Your Wealth Management Team

Miguel DaPonte, CFA

EVP, Chief Wealth Management Officer

Mr. DaPonte is a CFA charter holder who obtained an MBA from the Richard Ivey School of Business at the University of Western Ontario. Prior to joining Clarien, Mr. DaPonte was the SVP Investments and Pensions at a local insurance company. During that time, he was responsible for the asset allocation and manager selection of the balance sheet assets of the firm and headed the company’s defined contribution pension business. Prior to that, he was Assistant Vice President at a global annuity and life insurance company, where he monitored and advised on investment portfolios totaling over $12 billion.

The formative years of his career were spent at an investment advisory service firm as a Senior Investment Analyst, where he managed global equities and fixed income portfolios.

In his new role as Chief Wealth Management Officer, Mr. DaPonte will be tasked with leading and overseeing Clarien’s Wealth Management business and all associated teams, including but not limited to: Private Banking, Investment Management (Clarien Investments Limited) and Trust Management (Clarien Trust Limited), including Family Office and Clarien Corporate Services Limited.

Jennifer Hanson Crockwell, CPA, CA, TEP

SVP, Head of Trust and Family Office

Jennifer joined Clarien in October 2020, as Senior Vice President, Head of Trust and Family office. As Head of Trust and Family Office, Jennifer plays an integral role in the strategic development of Clarien Wealth Management with a focus on ultra-high net worth and Family Office clients under the direction of the Chief Executive Officer.

Prior to joining Clarien, Jennifer was Chief Financial and Administration Officer for a Private Company in Bermuda. Previously, she held the post of Senior Manager at Arthur Morris and Company Limited specializing in providing accounting, fiduciary, compliance and corporate services to a broad range of clients, including trusts and investment companies. Jennifer moved from Canada to Bermuda in 1998 with Deloitte progressing to the position of Senior Manager and taking a lead role on many of the offices trust, corporate and accounting services clients.

Jennifer has been involved in Bermuda’s trust industry for over 20 years. In all her prior roles, Jennifer has worked closely with ultra-high net worth clients and their financial, tax and legal advisors as well as with bankers and investment advisors.

Jennifer is a Chartered Professional Accountant from Canada (CPA, CA) along with a Trust Estate Practitioner (TEP). She holds a Bachelors degree in Accounting with Great Distinction from University of Saskatchewan in Canada. 

Qing Lutkin (Judy), CFA

VP, Head of Research & Asset Management

Judy is focused on development and execution of investment strategies for private client portfolios and institutional investors. Prior to joining Clarien, Judy was Portfolio Manager for PRP Performa Ltd., where she provided customised investment solutions for captive insurance companies and institutional investors.

Previously, Judy was a Manager of Market Strategy at Saint-Gobain China, a subsidiary of the French Fortune 500 company. She earned an MBA in international business from the University of Birmingham, UK and a BSc in economics from Hubei University, China. She holds the Chartered Financial Analyst designation.

Geoffrey Faiella

VP, Head of Legal and Corporate Services

 Geoffrey has been a part of the Clarien team since 2014 as the group’s internal legal counsel and from 2017 as the Head of Clarien’s Regulatory Compliance risk management function. Geoffrey brings a decade of practical experience advising on corporate and commercial law, and managing legal and regulatory risks within the Clarien Group of companies.

As Head of Corporate Services, Geoffrey will be responsible for developing and executing on Clarien’s corporate services business strategy, driving business development and leading Clarien’s team of best-in-class Corporate Administrators. He was admitted to the Bermuda Bar in 2011, having studied law at the University of Bristol in England and having received his diploma in Legal Practice at the University of the West of England (Bristol). Throughout his career, Geoffrey has served as a director or acted as corporate secretary to numerous charitable boards and committees. Geoffrey acts as the Corporate Secretary for all of Clarien’s group companies.

When he isn’t working, Geoffrey enjoys spending time with his wife and two young children, participating in amateur community theatre and dabbling in the culinary arts.

David Tavares, CFA

Henry Hernandez

Portfolio Manager

During his more than 15 year career in the financial industry, Henry has garnered extensive knowledge of treasury banking management, financial reporting, trading, and portfolio management. In his current role as Portfolio Manager at Clarien, Henry is responsible for the development and execution of investment strategies for Private Client portfolios. His role also includes research and other investment related support functions needed to manage client portfolios, as well as offering technical sales support for Clarien’s wider Wealth Management business. Henry also sits on the CIL Investment Committee, helping to contribute to both strategic and tactical asset allocation positioning.

Prior to joining the Bank in June 2022, Henry worked for nearly three years as a Head Trader/ Manager at ACM Bermuda Ltd, where he helped to build portfolios for clients tailored to their financial goals and constraints.  After graduating with a Bachelor of Business Administration in 2007, he began working as a trader at Banco Exterior in Venezuela while also studying simultaneously for his Master’s degree in Financial Institutions. Once that accreditation was attained, Henry was hired to work at Bancaribe Curacao, where he managed a long-term proprietary portfolio and acted as a broker for clients in various different asset types (Fixed Income, Equity and Structured Products).  In August 2021, he passed his CFA Level 1 Exam.

Your Private Banking Team

Cyril Simmons

AVP, Senior Private Banker

Cyril Simmons brings close to 20 years of specialised expertise to Clarien Private Wealth, including a broad range of senior banking roles in Global Asset and Investment Management. He began his career with Bank of Bermuda (now HSBC) in 1999 and worked in various divisions within the bank including Credit Risk Management and Investor Relations. He spent six years within the Business Development team at HSBC Global Asset Management, where he supported the Corporate Banking division with institutional sales of global investment solutions. He joined the Corporate Banking division in 2010 and eventually became the Head of the Captive and Insurance Banking team. In 2015, he joined Clarien’s Private Wealth division as a Senior Private Banker. Cyril holds a BA (Hons) in philosophy from Morehouse College, Atlanta.

Nancy Stevens

AVP, Senior Private Banker

Born and raised in Bermuda, Nancy Stevens holds a Bachelor’s degree in Commerce from Mount Alison University, Canada. She joined Clarien after working in a relationship management role with a local private bank.  Meeting the requirements of a discerning universe of high net worth individuals, private trusts and companies, Nancy offers a solid academic breadth to the team and a dedication to the delivery of stellar client service. She passed her Series 7 designation and STEP Foundation in 2009 and CAMS in 2017, and is presently pursuing the CFP designation.

Alae Makhlouf

AVP, Senior Private Banker

Alae is an award-winning business professional with close to 15 years’ experience working in various financial roles, both in Canada and Bermuda.  He is known for his excellent relationship building abilities, as well as his sales, analytical and interpersonal skills.

As Senior Private Banker at Clarien, Alae is responsible for managing high net worth Wealth Management  clients and is tasked with developing stronger working relationships with clients and colleagues to ensure the delivery of consistent, high-quality Private Banking services.

Alae previously worked at HSBC Bermuda, where he served as Relationship Manager in the bank’s Premier Banking Division since 2011. During his time at HSBC, Bermuda he received a number of awards including the HSBC Bermuda Golden Heart Award in 2020; and four Circle of Excellence Awards (2013-2016), an honour given out on annual basis to the most outstanding Relationship Manager globally out of HSBC Group’s 90,000 employees.

Alae has a Bachelor of Business Administration (Honours) from Brock University in St. Catherine’s, Ontario. He has also attained a Mutual Funds License through the Canadian Securities Institute.

Rachel Mackenzie

Private Banker

Rachel Mackenzie brings over eight years of financial services expertise to Clarien Private Wealth, including a broad range of roles spanning life insurance, investments, corporate finance and banking.

Rachel joined Clarien in December 2020 to manage BSX listing services before moving into a role as a Private Banker. As a Private Banker, Rachel plays an integral role in servicing the needs of high net-worth clients both in Bermuda and internationally.

In 2017, Rachel moved from Vancouver to Bermuda to work as a Financial Advisor for LOM Financial Ltd. In all her previous roles, she has developed relationships with retail, trust and institutional investors. She passed her Canadian Securities designation in 2018, is a CFA Level II exam candidate, and holds a BA from Western University.