Valuable insights & counsel.
The Investment Advisory Committee provides La Mancha with access to its members’ substantial collective experience and expertise in business and finance, mining, and compliance. The Committee is chaired by Naguib Sawiris, a renowned global investor in mining, telecoms, and real estate.
Mr Sawiris provides La Mancha with entrepreneurial direction and exceptional business acumen. The Committee is assisted by senior advisers with extensive mining experience and meets on an ad hoc basis to discuss individual investment opportunities and the mining sector as a whole.
Naguib is one of the most reputed industrialists and entrepreneurs in Africa and the Middle East and perpetuates the Sawiris dynasty founded by his father Onsi Sawiris. Naguib joined the Orascom family group in 1979. Since then, he continuously contributed to the growth of the company into what it is today – one of Egypt’s largest conglomerates. In 1998, Naguib founded Orascom Telecom Holding (OTH) and was the man behind Egypt’s first internet service provider and its first mobile operator Mobinil. He developed the group and its parent company, Wind Telecom internationally, launching, acquiring and managing telecom operations in 28 countries, including Italy and Canada, to eventually create the 6th largest mobile operator by subscribers worldwide, through the merger of Wind Telecom VEON in 2011.
Naguib is a manager of La Mancha Holding, which he took private in 2012 with the vision to bring operational efficiency and ambition to a sector dominated by smaller junior companies. In 2015, he took the strategic decision to vend in La Mancha’s key assets for publicly stakes into two regionally focused junior miners, Evolution Mining and Endeavour Mining, effectively turning La Mancha into the largest shareholder in each of the two companies. Over the next few years, Naguib used his board positions and La Mancha’s strategic influence and capital to grow each of the two companies into multi-billion global mid-tier businesses operating at some of the lowest all-in-sustaining costs within the industry. In 2018, Naguib decided to expand La Mancha’s team and portfolio into new investments in the gold sector.
Naguib holds a diploma in Mechanical Engineering with a master’s in Technical Administration from the Swiss Institute of Technology (ETH). He is also the recipient of numerous honorary degrees, industry awards and civic honours, including the Honor of Commander of the “Legion d’Honneur” (the highest award given by the French Republic for outstanding services rendered to France). In July 2011 Mr Sawiris was awarded the Honor of Commander of the Order of the “Stella della Solidarietà Italiana” (Star of Italian Solidarity) for his outstanding contribution to the Italian economy.
Michael Beckett has over fifty years of experience in the global mining industry and graduated as a geologist from McGill University in 1964.
He worked in gold, uranium and iron ore mines in Canada, before returning to the United Kingdom. He joined Consolidated Gold Fields in 1965, rising through the ranks to the position of Managing Director, a position he held from 1974 to 1989. He served on the boards of Gold Fields of South Africa, Consolidated Gold Fields of Australia and Gold Fields Mining Corporation, in the United States. He was responsible for Consgold global mining interest
Post the take-over of Consolidated Gold Fields, Michael has served on the Boards of many companies in the extractive industries, financial and leisure sectors. He chaired the Board of Ashanti Gold Fields, until its takeover by Anglo American. Until the end of May 2022, he was Non-executive Chairman of Endeavour when he retired from that Board.
He has served as Non-Executive Chairman of other companies, including WBB minerals (ceramic clays in the UK and Ukraine), Horace Clarkson Plc, (shipping and ship broking) and My Travel and Thomas Cook, (travel), and Ultamar (oil and gas). He served as a non-executive director of Orica (global explosives), Northam Platinum (Platinum group metals) and Mvelaphanda Resources in South Africa.
He was involved in the development of mines in Papua New Guinea (Porgera-gold), South Africa (Deelkraal-gold) and Australia, Mt Goldsworthy Mining Associates (Iron Ore) and Saudi Arabia (Mahd ad Dahad-gold). He has been involved in the extraction of other minerals; uranium (Canada), mineral sand (rutile, zircon and ilmenite) in Australia, lead, zinc, silver in Canada, and copper in Chile and Argentina.
Karim worked closely with Mr Sawiris for over 20 years, initially in telecoms, then as a fund manager and finally by joining La Mancha in 2018 as CFO, becoming CEO in 2019.
From 2011 to 2017, Karim was CEO of Digital World Capital LLP, an alternative asset manager specialising in TMT. At DWC Karim managed the Cross Comms fund, long/short equity & credit investing in Telecom & Media securities, and advised clients on special situation investments.
From 2001 to 2011, Karim was a member of the Executive and Investment Committees of Wind Telecom and Orascom Telecom, where he was in charge of Corporate Finance. During this tenure, he raised US$68bn in debt and equity and closed US$67bn in M&A transactions. In particular, Karim led the 2011 US$25bn merger with VEON, was one of the two executives responsible for the 2005 US$17bn Wind Telecom Leveraged Buy-Out and managed the 2009 EUR3.8bn debt restructuring of Wind Hellas in Greece. Karim joined Orascom Telecom in 2000, working on the acquisition of greenfield mobile licenses.
From 1995 to 1999, Karim was CEO of a Lebanese IT firm. He started his career in 1994 as a financial analyst in a Lebanese media group.
Karim currently serves on the Boards of G Mining and Elemental Altus Royalties. He holds a Master’s in Management from the University of Paris IX.
He is fluent in English, Arabic, and French.
Vincent is a seasoned executive, with over 30 years of corporate finance, business development and M&A experience in the mining, telecom, and energy sectors.
Vincent began working with Mr Sawiris in 2012 when he identified the opportunity to buy La Mancha and joined the company as Head of Strategy & Business Development. Between 2013 and 2015, he led La Mancha’s portfolio restructuring and contributed to the enhancement of its mines’ performance in Australia and Africa. Vincent identified and executed the combinations with Evolution and Endeavour, which positioned La Mancha as a leading private investor in the gold mining sector. From 2016 to 2019, Vincent was CFO and EVP of Corporate Development at Endeavour where he reshaped the strategy, improved the mine portfolio quality, and enhanced the balance sheet to fund organic growth. Endeavour’s market capitalization was quadrupled by the time he left at the end of 2019. In early 2020, he re-joined La Mancha to oversee investments and fundraising.
Previously, Vincent was at Orange (2006-2012) where he served as EVP M&A. He led the development of the group’s footprint in Africa and Europe and formed strategic partnerships with key European telecom players. Prior to this, Vincent held various finance positions including with Orano (ex-Areva), Bull Information Systems and PwC.
Vincent holds an MSc from Kedge Business School and is a Chartered Accountant.
Maissa is a private equity buy-side specialist with 16 years of experience across the Middle East, the U.S and South America.
She has a wealth of experience delivering strategic oversight to C- suite and HNWI to create value across sectors including education, real estate and heavy industry.
Maissa began her career at Royal Group Companies Management in 2007. In 2018, Maissa became an Investment Associate where she gained executive authority over investments. She is also a member of the Royal Group’s Investment Committee and on the boards of the company’s subsidiaries. Maissa has assisted the rapid growth of the company from a small family office to a leading firm in Abu Dhabi. She generated government-level opportunities encompassing sectors including infrastructure, aviation and financial services and acted as the finance lead on official delegations. Maissa realised substantial profits, sourced leading sector equity investors, and structured exit deals for key assets. She conducted strategic and financial analysis and played a hands-on role in subsidiaries’ strategy setting; guided high-level management on medium and long-term strategic changes and restructuring initiatives.
Maissa has a Bachelor of Commerce, Finance & Marketing (Distinction) from the University of Wollongong, Dubai and is a Certified Valuation Analyst, IACVA, Level 3 candidate, CFA.
Karim Moussa is the Co-CEO of EFG Hermes Investment bank. He is responsible for the entire buy-side business of the Group. Karim sits on the Investment Committee of several EFG Hermes’ sponsored funds and on InfraMed’s Investors Board.
In 2008, having been responsible for building out the Group’s infrastructure private equity platform, he led the creation of the Vortex Energy Platform and raised and deployed over USD 500 million in equity in yielding renewable energy assets across Europe. In 2019, he completed an exit of a portfolio of net c. 457 MW of onshore wind assets in France, Spain, Portugal, and Belgium to funds managed by J.P. Morgan, realising attractive divestment returns and paying net cash yields in excess of 5% p.a. to investors.
In 2020 Karim continued the successful divestment of Vortex assets, selling a controlling stake in its 365 MW UK solar portfolio to Tanaga Nasional for c. GBP 500 million EV, delivering c. 13% IRR and 1.4x cash-on-cash returns. In addition, Karim recently led the launch of an education fund in partnership with GEMS Education, dedicated to investing in K-12 schools in Egypt, raising c. USD 133 million.
Prior to joining EFG Hermes, Karim was Vice President at Deutsche Bank’s Global Banking division, with responsibilities for M&A, ECM, and DCM advisory in the MENA region. He moved to Dubai In 2005, to help establish the bank’s regional business. Prior to Deutsche Bank, Karim worked as an Investment Analyst at Berlin Capital Fund, a venture capital fund managed by the Berliner Bank.
Karim holds a Masters in Business Administration and Mechanical Engineering from the Technical University of Berlin.