Home Benefits Features Case studies About us Contact us Introduction News In the press About us RiskFirst is a financial technology business providing intuitive, user-friendly risk analytics and reporting solutions to the pensions and investment market. The company’s core product, PFaroe, was launched in 2009 to target DB pension schemes and is now the market leader in the UK, with a growing foothold in the US. Over 380 pension schemes, with more than £150 billion of liabilities, now use PFaroe in the UK. Senior Management Timothy Lyons Founder With 35 years’ experience in capital markets, asset management and building businesses, Timothy founded RiskFirst (formerly PensionsFirst) in 2007. Having previously worked for Manufacturers Hanover Limited, CSFB and Salomon Brothers, in 1992 Timothy founded Quadrant Capital, which managed US$7 billion of fixed income funds, and sold it to BNY Mellon in 2002. Benjamin Reid President With a strategic focus on bringing new products and solutions to market, Benjamin drives thought leadership at RiskFirst and steers the product commercialisation process bringing unique and ground-breaking solutions to the pensions market. Prior to joining RiskFirst Benjamin was a Director at Wachovia Securities in New York where he was responsible for the origination of a broad range of asset financings including securitizations for the life insurance industry and whole business securitizations of sport and retail franchises. In this role he worked closely with syndicate and distribution to develop an alternative investor base from the pension, endowment and hedge fund community. Before Wachovia, Benjamin was the US Managing Director of Burgundy Global, a unique managed services company, specializing in formulating corporate strategy and delivering IT-based ground transportation solutions. He was responsible for planning and directing all aspects of company policy, with full P&L responsibility. After completing an MBA at INSEAD, Benjamin began his career on the investment desk of Quadrant Capital, an independent asset management business, investing in high-grade corporate and ABS products. In 1999 he was made a Director of the company in charge of marketing and business development including the distribution of leveraged capital and investor relations. He remained a Director until Quadrant sold its operating business in 2002. Matthew Seymour Commercial Director Matthew has spent 15 years in technology, 12 specifically in Financial Technology (FinTech) and 8 of that on SaaS FinTechs. He joined RiskFirst in 2009 as Head of Product Development before becoming CIO where he was responsible for development and IT operations. More recently he became Managing Director and is responsible for the commercial aspects of the business. Prior to RiskFirst, Matthew was Co-Owner and CTO of FundWorks, a SaaS FinTech servicing Investment Management which was sold to Kurtosys in 2009. FundWorks was a global leader in its field with 30 blue chip clients across 7 offices (UK, USA, India, South Africa and Australia) and 90 staff. Matthew started his career as a technology consultant for PricewaterhouseCoopers and later became an independent consultant focused on technology within the Investment Management and Investment Banking sectors, where he worked with Deutsche Bank, Insight Investment, RBS and Threadneedle. Matthew Bale Head of Product Management Matthew is Managing Director and Head of Product Management at RiskFirst, where he is responsible for the strategic direction of PFaroe, RiskFirst’s proprietary risk management platform. In this role, Matthew has a key interaction with RiskFirst’s clients, prospects and the wider pension industry. Prior to joining RiskFirst, Matthew spent three years in Citi's Insurance and Pensions Structured Solutions Group, helping the bank’s key clients manage their global defined benefit pension risk. Before this, he was a Director in ABN Amro's Pension Advisory Team, working with clients on pension, investment and funding solutions. Matthew began his pension career as a Consultant in Towers Perrins' Employee Benefit Services division, where he qualified as an actuary. His experience covers a broad range of pension issues including pension de-risking / risk transfer solutions, asset liability modelling, actuarial funding and pension accounting. He has experience of working with pension plans in the UK, US, Netherlands, Germany, Ireland, Canada and Japan. Tony Graff Chief Operating Officer/ Chief Financial Officer Joining RiskFirst in July 2013, Tony is responsible for Operations and Finance.Tony is an experienced COO and CFO across a number of industries including Payments, IT services, B2B distribution, Healthcare and Restaurants. These businesses have ranged in size from £20m to £1bn+. Prior to joining RiskFirst Tony was working with Advent International where he worked in portfolio companies such as WorldPay and Towergate Insurance. He has also previously worked at McKinsey as a consultant for 7 years. Nick Francis Chief Technology Officer After joining RiskFirst in 2009 as a Director, Nick was responsible for the development of PFaroe. As CTO Nick is currently responsible for all technological aspects of the business, including software development, maintenance, testing and IT operations. Prior to RiskFirst, Nick founded and spent 17 years as Technical Director of Sentient, a bespoke software and consultancy company, running large projects for enterprise customers such as Natwest, DG Bank, Commerzbank, AstraZeneca, Pfizer, Virgin and Worldcom/MCI/Verizon. Nick holds a PhD in Computer Architecture gained during work for the US Department of Defense. Darren Best Skyval Managing Director Darren joined RiskFirst in January 2008 as a Director where he was responsible for client relationships and implementation whilst supporting the sales team. As Managing Director he is responsible for RiskFirst’s service delivery to Skyval and works with PwC to determine Skyval’s commercial strategy. Darren is a qualified actuary and has prior experience in consultancy roles both in London and New York. Within these roles he advised on pension fund design, management, funding and reporting. Rob Stuart General Counsel Rob Stuart has been the General Counsel of RiskFirst and its corporate group since 2009. A graduate of Princeton University and the Faculty of Law, University of Toronto, he is qualified to practice law in England and Wales, and also in New York State. Prior to joining RiskFirst, he was an inhouse lawyer for a London-based hedge fund, and general counsel for a multinational insurance and reinsurance company. At RiskFirst, he is responsible for managing legal risk throughout the organisation, as well as for all legal elements of commercial contracting. He also serves as Company Secretary. Awards and Recognition FinTech50 FSTech Awards Risk Management European Pensions FinTech50 2013, 2014 RiskFirst has been named as one of The FinTech50 2014, a shortlist of fifty companies in Europe that are redefining financial services through technology. The 50 a collaborative project by TheCEOAgenda, ICON Corporate Finance, Hotwire, Silicon Valley Bank and Fox Williams, is an annual exercise to track one of the fastest moving sectors in technology. This year’s FinTech50 was announced as the finale to the first ever FinTechCity – three days of events held in London for technology CEOs, financial services, investors and acquirers. The FinTech 50 2014 is selected by a panel of industry experts from across the financial services and technology industry. The panel convened at the end of 2013 to debate and select 50 companies in the sector across Europe that demonstrate the potential to become a game-changer in FinTech or the competitive staying power to continue being one. Going up? Book a demo Connect on Linkedin Follow on Twitter Benefits Features Case studies About us Contact us UK Office 90 Long Acre, London WC2E 9RA +44 20 7632 9100 info@riskfirst.com US Office 2 Greenwich Office Park, Greenwich CT 06831 +1 203 861 5537 info@riskfirst.com © Risk First 2010-2014 Legal and regulatory Terms of Use Privacy policy