ASEAN Launch event

Dario began his career working for an international law firm and has experience in assisting foreign investments into ASEAN, China and Hong Kong. He has built a practice of multinational clients and a strong reputation as adviser to the board of western brands operating in Asia. Dario is a member of the Luxury committee of the Italian Chamber of Commerce in Singapore and sits on the board of directors of the Asian subsidiaries of several luxury brands.

Emma is focused on nurturing and strengthening partnerships between business and Government to ensure that the UK remains an attractive and innovative global centre for financial and professional services. Emma previously spent six years in government as Head of Asia Pacific in the Department for International Trade’s Capital Investment Team, and Chief of Staff in the House of Commons for the Rt Hon Sir Stephen O’Brien.

Gavin is CCO at Hawksford - a leading international provider of Corporate, Private Client and Fund Services and a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales. He works closely with clients, intermediaries and stakeholders connected to ASEAN and is a regular visitor to the region.

Gavin's experience extends across a broad range of asset classes, private and regulated investment structures, funds and international capital markets.

Ian has held various governmental roles including British Consul General in Ho Chi Minh City, Deputy Consul General and Director of UK Trade & Investment in Dubai, Deputy Director of UKTI India, Senior Private Secretary to the Department of Trade & Industry (DTI) Secretaries of State and Director of Business Development with the MWW Group in New York working in Public Relations.

Heather is a UK politician focusing on economic prosperity, encouraging business to open, expand, export and employ. She has a particular interest in the potential of UK-ASEAN trade as a contributor to that focus, and previously served as Minister for Asia and the Pacific (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State) at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and as the Prime Minister’s Trade Envoy to Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. In these roles, she focused on strengthening relationships and promoting trade within the ASEAN region.

Natalie Black CBE joined Ofcom in November 2024 as Group Director for Communications and Networks and Executive Board Member. She is also responsible for leading Ofcoms’s work on the implications of Artificial Intelligence.

Previously, Natalie was the UK’s first His Majesty’s Trade Commissioner for Asia Pacific and Senior Economic Official to ASEAN. Based in Singapore, she led the UK’s trade strategy and operations across 15 countries. Highlights included attracting £17.7bn of investment from Japan and £28.5bn from Australia, joining CPTPP and the UK’s first Digital Economy Agreement with Singapore.

Natalie is a Visiting Professor in Practice at the London School of Economics and a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader. She was previously a trustee of Bletchley Park and co-founded GBxAsia (now British Tech Advisers) to support collaboration between the UK and Asian tech ecosystems

Natalie is a graduate of the LSE and Harvard Kennedy School, where she was a Fulbright scholar.

Robin is a chartered accountant with extensive experience in corporate finance, raising capital, management buyouts, capital reconstructions, pre-flotation planning and cross border due diligence. He has advised on numerous acquisitions and disposals by public and private companies, IPOs and secondary offerings. Robin has many years’ experience working with clients operating in South-East Asia and maintains a strong client base in the ASEAN region.

Shan has nearly 20 years’ experience in communications and has advised on profile raising, issues management, litigation, M&A and IPOs for businesses globally including Southeast Asia.

Prior to TB Cardew, she worked inthe M&A team at Daiwa Securities SMBC and Crosby Financial, specialising in cross-border corporate finance transactions with a focus on Japan and Southeast Asia.

Tom has led the London Stock Exchange’s International Primary Markets business since 2017, advising UK and international companies on the process of raising capital and listing on London’s markets. He previously worked for Citigroup for over 15 years as a Managing Director in the Equity Capital Markets division, originating, structuring and executing equity and equity-linked transactions across UK, Europe, Middle East and Africa.

Tom has extensive experience of advising on complex cross-border M&A and capital markets transactions within South and Southeast Asia. International clients value Tom's commercial, pragmatic advice and his energetic approach to developing long-term client relationships.

Tom acts on all forms of domestic and cross-border M&A, strategic joint ventures and corporate restructurings.

Having worked for many years in London, Tom moved to Southeast Asia in 2011, where he advises a significant base of blue-chip international corporate, banking and funds clients.

In recent years, he has worked on complex deals in every jurisdiction in ASEAN, with a specific expertise advising on transactions in Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. Tom is currently ranked in Singapore as a leading individual by Chambers Asia Pacific and is also a recommended lawyer by the Legal 500 Asia Pacific for the Corporate M&A category, and in Philippines, Singapore and Vietnam. He was also client-nominated as a stand-out talent by Acritas Stars, listed in Asia Business Law Journal as one of Singapore's Top 100 Lawyers, and named in Asian Legal Business' 'Super 50 TMT Lawyers' list in 2023.

Veronica has a deep understanding of ASEAN markets honed during her time as Head of Events at the UK-ASEAN Business Council (UKABC). Veronica has a proven track record of curating high-impact events that connect corporates and government bodies to address pressing topics.

William Knight has over 45 years’ experience in financial development and economic growth across ASEAN, including government borrowings, note issuance programmes for banks and financial structuring for major capital projects. In addition to arranging sovereign borrowings for the governments of Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines, William was responsible for raising Thailand’s first international borrowings in the 1970s, later establishing and chairing one of the world’s first listed funds investing in Thai securities and serving on the board of the Vietnam Fund Ltd and the Myanmar Fund.