About

Matteo Marinelli is a microfinance and commercial SME banking professional with a proven track record of 15 years in fixed income (loans, debt syndications, credit guarantees, local and hard currency bonds) and greenfield equity investments in the following regions: Eastern Africa, South Asia, South-East Asia, China and Mongolia. He has been based in Yangon, Myanmar, since December 2013. He?s currently the CEO of a local microfinance institution fully owned by Awba group, the country's largest agricultural group with a minority participation from the International Finance Corporation. Before joining Awba, he was employed from May 2013 until December 2016 by the Singaporean investment firm Fullerton Financial Holdings, a wholly owned subsidiary of Temasek Holdings. He was first seconded in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, for the banking set-up of Cambodia Post Bank, a joint venture with Canadia Bank, and then seconded in Yangon, Myanmar, responsible for the set-up and day to day supervision of the microfinance entity Fullerton Myanmar, a co-investment with International Finance Corporation and Capital Diamond Start Group, a local Burmese group.

Matteo does have extensive experience in managing niche impact investing market funds with a track record in all fund managing functions, dealing with investors, stakeholders, liaising with business groups and investing in business opportunities in target country regions. He has a proven ability to successfully grow investment funds and provide market level returns for investors interested in socially responsible and green investments.

He has conducted more than 100 due diligence missions in the following regions: Middle East and North Africa, Eastern Africa, the Balkans, South Asia, China, Mongolia and South-East Asia and through the years has developed excellent interpersonal relationship and communication skills and a vast network of financial institutions especially located in South East Asia. Matteo comes highly trusted and respected by peers, management and clients alike. This has allowed him to cultivate and nourish working relationships with business leaders, government representatives and financial sector leaders. Matteo is highly focused and dedicated, with high integrity and an open management style. In Cambodia and Myanmar, he was managing growing teams in the range of 100-200 people.

Matteo was born in Italy, was educated in Italy (bachelor of science in Economics), although he was fortunate enough to enjoy academic exchange programs in Japan, New York, London, Berkeley and obtain an executive education diploma from Insead and Harvard. He?s fluent in English and Spanish and has an elementary proficiency in French although he would love speaking fluent Thai. He?s based in Myanmar with his partner, and he loves travelling and exploring South East Asia. He?s a vivid contemporary Asian art collector, passionate interior designer, and he loves running, swimming and biking. In two years? time he is aiming at competing at one of the Iron Man competitions in Asia. Stay tuned.