Operating Officer (EMEA and Asia) of the Global Markets Group and sat on the Board of Bank of America Securities, London. She began her career in Corporate Restructuring at Mitsubishi Bank Ltd London, before joining Bank of America in 1994.

Current additional appointments:

• Chair of Connect Plus (M25) Plc
• Non-Executive Director on the Board and Committees of Royal London Mutual Insurance Society
• Non-Executive Director of Banque Centrale de Compensation / LCH SA. and LCH Limited
• Member of Public Interest Committee and Business Oversight Board of BDO LLP

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Lord Jitesh Gadhia has over 25 years’ investment banking experience, having held senior positions at Blackstone, Barclays Capital, ABN AMRO and Baring Brothers. He has advised on a wide range of high profile M&A and capital raising transactions across developed and emerging markets.

Jitesh is also a board member of BGL Holdings, which owns comparethemarket.com, the UK’s largest digital price comparison website for financial and household services. He is also a director of Accord Healthcare, a leading supplier of generic pharmaceuticals in the UK and internationally, and a board member of FTSE 100 housebuilder Taylor Wimpey plc.

Jitesh graduated from Cambridge University with a degree in economics and attended the London Business School as a Sloan Fellow. He has served as a Trustee of Guy’s and St Thomas’ Charity and of Nesta. Jitesh has been a member of House of Lords since September 2016.

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Robin Lawther is currently a Non-Executive Director at Nordea Bank and Ashurst LLP and a member of the Aon M&A Advisory Board.  In addition, she works with her own privately owned student housing developments in the US, UK, and Germany.

Ms. Lawther is an international banker with extensive experience of global markets and financial institutions.  She worked at J.P.Morgan in London and New York for over 20 years in a number of senior positions in investment banking.  Her roles included Head of the European Financial Institution Mergers and Acquisitions Execution Team and Senior Country Officer and Head of Investment Banking for the Nordic Region.  She specialised in mergers and acquisitions and capital raising.

Ms. Lawther holds a B.A. Honours in Economics from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and an M.Sc. in Accountancy and Finance from the London School of Economics.  She is actively involved in women’s mentoring programmes and is a supporter of several London theatres.

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