Leadership

Mark Gordon is a co-founder & CIO of Ascent Funds and the former Chief Financial Officer for Hyzon Motors Inc. Prior to this, Mark was a senior portfolio manager at Janus Henderson, where he managed the Alphagen Energy Funds. Before that, Mark was a Senior Analyst at Paulson & Co responsible for the energy sector. Prior to Paulson, Mark was a Portfolio Manager at Soros Fund Management where he ran an energy and natural resources fund for three years. Mark spent eight years at Goldman Sachs Asset Management ending as a Portfolio Manager and a Managing Director.

Mark has an MBA (honors) from the University of Chicago with concentrations in Analytic Finance and Economics. Mark has an MA from Stanford University and a BA from Brown University (honors). Mark is a CFA charter holder.

Mark was awarded a second degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do and he completed the Ironman Triathlon World Championship in Kona, Hawaii.

David, an energy and finance entrepreneur, is widely recognised for his contributions in clean energy investment and advocacy for climate tech education. He is President and co-founder of Ascent Funds and a Senior Advisor to ALAT, a US$100 billion investment company backed by the Public Investment Fund (PIF) bringing clean-energy powered manufacturing into the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. David is a Board Member of the non-profit Hydrogen Grand Prix Foundation (H2GP) educating high school students on clean mobility through the world's largest hydrogen education and racing program. He is also a Board Director of Sans Faff, a waste-neutral fashion brand and board observer at Raven SR, a California based company committed to producing clean hydrogen from household waste.

A former capital markets banker with Rothschild in London, David was Chairman of Capital Markets at Fosun, a Forbes 500 company managing over US$100 billion in assets and employing over 100,000 people. He was also Head of Capital Markets at both InterOil Corporation, a NYSE-listed energy company overseeing its successful US$2.5 billion sale to ExxonMobil; and Greenheart Group, a natural resources company that saw its majority stake acquired by Hong Kong-based New World Group.

David graduated with Honours from the University of Cambridge, where he studied Economics and Management. David was also a Du Cane Piano Scholar at the Royal Academy of Music (Junior) in London. He is currently based between Singapore and Riyadh and is a member of YPO SEA Lestari, a chapter dedicated to promoting positive social impact by using business as a force for good.

John Vogelstein is a Senior Partner of Ascent Funds.

Mr. Vogelstein is also the Chairman of New Providence Asset Management, LLC and Senior Advisor to Warburg Pincus, LLC. Born in 1934, he attended The Taft School and Harvard College. Mr. Vogelstein began his career at Lazard Freres & Co., where he became a partner in 1964. He joined E. M. Warburg & Co., Inc. (later Warburg Pincus, LLC) in 1967. Mr. Vogelstein was the Chief Investment Officer of Warburg Pincus LLC for more than two decades. He and Lionel Pincus built the firm to be one of the largest and most successful full line private equity firms in the world.

Currently, Mr. Vogelstein is Chairman of the Board of Directors of Prep for Prep; Vice Chairman of the Board of Overseers of The Leonard N. Stern School of Business at New York University; Trustee of New York University; Chairman of Third Way; Chairman of Christie’s Advisory Board; Trustee of Temple Emanu-El; Trustee of The Jewish Museum, and Director of Flamel Technologies.

Mark Shattan is deputy CIO of Ascent Funds. Mark was a former Portfolio Manager at Jennison Associates where he managed a $3 billion growth portfolio and co-managed the flagship $65 billion large cap growth strategy. Before Jennison, Mark was a Managing Director and Chief Investment Officer of a $7 billion equity strategy at Goldman Sachs.

Mark has over 20 years of experience as a growth Portfolio Manager at Goldman Sachs and Jennison Associates, with a top quartile Morningstar performance ranking for past decade, and a 4 Star Fund Rating. Mark has 22 years professional experience investing alongside notable growth investors Herb Ehlers (Goldman Sachs) and Sig Segalas (Jennison Associates).

Mark is a West Point Graduate and a former Captain in the U.S. Army. Mark is a CFA charter holder.

David Walker is a Partner at Ascent Funds. David Walker is also the Founder and Chief Investment Officer of Jedburgh Advisors, a hedge fund in West Palm Beach, Florida. Dave has 21 years of experience working at hedge funds, including over 6 years as a portfolio manager. He developed his investment philosophy by learning from various mentors and portfolio managers over the past two decades while working at multibillion-dollar hedge funds including, Spruce House Investment Management, Tower Capital, Scout Capital, and Concordia Advisors.
Mr. Walker holds a BS in Engineering from the United States Military Academy at West Point, where he received the Superintendent’s Award and an MBA from the Kellogg School at Northwestern University. Dave served in the U.S. Army in the 82nd Airborne Division, 3rd Ranger Battalion, and 5th Special Forces Group (“Green Beret”). He is also a Service-Disable Veteran who believes in giving back to the Special Operations Community.

Trevor Healy is a Partner at Ascent and Managing Partner of Sansa Advisors, where he frequently consults with Global 500 CEO’s on corporate strategy and M&A. He was previously the Executive Chairman of Nexmo, a leading cloud company (acquired by Vonage), President of Sansa Security in the IOT security space (acquired by ARM), CEO of Amobee Inc. (acquired by Singtel), and the CEO of Jajah (acquired by Telefonica). Prior to that, Trevor was a GM at PayPal Inc. which acquired VeriSign Payment Services, a company where he spearheaded the backbone infrastructure for cloud commerce. Earlier in his career, Trevor also co-founded CelNX (acquired by VeriSign), started the US subsidiary of Trintech Inc. (IPO), and held senior positions at Kindle Banking Systems (Acquired by Misys PLC). Trevor divides his time between Singapore and San Francisco and is a strong champion of the arts, implementing Sansa’s own CSR initiative in the form of Sansa Art

Hassan Ikram is a visionary entrepreneur, based in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and with a proven track record of success in the field of Fintech, Consultancy, Logistics Tech, Accelerator, Healthcare, and more. As a former investment banker, Hassan brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the table, having spent over 15 years working in product and business development, financial advisory, asset allocation, incentivization and optimization of mutual fund products structuring, and investment banking.

Hassan has a deep understanding of the financial landscape and is well-versed in fundraising, Due Diligence (DD), Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A), Initial Public Offerings (IPO), Risk Issues (RI), Asset Purchase, restructuring, private placements, and more. As a founder, Hassan has a proven track record of creating and scaling successful startups from Fintech and Consultancy to Logistics Tech and Healthcare. Hassan has a talent for identifying and capitalizing on opportunities by creating synergy for better valuations and exits.

Additionally, Hassan has a deep understanding of the startup ecosystem and has built an extensive network of investors, mentors, and other entrepreneurs. This network allows him to provide valuable insights and guidance to his clients, helping them navigate the complex landscape of today's business environment while enabling their businesses to thrive.

Beyond his professional experience and achievements, Hassan has a passion for mentoring and supporting the next generation of entrepreneurs. He has worked with several startups as an advisor and mentor, providing guidance on strategy, operations, and fundraising. His dedication to supporting the startup community and helping entrepreneurs achieve their dreams sets him apart as a true leader in the field.

As the Founder and CEO of Cotyledon Holding, Hassan continues to drive innovation and growth in his investments and for his clients. His exceptional track record, passion for entrepreneurship, and commitment to excellence make him a highly sought-after partner for any company looking to achieve success in today's fast-paced business landscape.

Frank Lavin is active in U.S.-Asia policy, U.S. domestic politics, and trade policy matters. He serves as the Parikh Family Fellow at the Dornsife Center for the Political Future at the University of Southern California as well as a Trustee of the Asia Foundation and as a Director of the Asia Society of Northern California.

Lavin served as Under Secretary for International Trade at the U.S. Department of Commerce in the Bush (43) Administration. In that capacity, Lavin served as lead trade negotiator for both China and India and was responsible for commercial policy, export promotion, and trade negotiations across the globe. Lavin was previously U.S. Ambassador to Singapore, where he helped negotiate the U.S.-Singapore Free Trade Agreement.

In the private sector, Lavin served in senior finance and management positions in Hong Kong and Singapore with Bank of America and Citibank.

Lavin also served in the Bush (41) and Reagan Administrations, working in the Department of Commerce, Department of State, National Security Council, and White House. In the Reagan Administration, Lavin served as White House Political Director.

Lavin earned a B.S. from the School of Foreign Service and an M.S. in Chinese Language and History (both Georgetown); an M.A. in International Relations and International Economics from SAIS (Johns Hopkins); and an M.B.A. in Finance from Wharton (Pennsylvania).

He is a columnist for Forbes.com and has been published in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, Foreign Affairs, Foreign Policy, and elsewhere.

Lavin is the author of “Inside the Reagan White House” (Post Hill Press 2025), “The Smart Business Guide to China E-Commerce” (Penguin), co-author of “Export Now” (Wiley), and author of “Home Front to Battlefront” (Ohio University Press), a World War II history book.

Lavin also is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, and on the Advisory Board of ECIPE, a Brussels think-tank. Lavin has participated in two humanitarian missions to Ukraine. He formerly served as a Visiting Fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University and as a Lt Commander in the U.S. Naval Reserves.

Dr. Paul Lichty is the founder and CEO of Forge Nano, a Colorado-based company recognized globally for its pioneering atomic layer deposition (ALD) technology. He holds a PhD in Chemical Engineering from the University of Colorado Boulder, as well as a BS in Mechanical Engineering and MS in Chemical and Biological Engineering from the same institution. As a graduate student in 2013, Paul co-invented a scalable ALD manufacturing process for applying ultra-thin coatings to materials, which led to the founding of Forge Nano.

Under his leadership, Forge Nano has grown from a garage startup to a world leader in nano coating solutions, serving global clients including Fortune 500 companies across industries such as energy storage, semiconductors, and advanced manufacturing. The company has received grants from major organizations like the Department of Energy and the U.S. Navy, and has won significant investments to expand its technology and operations.

Paul Lichty has been recognized among Denver's "40 Under 40" for his business achievements and commitment to innovation and mentoring in the STEM field. He continues to guide Forge Nano as it develops new commercial applications for ALD, with a focus on battery technologies.