Andrew Charlier

Partner, HFW Monaco SARL

Jean-Philippe Maslin

Partner, Richemont Delviso

Quentin Bargate

CEO and Founder, Bargate Murray

Quentin Bargate qualified as a solicitor in 1981 and has since spent his entire career in top City of London law firms, including running his own highly regarded firm, Bargate Murray, where he is head of the firm’s Superyacht and Dispute Resolution Groups as well as being the firm’s CEO.  Client sources comment on the “huge amount of litigation experience” that Quentin has, adding that he is “very well connected” and “knows his stuff.” A satisfied client appreciates that “he does the work from the beginning to the end, providing a full and complete service,” and the source adds: “His advice is always helpful and he is very practical.” (Source: Chambers HNW Guide 2019)

Quentin says: “In 2004, I fulfilled a lifetime ambition when I set up my own law firm, Quentin Bargate & Co. (renamed Bargate Murray in 2006).  We incorporated in 2013.  I had been a partner in Simmons & Simmons and Head of its International Trade and Shipping Group and a member of the Litigation Department and Arbitration Groups where I developed specialist skills in superyacht contracts and disputes as well as commercial shipping and trade.  Bargate Murray was a new challenge – to take all that knowledge I had gained over 14 years from a big City of London international practice, and offer it to clients who wanted a nimbler, more responsive service from a specialist firm.”

Bargate Murray is highly ranked in the Chambers HNW 2019 Guide for ‘Yachts & Superyachts’, and the Guide recognises Quentin as a Leading Individual for his expertise in this practice.

Quentin is an advocate for alternative dispute resolution (ADR), but he also deals with cases in court when required. He occasionally sits as an arbitrator.

Quentin is a member of the Baltic Exchange, the Maritime Authority of the Cayman Islands yacht committee. He holds a Master’s degree in Marine law, is a member of the LMAA, a Member of the Nautical Institute, a member of the IOD, a member of the Royal Thames Yacht Club, and a Freeman of the City of London.

His other interests include photography (Elsevier has published a technical book on stock photography “Microstock Photography” written by Quentin under his pen name Douglas Freer), music and his family.

Christophe Bourillon

CEO, PYA

Prior to joining the PYA, Christophe was Executive Director of the World Federation of Science Journalists.

He offers a 30-year experience in senior management, public affairs and communication at the national and international levels. He founded and led various trade associations, such as Wind Europe and drove other organisations through major transformations such as the World Nuclear Association, the European Biofuels association and the European robotics association.

He has been active on the international policy-making scene and was an accredited expert to the United Nations.  He participated in the negotiations of the UN Convention on climate change for more than fifteen years. An active speaker, Christophe had delivered more than 300 presentations at conferences worldwide, from United Nations plenary sessions to small village halls in the Arctic.

Panos Alexandrou

CEO, Kition Ocean Holdings

Mr Panos Alexandrou holds a Bachelor of Engineering (B. Eng.) in Electronic and Electrical Engineering with Management from the University of Surrey and has a Master’s degree in Business Administration (MBA) from the University of London, London Business School.

He has more than 20 years of experience in the development, finance and investment sector within the real estate, trading and energy industries. His work experience expands across multiple managerial positions in various organizations in the UK and in Cyprus.

Mr Alexandrou is the Founder and Director of The Prosperity Group Ltd, as well as, several subsidiary companies with offices in the UK and Cyprus.

He is also the Founder and Director of Alexandrou Corporate Services Ltd, a licensed by the Cyprus Securities Agency (Cysec), service providing company in the Republic of Cyprus. Among
other companies, he holds a directorship and represents MCC Modular Living, part of the Metallurgical Corporation of China (MCC). Within the Energy sector, Mr. Alexandrou is the founder and director of Solidgate Trading Ltd, a company holding shares in the Canadian stock market listed company known “Eco Atlantic Oil and Gas Ltd” and has interests in several other
renewable energy companies in Cyprus.

Mr Alexandrou is currently heading a consortium of international companies, known as “Kition Ocean Holdings”, which was very recently granted, following a 3 years public tender process, a 125 years lease from the Government of the Republic Cyprus for the management & redevelopment of the existing Larnaca Port & Marina, the largest infrastructure project of its kind in Cyprus, which includes the construction of 2,2m sqft of mixed use real estate (2 x hotels, offices, apartments, waterfront villas, 3 x colleges,student’s accommodation, yachts’ club and a local market with a commercial centre. The Company
envisions to create a unique destination able to serve and accommodate all types of ships, yachts, and businesses, through expansion and modernisation of the existing Larnaca Port and
Marina, efficient management of all existing services provided by the Port and, in parallel development of new business activities related to Yachting, Marine, Energy and Real Estate.

Mr. Alexandrou is a member of various organizations such as the Cyprus Chamber of Commerce, the Russian – Cyprus Chamber of Commerce and the China – Cyprus Chamber of
Commerce.

He is also an associate member of the Institute of Management (IM) and the Institute of Electronic and Electrical Engineers (IEE) in the UK.

Richard Hekker

Founder & CEO, OPES JET

Matty Zadnikar

CEO, SeaNet Europe

Alex Chumillas

Tax Marine & Aviation Spain

In 1997 Alex Chumillas began his professional career as tax advisor in the auditing firm Analysis & Consulting. In 1999, he joined Moody Spain as Financial Director. In 2003, he joined the legal firm Llobet Abogados where he was appointed director of the Tax Department. In 2005 Alex founded the firm Barcelona Tax & Law providing mainly tax advisory to medium-sized companies and individuals. For several years he combined his career as a tax advisor with lecturing at several universities and business schools in Barcelona. In 2010 Alex founded Tax Marine Spain, a specialized division of Barcelona Tax & Law on yachting tax issues.

Alex advises both on tax issues and on transactions and investments in Spain, yacht purchases, tax audits, owning and operational yacht structures in Spain and other countries, customs procedures or yacht registrations. He has worked for top-tier foreign broker companies such as Camper & Nicholsons, Fraser Yachts, Burgess, Y.CO, Imperial Yachts, Hill Robinson, IYC; legal and managing firms such as Ince & Co, Hill Dickinson, Bargate Murray, Gateley Plc, Allen Overy, Safehaven, Equiom or Affinity or foreign investors like Salamanca Group, most of which remain regular clients.

Degree in Economics from the Spanish University UNED (1996), Master in International Trade from the University of Barcelona (1996), Master in Taxation from the Centro de Estudios Financieros in Barcelona (2004), Post-degree from the Polytechnic University of Catalonia in the Yachting Business (2002), Post-degree in Insurance Brokerage from the Spanish University UDIMA (2007) Post-degree in Customs Procedures from the Spanish University Isabel I (2016) and Spanish license as Administrative Manager (2006).

Languages: Spanish, English, Russian, French and Catalan. Lecturer at UDIMA and UPC universities, and EAE and CEF business schools. Regular speaker at international conferences and workshops on tax matters concerning yachting. Founding member of the Barcelona Nautical Cluster, and member of AEGY (Spanish Superyacht Association) and YBDSA (Yacht Brokers Designers and Surveyors Association, UK).

 

              

Janet Xanthopolous

Rosemont Yacht Services

Janet has an international background and graduated at University of Aix-Marseille III.  She has Masters in International/European and Maritime Law.

Since 2001 Janet has gained significant working experience in the yachting sector in Europe and recently in Asia and headed up the yacht departments of two other Luxembourg and Monaco based companies. Her extensive legal, fiscal and commercial experience is further strengthened with a practical background in the yacht sector ensuring the delivery of a dedicated range of services to the most exacting standards.

As head of the Marine & Aviation Division, Janet leads a team of professional and highly experienced people who can assist owners and brokers during all the ownership process starting from the purchase or construction up to the sale by considering also their structuring, legal, tax, financing, registration, insurance, crewing and day to day administration needs.

Maja Ban

Director, MYS Yachting

Maja graduated in 2000 with a BA in Economics from the University of Zagreb in Croatia.  She is also a licensed Maritime Agent and holds a Certificate for Superyacht Management from the Maritime Training Academy in the United Kingdom.

Maja began her yachting career in 2005 as a stewardess on various mega yachts.  Working on the private, busy charter and new build yachts, she learned firsthand the operational, technical and administrative aspects of running a super yacht.

After gaining this valuable experience while cruising the world, crossing the Suez and Panama channels and the Atlantic ocean, chartering in the Caribbean and West Med, and spending time in some of the best shipyards in Holland, Germany and the USA, Maja left yachts as a chief stewardess in 2008 to open MYS Yachting.

She started the company as a boutique yachting company to service luxury mega yachts in Croatia and Montenegro.

After a decade of growth and building relationships in the industry and in the region, MYS Yachting is now a diverse team of individuals with backgrounds in yachting, tourism, finance, technology.

Initially a maritime/yacht agency for mega yachts in Croatia and Montenegro, MYS Yachting has added VAT and fiscal representation and charter and management services.

Carla Bellieni

Partner, Studio Piana Illuzzi Queirolo Trabattoni

Carla Bellieni has been a certified public accountant based in Genoa since 1990.

In her career Carla has dealt with tax matters in the shipping and yachting area for worldwide clients.

Born in Genoa (Italy) Carla started working after her studies when she joined the tax firm where she became a partner in 1997.

Her professional activity includes consultancy in fiscal, customs and corporate issues, relations with the tax and customs institutions, tax litigation.

Carla is a speaker on Blue Economy tax matters at some of the most important European Boat Shows and events, such as the SuperyachtReport, the Finance Forum, the Genoa Boat Show, the Montecarlo Yacht Show and for the Italian Tax Judges Association; she is also co-author of books and author of several articles regarding tax matters published in Il Sole 24 Ore and in magazines specialized in the shipping and yachting industry. She is Member of Committees and Teacher for the Roll of Certified Public Accountants and Teacher for the training of Directors and Managers for Trade Associations in the shipping and yachting market, Member of the MEULC and Arbitrator for the IYAC.

Anthony Galea

Managing Director, Vistra Marine & Aviation

Jennifer Timinis

Director, Sea Greece

Jennifer specialises in yachting law advising on newbuild and secondhand transactions as well as ownership structures and flag registration options.

Jennifer’s first encounter with the superyacht industry was in 2005 whilst practicing ship finance as a UK solicitor at Constant & Constant when the partner she worked for took on Perini Navi as a client. A number of yachting clients followed and they went on to build a strong yachting practice for the firm. As her exposure to the yachting market grew she joined Hill Dickinson’s yachting team where she gained invaluable experience working with leading yachting lawyers.

 A sharp career change came in 2015 when Jennifer joined the Greek yachting company, Oceda initially as the managing director and later as the communications director to allow for more focus on her private clients. Fully submerged in the Greek yachting market overseeing yacht formalities (port and customs), crewing, management and chartering matters while continuing to advise on legal and fiscal yachting issues gave her all-rounded experience on yacht operation from all perspectives.

 After over 16 years in the global and local yachting market and still acting for clients who have been with her since career start Jennifer founded Sea Greece to provide the market with spot on, expert and transparent consultation and advice on cruising and operating in Greece as a commercial or private boat.

 An acknowledged specialist on yachting in Greece, Jennifer is a regular speaker at yachting conferences and a contributor for yachting publications.

Jorg Wendt

Nautilus

Paul Rutterford

Operations Director, Viking Crew

Charles Watkins

Managing Director, Clinical Psych./Psychotherapist

Born in 1985 in Osnabrück, Germany

Having graduated with a master’s degree (with distinction) in clinical psychology and completing his clinical training at the world-renowned University Medical Center of Princeton, Charles continued to use his passion to inspire positive change and advance the field of psychology in areas new to the psychological approach. Working in his private practice has been complemented by lecturing on various topics around the world. His devotion towards identifying places of need for dealing with stress and depression has led him to the maritime industry. Through the team’s profound research in the maritime industry, Charles has been able to create training videos and safety plans for the crew and on-shore personnel.

Charles has been researching the area of maritime stresses and psychological illnesses to develop preventive measures for the maritime industry. Charles is continuing to find helpful psychological solutions for real life problems on ships and on shore.

Pauline Micallef

Maritime MT

Pauline Micallef is an ACCA qualified and warranted CPA Accountant, a Master’s in Business Administration graduate from the University of Reading, Henley Business School, and a fellow member of the Malta Institute of Accountants (MIA).

Pauline has over 10-years’ managerial experience within the largest pharmaceutical company in the world, Teva Pharmaceuticals Industries Ltd were she also acted as a director. She then held the position of Technical Strategy Manager at the MIA and is now the Chief Executive Officer of the leading maritime education school in Malta, MaritimeMT. MaritimeMT is a training centre accredited by Transport Malta and DNV.

Pauline is a committee member of the Yachting Business Section within the Malta Chamber of Commerce, Enterprise and Industry. 

Captain Jesse Jaalinna

Jessica Galea

Senior Associate, Dingli & Dingli

Dingli & Dingli Law Firm abo Superyacht Industry Network Malta

Jessica Galea graduated as a Doctor of Laws (LL.D) from the University of Malta in 2008 and was admitted to the Maltese Bar in January 2009. She read a Masters Degree in international maritime law at the IMO’s IMLI, and graduated with distinction in May 2009.  Jessica has formed part of Dingli & Dingli Law Firm’s Shipping Department since 2009, and works on all shipping and yachting related matters, including yacht and vessel registrations under numerous jurisdictions, assistance from a legal perspective with the establishment of yacht leasing structures including finance and operating leases, yacht importation procedures, yacht sale and purchase, mortgage registration and yacht finance; setting up of shipping organisations and advice on various regulatory issues. Jessica is a member of the Malta Chamber of Advocates and the Malta Maritime Law Association (MMLA), and forms part of the MMLA’s yachting sub-committee. She actively participates in the events of the Super Yacht Industry Network Malta and shiparrested.com, of which networks Dingli & Dingli Law Firm is a member.

Dominic Bulfin

Director, Bargate Murray

Dom is a Director in the Firm’s superyacht group based in London. Dom advises owners and their representatives on all aspects of superyacht ownership and management.

This includes the negotiation of new build and refit contracts, interior design contracts, contracts for the purchase of toys, tenders and lifeboats, sale and purchase agreements and sale and charter agency agreements, as well as matters relating to the employment of crew members and operational staff.

Dom also has significant experience in the negotiation of yacht finance agreements and re-financings, having started his career in the transportation finance group at Clyde & Co before moving to Bargate Murray in 2019.

Dom is often called upon to offer real-time support for Captains and yacht managers as matters requiring immediate attention arise onboard.

A life-long sailor himself, Dom has a practical understanding of the reality of life on the water and is able to apply his personal experience as both an owner and a charterer to offer clients practical, pragmatic, and realistic advice.

Dom has been involved in projects ranging from the design and construction of some of the largest new-builds in the superyacht fleet to the complex modification and repurposing of older vessels.

With an undergraduate degree in Conservation Biology and Ecology, Dom has a keen interest in the preservation of marine ecosystems and sustainable use of the World’s waters for recreational purposes. This passion also spills into day-to-day life at Bargate Murray where Dom has championed a number of “green” initiatives to help reduce the Firm’s impact on the environment.

When he is not in the office, Dom can often be found sailing on the south coast of England or enjoying the warmer climes of the Mediterranean and Caribbean seas.

Kurt Gutteridge

Naval Architectural Services

Born in 1980, Kurt graduated with first class honours in Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering from the University of Newcastle, UK, in 2003 and also achieved a Master of Science degree in Marine Transport Management from the same University in 2004.

The first professional experience was gained within the technical department of the Malta Maritime Authority (now Transport Malta) where Kurt carried out duties as a Flag and Port State Control Surveyor dealing with Statutory matters on Malta flagged ships and yachts. His responsibilities included the verification of correct implementation of IMO Codes and
Regulations on board Malta flagged vessels particularly the SOLAS and MARPOL Conventions. In 2006, Kurt was appointed responsible for the implementation of the first Malta Commercial Yacht Code – an area which the Malta flag had not been geared for until that stage. The subsequent years saw a considerable growth in the registered tonnage, steadily prompting Malta to the prominent regulatory role it holds today.

In the following years Kurt joined the private industry as a Surveyor on various projects ranging from super yacht conversions, ship surveys and certification and ship regulatory consultancy. In 2010 he set up Naval Architectural Services Limited (NAS), a young and dynamic firm specializing in providing high quality design, survey and consultancy services to the marine industry. The company today comprises a team of 20 with offices in Malta and Antibes providing a diverse range of specialist services covering marine design, refit consultancy, structural and stability analysis as well as flag survey and certification.

Nicolas Valin

Founder & CEO, One Superyachts

Alasdair Milroy

Founder, BTM Accounting

Alison Vassallo

Partner, Fenech and Fenech

Alison Vassallo is a Partner of Fenech and Fenech Advocates and heads the Yachting Department. She also works within the Marine Litigation Department.

She qualified in 2004 with a Doctorate of Laws from the University of Malta and obtained her Masters Degree in International Maritime Law from the International Maritime Law Institute in 2005.

She joined Fenech and Fenech Advocates in 2006. For the past 16 years she has advised and co-ordinated projects for owners and financiers relating to the acquisition and sale of private and commercial yachts with regard to registration, financing, chartering, leasing and fiscal requirements and solutions.

Furthermore her areas of practice within the firm embrace all aspects of maritime law including EU shipping law, recognition and enforcement of foreign judgements and arbitral awards, ship
arrest and other precautionary measures for obtainment of security and co ordination of tender procedures involving a maritime element.

Alison is a Council and Executive Board Member within the Malta Chamber of Commerce, Chairperson of the Yachting Trade Section within the Chamber of Commerce, Member of the Chamber of Advocates, Committee Member of the Malta Maritime Law Association (MMLA) and a Board Member of the yachting sub committee formed within the MMLA.

Emma Cassar

Von der Heyden Yachting

Emma Cassar heads the Sales and Marketing division for Von der Heyden Yachting, a subsidiary company of the international Von der Heyden Group, specialises in the sales and service of world-class yachts around the Mediterranean.

She graduated with an Honours Degree in Corporate Communications and Psychology from the University of Malta in 2011 and has since applied her skills within the luxury Superyacht sector worldwide working with international brands such as Camper & Nicholsons Marinas and most recently representing the iconic Riva Yacht Brand for the Maltese Islands.

As the exclusive distributor of the Riva yacht brand in Malta, Von der Heyden Yachting has the privilege to supply and manage a wide range of beautifully designed and crafted masterpieces in Malta from 28ft (9m) to 164ft (50m).

Their holistic approach is inspired by the refined detail of this iconic brand, based on a wealth of experience in the field of luxury yachting. Von der Heyden Yachting offers a combination of bespoke purchasing, selling, chartering, maintenance, management and assistance services for Riva motor yachts, providing exclusive and tailormade services to individual yachting needs.

For those looking for a pre-owned option, Von der Heyden Yachting, with personal contacts in over 20 countries around Europe, can source the most niche and reliable opportunities on the market based on specific client requirements.

Von der Heyden Yachting is also specialised in after- sales and management services with a dedicated division of industry professionals offering an array of custom yacht owner services. The company’s 360° solutions range from technical support in yacht and engine maintenance to guidance regarding registration, flagging, insurance and the benefits in optimizing your yacht’s potential through charter management.

The charter division is highly trained in bespoke luxury yacht charters where guests can experience mouth-watering cuisine, exemplary service and world-class accommodation.

Von der Heyden Yachting offers the perfect platform for exploring both diverse and remote destinations with client-specific itineraries.

Michael Mifsud

General Manager, Yachting Malta

Captain Avnish Dhall

Sales Manager, Melita Marine Group

With over two and a half decades of experience in the SuperYacht Industry, Captain Avnish Dhall brings years of in-depth knowledge to day-to-day Yacht Management, Yacht Charter and Yacht Repair & Maintenance.

He has had years of service as Captain onboard some of the most world-renowned yachts and his role of managing a fleet of superyachts ensured that he could then go on to head a shipyard in Spain as CEO and now look after sales for Melita Marine Group, Malta. Amongst his other achievement was to be voted by Lifetime Achievement Award in Yachting by yacht crew.

Niki Travers Tauss

Managing Director, Esprit Yachting and General Manager at Marina di Valletta

Malcolm Warr

Chairman, Maritime Services Management Ltd

Malcolm has been associated with the Maritime Industry since aged 11 when he built a midget submarine; drove it in the school swimming pool and won a prize for innovation and enterprise.

 Following a twenty five career in the Royal Navy,  Malcolm has worked in many parts of the maritime industry in Government departments, as part of the Corporate Project Review team for UK Defence Research to being Director of Small to Medium sized enterprises intertwined with various senior positions in global  maritime businesses.

He is recognised as an international policy thinker on Maritime Cyber Security protection and Resilience and has been used as an expert witness in the Admiralty Court in London investigating maritime security issues.

Malcolm now focuses on improving Resilience in civic society especially the protection of Critical National Infrastructure and in the Maritime Industry at large by co operation and innovative leadership.

Joe Hancock

Cybersecurity & Digital Intelligence, Mischcon de Reya

Joe is Partner and the Head of MDR Cyber, the cyber practice at Mishcon de Reya. He focuses on providing strategic cyber advice, helping organisations to develop and optimise their investments in cyber risk management, and to manage incidents and investigations when things go wrong. Joe oversees the firms services in Cyber Security, Incident Response and Digital Investigations, with a team of non-lawyer cyber specialists.

Joe has a wide range of expertise in cyber risk and security, data protection and resilience, with first-hand experience of some of the UK’s largest cyber incidents. Joe is a specialist at the nexus of cyber security issues and legal responses. He works closely with legal colleagues across Mishcon de Reya to help clients in protecting themselves and their organisations, to recover stolen funds and to prevent the misuse of their data.  

Through a variety of consulting roles he has helped organisations prepare for cyber breaches and data loss events across global sectors. He began his career in the Defence and National Security sector and was one of the first cyber specialists in the Lloyds insurance market, supporting the underwriting of cyber risks.

Alexandre Bayeux

YachtCyberSafe

Expert in cybersecurity and digital protection for yachts and crews (and family offices and firms)

• Co-founder and CEO of companies dedicated to data and communication protection, cybersecurity and cybersecurity for yachts and crews. Alex’s companies are based in Monaco, Nice and Paris: YachtCyberSafe (https://yachtcybersafe.com), FirmcyberSafe, Xperys.
  Alexandre has a perfect knowledge of yachts and crews’ needs and realities on the ground of family offices. He particularly takes care of the human factors, organization and technology in cybersecurity to cover all ranges of assets to protect: business, privacy, family, reputation…
• Trainer at La Belle Classe Academy of the Yacht Club de Monaco, founder of the cybersecurity training program for captains, officers and crews.
• Avid sailor for navigation and races on modern and classic sailing boats like Tuiga. Alex is a speaker for conferences or forums dedicated to yachting and VIP protection regarding cyber threats: Yachting Security Forum, Cluster Yachting Monaco…
• Former head of internal audit of Société Générale Monaco, Alexandre is an expert in risk mitigation, and particularly regarding cyber resilience of organizations like yachts and companies : fraud (internal / external), leak, HR turnover, regulation (such as maritime regulation like the ISPS and ISM codes, GDPR), human mistakes, criminality…
• Former consultant in organization and acquisition (M&A), Alexandre conducted deals (>100M€) to acquire companies in Europe, Africa and Asia. In his missions, mobiles’ protection (smartphones…) and remote access are essential. Cybersecurity is not just IT, but users’ awareness is a priority.
• Founder and former head of the External Asset Managers desk of SG Private Banking Monaco, Alexandre has a perfect understanding of stakes, realities, and duties of professionals (asset managers, fiduciaries, lawyers, family offices…) and wealthy individuals and families

Michael Skov Christensen

Senior Vice-President, SD International at Satcom Direct

Michael Skou Christensen has over ten years of experience with satellite communications within the private aviation industry. In 2013, Michael led the opening of SD’s Australasia office, where he acted as Managing Director until 2016. He is now the Vice President for SD International, where he is responsible for establishing and growing the sales, support, marketing and training presence across the international business. His various roles throughout his time in aviation have seen him involved with many different parts of the value chain, from OEMs and completion centers to end-customers. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Engineering, and a master’s degree in International Management.

Mike Wimbridge

Managing Director, Pantaenius UK

Mike began his insurance career in 1987 initially working for the Royal Insurance Group before entering the marine world by joining Radcliffe and Company in 1989. This was his first step on what has become a 33 year career in the yacht insurance market.

During that time Mike has been both an insurance broker and an underwriter. Mike has worked for much of his career in Lloyd’s of London and, including spells with Marsh, AIG, BRIT and Markel, he has been involved in all aspects of superyacht underwriting and broking and is extremely well known within the industry.

In 2019 Mike joined Pantaenius, one of the leading specialists in Yacht Insurance, and works as Managing Director – UK for them.

Katrina Abela

Vaia Legal