Rede announces five new appointments and promotions, as well as plans to open an office in the Middle East

We are pleased to announce two promotions to Partner from our global coverage network, as well as three senior hires adding important capabilities to the firm.

Charles Wan and James Varela have been promoted to Partner, expanding Rede’s Partner group to eight. The eight partners have an average tenure at Rede of 8 years and 19 years’ private markets fundraising experience. Rede has also announced three new senior hires: Mark Ager as Head of Technology; Adele Gilmore as Principal, Advisory; and Ben Plant as Principal, Capital Solutions.

Charles Wan, Head of Asia, is a senior member of Rede’s global Investor Coverage team and leads Rede’s activities in Asia. He is based in Rede's Asia regional office in Hong Kong.

To date, Rede has raised over €12bn from investors in the Asia-Pacific region. Since joining Rede in 2022 Charles has been instrumental in driving Rede’s Asia-Pacific presence and has built a team of seven professionals covering all key geographies across the region. Charles is deeply experienced and well-networked, with 18 years’ private markets experience both as a fundraiser and a limited partner investing in primary funds and secondaries. Charles’s promotion to Partner reflects his achievements in delivering outstanding fundraising results for clients and reaffirms Rede’s commitment to the region.

James Varela, Head of Middle East, is a senior member of Rede’s global Investor Coverage team. James joined Rede in 2017 and has played a key role in many of Rede’s highest profile fundraisings. Over his 15 year career in private markets he has built deep and trusted relationships with institutional investors across the Middle East and Europe. James’ promotion to Partner reflects his long track record of delivering for clients and outstanding market reputation.

James will play a key role in the firm’s continued global expansion. Rede’s Middle East coverage has long been a strength, with over €6bn raised from investors in the region to date. James will lead a new office in the Middle East that Rede plans to open in early 2025, with a team of four dedicated to the region. The new office will take Rede’s global locations to five, complementing existing operations in London, New York, Hong Kong and Amsterdam. 

Mark Ager joins Rede as Head of Technology, a new role created to further Rede’s leadership in digital innovation. Rede has long been a pioneer in the application of technology to private markets fundraising and launched its highly regarded digital portal RedeWire in 2023.  Mark was previously Head of IT at Livingbridge and has over 22 years’ experience in financial services, having previously worked at Intermediate Capital Group (ICG) and UBS Investment Bank. He will work closely with Rede’s senior team to further push boundaries applying data, generative AI and digital initiatives to enhance Rede’s client experience and generate valuable market insights.

Adele Gilmore joins Rede’s Advisory team as a Principal to provide strategic advice and leadership of client fundraising activity. Adele has 11 years’ capital raising experience. Prior to joining Rede, Adele held senior positions at Aviditi Advisors where she was responsible for European GP advisory and execution. Adele also worked at PJT Park Hill within the GP advisory team, after beginning her career in investment banking at Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Goldman Sachs.

Ben Plant joins Rede’s Capital Solutions team as a Principal. An experienced corporate lawyer and investment banker, he will provide strategic advice to Rede’s GP clients across a wide range of strategic capital transactions including GP-led transactions, minority equity direct transactions, GP equity, GP financings and alternative liquidity solutions. He has 15 years’ financial services experience and joins from Lazard’s Financial Sponsors Advisory team. His appointment follows the recent hire of Riccardo Villa as co-Head of Capital Solutions and further bolsters Rede’s integrated strategic offering to Private Markets managers.

Our future is bright!