The seasoned fund managers who founded Quaero Capital SA (formerly Argos Investment Managers SA) in 2005 had a common objective: to deliver genuine alpha by investing away from the crowds through a concentrated range of high-conviction strategies.
Jean Keller
CEO
Jean Keller joined Quaero Capital SA in 2011 as CEO.
Prior to joining Quaero Capital SA, Jean Keller was CEO of 3A (Alternative Asset Advisors), the alternative investment division of banking group SYZ in Geneva. From when he joined 3A in 2005, the group grew significantly from around USD 1bn to over USD 4bn at its peak. Jean Keller was also responsible for the development of the group in Asia, with the purchase of Oria Capital in Hong Kong.
Before joining the SYZ group, Jean Keller spent 11 years assuming various responsibilities within the Lombard Odier Group in Geneva, New York and London. From 2002 to 2004, he was CEO of Lombard Odier Asset Management Ltd in London and a member of the group’s Management Committee. He also co-headed Lombard Odier’s institutional asset management division and sat on the Asset Management Board.
From 1988 to 1992, he was Investment Manager and Investment Analyst with Baring Asset Management in London and Hong Kong, where he was involved in the management of various mutual and institutional funds.
Jean Keller holds a Degree in International Relations from the University of Geneva and a Master of Business Administration from the Wharton School of Business of the University of Pennsylvania, with a major in Finance.
Yann Benharouch
Investment Director
Yann Benharouch joined Quaero Capital SA in 2014 as Investment Director for Quaero European Infrastructure Fund.
He previously worked at Edmond de Rothschild since 2009 within the infrastructure and project finance advisory team. As such he was involved in the financial structuring of landmark infrastructure transactions in areas such as railways, motorways, social, utilities & renewables. Yann had previous work experiences within the rates derivatives desk at HSBC Corporate & Investment Banking.
Yann is an engineer from the Ecole Nationale des Ponts et Chaussées, holds a MSc specialized in mathematics and financial markets from the University of Paris IX – Dauphine and a MSc specialized in project finance from the Ecole Nationale des Ponts et Chaussées and the University of Paris X.
Sébastien Bourget
Managing Partner, Head of Infrastructure
Sébastien Bourget joined Quaero Capital SA in 2014 as Head of Quaero European Infrastructure Fund and Managing Partner.
Sébastien has a strong expertise in infrastructure finance. He notably worked at Edmond de Rothschild since 2006 within the infrastructure and project finance advisory department, where he successfully led several landmark transactions in areas such as railways, motorways, social, utilities, renewables and telecom.
Sébastien gained a MPhil in private law from the University of Paris I – La Sorbonne and the Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales, a MSc specialized in project finance from the Ecole Nationale des Ponts et Chaussées and the University of Paris X, and is graduated from the Rouen Business School (Neoma).
Thierry Callault
Deputy CEO
Thierry Callault joined Quaero Capital SA in 2013 as a Partner and Head of Business Development.
Thierry started his career at the Banque du Louvre in 1990 where he became Director of Strategies and was considered a pioneer for multi-management in France. He developed strategic relationships with top tier American asset managers like PIMCO, Western, Wanger, Third Avenue, Driehaus and Neuberger, who through his introduction were then able to develop their activities in France and continental Europe.
In 2003 he joined OFI Asset Management as CEO. Under his leadership the firm grew from 3bn to 50bn Euros asset under management. He was directly involved in the creation of several alternative multi-asset funds (OFI MGA, Zencap), infrastructure and real asset funds (OFI InfraVia) and fund incubators (AmLab and New Alpha).
Upon leaving OFI in 2012 he co-founded Blue Alpha, with the view to invest in newly created asset management companies and to help develop their brand and AuMs.
Deborah Gewinner
Head of Legal & Compliance
Deborah Gewinner joined Quaero Capital SA in Geneva in June 2023 as Head of Legal & Compliance.
Deborah is a director of several UCITS and AIFs funds in Europe.
Previously she was the Head of Legal & Compliance for Boussard & Gavaudan group and a shareholder of Boussard & Gavaudan Asset Management LP.
Prior to Boussard & Gavaudan Group, Deborah held management positions at the French financial services regulator, the Autorité des Marchés Financiers (AMF), for 9 years.
She holds a Master’s degree in Business Law from the University Robert Schuman Strasbourg.
Guillaume Launay
Managing Director, Quaero Capital (France) SAS
Guillaume Launay joined Quaero Capital (France) SAS in 2013 as Co-General Manager.
Guillaume started at Credit Lyonnais USA on Forex and options prior to joining the Credit Lyonnais Paris headquarters Forex desk, where he spent 8 years responsible for the EMS desk. For the next five years he was in charge of Repurchase Agreements and bills desks for the Credit Lyonnais Paris, London and Tokyo operations. Guillaume worked three years in Credit Lyonnais London, two in Credit Lyonnais NY and one year in Japan. He left Credit Lyonnais in 2001 to launch Quantic Asset Management with a strong focus on credit products. He eventually sold the company to the OFI Group in 2003 to launch and manage credit funds as well as structured credit products. While at OFI, Guillaume started OFI Investment Solutions and was its CEO. He was a senior partner at OFI and a member of the advisory board of OFI Infravia.
After 10 years at OFI, Guillaume left to start a new company called Blue Alpha with a view to investing in newly created asset management companies and to helping develop their brand and AUM.
In 1986, Guillaume graduated from Paris Dauphine University with a Master 203.
Francesco Samson
Group Chief Operating Officer
Francesco Samson joined Quaero Capital SA on April 1st, 2017, as Group COO.
Francesco Samson started his career in 1990 with DuPont de Nemours in Geneva where he became head of sales of three products in Europe. He subsequently joined McKinsey in Geneva in 1996 where he focused on business development and restructuring related projects. From 1998 to 2004 he led the strategy for the EMEA region, building and leading two front office teams for the Citigroup Private Bank in Geneva. Francesco Samson then spent 10 years at EIM in Nyon, where he was Partner, Group COO and member of the Executive Committee, also overseeing business development and investment services. He joined Brevan Howard in 2014 as Head and COO of the Geneva office and a member of the Executive Committee of Brevan Howard Investment Products Limited in Jersey.
Fluent in French, Italian, English and German, Francesco Samson has an MSc from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (“EPFL”) in Lausanne, Switzerland, and an MBA from INSEAD in Paris with a major in Finance.
Antoine Turrettini
Investment Director
Antoine Turrettini joined Quaero Capital SA in 2014 as Investment Director for Quaero European Infrastructure Fund.
Previously, Antoine worked at Edmond de Rothschild within the infrastructure and project finance advisory department. He was notably involved in the financial structuring of landmark infrastructure transactions in areas such as railways, motorways, social, utilities & renewables mainly in Europe. Before joining the infrastructure team in 2008, he had an experience within the Corporate Finance department of Edmond de Rothschild in London focusing on M&A transactions. He also had a work experience at Orbis Investment Advisory in London.
Antoine is a graduate from the European Business School London in International Business with major in Finance.