Virtus Partners is expanding its European presence and expertise with the hiring of Dean Fletcher as Chief Strategy Officer, Dermot Caden as head of its European Regulated Fund Administration business and Jennifer Nolan as Senior Director in its Dublin hub.

Dean brings a wealth of fixed-income, credit and managerial experience. Most recently, he worked as Head of EMEA Corporate Trust at BNY Mellon. Prior to that, he held roles as Head of Risk at Barclays Capital and JPMorgan and served on the Board of Arbuthnot Banking Group in their Private Banking and Wealth Management division. Dean will be based in London.

Dean added “This is an exciting time to be joining Virtus Partners. Financial Institutions are actively seeking fintech solutions to meet their trading, reporting and regulatory requirements and Virtus’ superior product offerings mean they are well placed to continue their impressive growth trend and secure their position as the number one service provider to credit and fixed income managers”.

Dermot has over 15 years of alternative asset management, funds and broader financial services experience, having spent time at GSO Capital Partners, where he was a Senior Vice President and Finance Director at Harbourmaster before its acquisition by Blackstone / GSO. He has also spent time in his career at IFS (State Street), Macquarie Bank and Ernst & Young.

Commenting on his appointment, Dermot stated “I am pleased and excited to be joining Virtus at this time as the firm broadens its existing servicing capabilities in the region into the fund administration space, completing a full service line offering for our clients. We see significant credit fund opportunities here in Europe, given the evolution of European capital markets and the shift into illiquid strategies, against a headwind of increasing regulatory hurdles. These developments demand enhanced transparency and reporting – core strengths of Virtus as a service provider”.

Jennifer has over 15 years of industry experience, most recently spending nine years at BNY Mellon Corporate Trust. Prior to this, she held management positions at HSBC, Barclays Capital, Citibank and UBS, across CLOs, funds, trade support and settlements. Jennifer stated “I’m delighted to be joining Virtus at such a critical time in the evolution of global markets. The establishment of a Dublin entity will support the European growth strategy by providing a robust and scalable hub for Virtus’ operations”.

Commenting on the recent activity, Pradeep Rao, Managing Director - Europe stated “We see tremendous opportunity for growth in Europe. The establishment of our Dublin office, as well as the key hires we’ve made, will enable us to leverage our outstanding core product set, deepen strategic client relationships and ultimately deliver unparalleled value to our stakeholders and the broader market. We continue to demonstrate our commitment to providing clients the best credit & fixed income solutions available in the marketplace”.