Merchant West Investments Team and Leadership
Board of Directors

Braam Viljoen
Group Chief Executive Officer

Braam Viljoen
Group Chief Executive Officer
CA(SA), CFA, MCom (Financial Management)
55 years oldSubsequent to his internship with Deloitte and consequent qualification as a Chartered Accountant, Braam Viljoen joined the Risk Management division of Investec Bank Limited. He was later repositioned, and for the succeeding four years, was fundamentally involved in the bank’s Specialised Finance division. In 1998, Braam co-founded Merchant West within the Specialised Finance Division of a JSE-listed corporation. He held the position of Managing Director until 2002 when the business was repurchased and rebranded as Merchant West Holdings. Since then, he has served as the Group Chief Executive Officer. Braam’s tenure with the company spans 25 years. Braam is a CFA® charter holder, a Chartered Accountant and holds a Master of Commerce degree in Financial Management from the Rand Afrikaans University (RAU).

Daniel King
Managing Director

Daniel King
Managing Director

Johan Pretorius
Group Chief Operating Officer

Johan Pretorius
Group Chief Operating Officer
BCom Hons (Accounts), CA(SA)
45 years oldSubsequent to completing his articles at PKF (JHB) Inc. in 2004, Johan Pretorius joined Merchant West, and was appointed as Merchant West’s Group Financial Manager. Progressing within the organisation, Johan was promoted to the role of Group Financial Director in 2005, overseeing the financial affairs of the holding and associate companies. His career trajectory continued in 2013 when he assumed the position of Director of Business Development, contributing to the Specialised Finance team at Merchant West. In pursuit of strategic objectives, Johan relocated to Cape Town at the end of 2013, becoming the Regional Director of the Merchant West Cape Town branch. In October 2018, he expanded his role to Group Regional Director, undertaking responsibilities for all regional branches and spearheading the regional roll-out strategy. In October 2021, Johan was appointed to Group COO. Johans tenure with the company spans 20 years. Johan holds a Bachelor of Commerce (BCom) Honours, Accounting from the University of Pretoria and is a Chartered Accountant

Philip Lochner
Group Chief Financial Officer

Philip Lochner
Group Chief Financial Officer
BCompt (Hons), PGDA, CA(SA)
55 years oldAfter completing articles with PwC and earning qualification as a Chartered Accountant, Philip Lochner, accumulated over 25 years of experience in the Corporate, Business, and Commercial Banking divisions with Absa and FNB. His extensive career involved various roles in Internal Audit, Specialised Finance, Treasury, and Asset Finance. Philip held CFO positions in FNB Agriculture and FirstRand Commercial Credit before joining Merchant West. In October 2021, he assumed the position of Group Chief Financial Officer. Philips tenure with Merchant West spans 2 years. Philip holds a Bachelor of Accounting Science Honours Degree from the University of South Africa (UNISA), as well as a Postgraduate Diploma in Accounting from the University of Natal

Piet Viljoen
Non-Executive Director

Piet Viljoen
Non-Executive Director

Raymond Shapiro
Executive Director

Raymond Shapiro
Executive Director
Leadership Team

Daniel King
Managing Director

Daniel King
Managing Director

Ian Anderson
Portfolio Manager

Ian Anderson
Portfolio Manager

Sandi Venn
Financial Manager

Sandi Venn
Financial Manager

Raymond Shapiro
Chief Investment Officer

Raymond Shapiro
Chief Investment Officer
Operations Team
Guy Joyce
Operations Manager
Guy Joyce
Operations Manager
Juan Mirfin
Head of Distribution
Juan Mirfin
Head of Distribution
Mike Botha
Investment Consultant
Mike Botha
Investment Consultant
Nicole de Freitas
Finance Administrator
Nicole de Freitas
Finance Administrator

Sandi Venn
Financial Manager

Sandi Venn
Financial Manager
Investment Team
Alyssa Viljoen
Head of Equity Research
Alyssa Viljoen
Head of Equity Research
André Joubert
Portfolio Manager
André Joubert
Portfolio Manager
Andrew Dowse
Portfolio Manager
Andrew Dowse
Portfolio Manager
Ansonette Neethling
Economics & Fixed Income Analyst
Ansonette Neethling
Economics & Fixed Income Analyst
Bianca Lakha
Equity Analyst
Bianca Lakha
Equity Analyst

Daniel King
Portfolio Manager

Daniel King
Portfolio Manager

Ian Anderson
Portfolio Manager

Ian Anderson
Portfolio Manager
Joshua Viljoen
Equity Analyst
Joshua Viljoen
Equity Analyst

Piet Viljoen
Portfolio Manager

Piet Viljoen
Portfolio Manager

Raymond Shapiro
Portfolio Manager

Raymond Shapiro
Portfolio Manager
Richard Henwood
Portfolio Manager
Richard Henwood
Portfolio Manager
Rudi Van NieKerk
Portfolio Manager
Rudi Van NieKerk
Portfolio Manager
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