KKR has appointed Hidekazu Harada as a Managing Director in the firm’s Private Equity team based in Tokyo, effective immediately.Harada brings over 20 years of investment banking experience to KKR. He joins from Bank of America Merrill Lynch where he worked for 16 years and was most recently a Board member and Co-Head of Japan Investment Banking. At Bank of America Merrill Lynch he was primarily responsible for financial sponsors, TMT, mergers & acquisitions, management buyouts, and leveraged finance. Prior to his time at the bank, he spent four years at Daiwa Securities SMBC’s Tokyo and London offices where he

 Investor services group IQ-EQ has appointed Sukanya Lal as a Business Director in its Singapore team, with a primary focus on developing the group’s network and business opportunities in India.With almost 19 years’ experience in the finance industry, Lal has developed a successful career in business development and sales spanning multiple financial service sectors, including fund services, custody services, asset management and insurance. Before joining IQ-EQ in Singapore, Lal had held a series of senior business development roles spanning Mumbai and Delhi. Most recently, she was Associate Director of Business Development, Marketing and Sales for a leading global provider of

Bondstone, a Portuguese private equity real estate investment and asset management firm, has hired António Dias as its chief financial officer. Dias brings more than a decade of experience in corporate finance, M&A and private equity as well as programmatic portfolio management and will support Bondstone’s ambitious investment plans.   Dias joins Bondstone, which launched in February, from MarginKey, a Portugal-based consulting firm focused on small and medium-sized enterprises, in which he was founding partner and CEO. He is passionate about entrepreneurship and the private equity industry, having previously served at a leading Portuguese private equity firm, Oxy Capital. Dias obtained a degree in law from

Unigrains, an agri-food and agro-industry specialised investor, has appointed Sébastien Essioux as Deputy CEO.Jean-François Laurain, CEO of Unigrains, says: “I am delighted to welcome Sébastien Essioux to our Group and our Executive Committee. His vast experience in strategy consulting and in the operational management of companies operating across the agri-food value chain, will allow him to quickly grasp the challenges of our essential role: to support the development of our partner companies as best as possible and strengthen the links between all stakeholders, from farmers to consumers.”   Essioux has more than 30 years of experience in strategy and organisation

Global fund administration, trust and corporate services provider Vistra has expanded its private equity capabilities with the addition of four new executive leaders. The new team members bolster Vistra’s already impressive expertise and set of services for private equity firms and their portfolio companies. Vistra is a specialist in fund formation and administration, with over USD300 billion of alternative assets under administration. It counts over 10 of the top 15 private equity managers among its clients. Scott Kraemer, Vistra’s Managing Director of Alternative Investments in North America, says he is delighted to be in a position to add executive leadership during

Humatica, a specialist private equity adviser focused on organisational effectiveness, has appointed Jaroslav Filák as a Consultant in its Zurich office.  Filák will support continued expansion of the firm’s organisational efficiency work in Europe.   He brings deep experience with technology-driven organisational transformation, having previously worked with a leading IT consultancy in Europe and the US.   Like other Humatica consultants, Filák has an international background, having previously studied and worked in the UK, US, Germany and the Czech Republic.   Andros Payne, Managing Partner of Humatica, says: “With over 50 per cent pa growth in the past two years,

International law firm Proskauer has appointed James Lee and Jae Woo Park as partners in its M&A practice. They will both be based in the New York office.“As we expand our global M&A team, James and Jae epitomise the entrepreneurial spirit that Proskauer prides itself on cultivating,” says Steve Ellis, Chair of the Firm. “We have worked on many industry transforming deals over recent months and we welcome their cross sector strength and depth of experience to expand our expertise.” Lee has extensive experience advising private equity funds, growth equity funds, venture capital funds and other private investment firms and

Medicxi, a European life sciences investment firm, has appointed Sanford (Sandy) Zweifach and Paul Sekhri as Venture Partners.In their roles at Medicxi, Zweifach and Sekhri will leverage their strong track records of successful transactions and respective 30 plus years of experience stewarding life sciences companies to help steer Medicxi’s  portfolio companies to optimal growth and the best suited strategic transactions, as a number of molecules in development move to proof of concept stage, or enter the clinic.   Zweifach is currently the Chairman of Palladio Biosciences, and Executive Chairman of Janpix, two Medicxi portfolio companies. His focus is in corporate partnering, business development,

Polsinelli, an Am Law 100 firm, has appointed Daniel F Valsamopoulos as a shareholder in the firm’s Corporate and Transactional Practice in New York. Valsamopoulos was previously a partner at Westerman Ball Ederer Miller Zucker and Sharfstein, a boutique law firm on Long Island. Valsamopoulos regularly represents private investment firms and private and public companies in a wide range of transactional matters including private equity and venture capital investments, mergers and acquisitions, divestitures, joint ventures, strategic alliances, private offerings of securities and general corporate matters.   “I am excited to join Polsinelli and work with the firm’s outstanding attorneys,” says Valsamopoulos.