Chairman

Dr Koch is Chairman of SEAL Partners and is based in Bangkok. Prior to this, he was a Senior Partner at McKinsey & Company for 30 years, serving clients globally on their growth, performance and digital transformations. He was based in Germany, US, Korea and Thailand over the course of his career with McKinsey and remains a Senior Adviser to the Firm. He obtained a PhD in Physics and Masters in Economics from the University of Freiburg and holds German citizenship.

Co-Managing Partner

Ed Lock is Co-Managing Partner of SEAL Partners and is based in Bangkok. Prior to this, he was the Managing Partner for McKinsey Transformation in Southeast Asia and spent 12 years at McKinsey & Company. During his tenure, he led large-scale business scaling efforts and transformations across sectors in Asia and Europe. Prior to McKinsey, Mr Lock served as a diplomat and in the UK public sector. He holds an MPhil from the University of Cambridge and a BSc from the London School of Economics and Political Science. He is a British subject.

Co-Managing Partner

Brad Wargo is Co-Managing Partner of SEAL Partners and is based in Bangkok. Prior to this, Mr Wargo was a Managing Director and IC member in the Private Equity practice at Morgan Stanley in Hong Kong and Bangkok for 13 years. Before Morgan Stanley, Mr Wargo held senior roles and IC memberships at two hedge funds, both with >$15 billion AUM, in Hong Kong and Tokyo. Mr Wargo began his career in the Investment Banking Division of Goldman Sachs in New York. Mr Wargo received a BA from Yale University and an MPhil from the University of Cambridge. He holds Permanent Residency in Hong Kong and Japan.

Head of Malaysia

Li Kai Chen leads the Malaysia team and is based in Kuala Lumpur. Previously, he was a Senior Partner at McKinsey & Company and the Managing Partner for Malaysia, where he served clients from across industries and countries in Southeast Asia. Mr Chen has particular expertise in ConsumerTech and education. Prior to McKinsey, he worked at Barclays Capital and Balfour Beatty. He holds an MBA from Harvard Business School, an MSc from the University of Reading, and a BSc from Birmingham City University. He is a Malaysian citizen.

Head of Thailand

Waenyod Wongtrangan leads the Thailand team and is based in Bangkok. Previously, Ms Wongtrangan was the General Manager of Uber Thailand, responsible for launching and scaling the business in the country. Prior to this, she worked at Bracebridge Capital and Citadel LLC. Ms Wongtrangan holds a BS in Economics and Biomedical Engineering from Yale University and an MBA from INSEAD. She is a Thai citizen.

Head of Vietnam

Marco Breu leads the Vietnam team and is based in Ho Chi Minh City. Prior to this, Mr Breu spent 25 years at McKinsey & Company, where he was a Partner and Managing Partner for the Vietnam offices. He remains a Senior Adviser to McKinsey. Mr Breu has expertise in financial services, real estate, public sector, economic development, and digital transformation. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from the University of Strathclyde and a Master’s Degree in Economics from the University of Bern. He is a Swiss citizen.

Head of Europe

Nigel Meir is Head of Europe at SEAL Partners and is based in London. Prior to this, Dr Meir served as Chief Investment Officer of Tibberton Capital, a multi-family office with a focus on private markets, for 13 years. Additionally, since 2019, he has served as a Venture Partner at Awz Ventures. In 2007, Dr Meir launched Ludgate Investments, a European growth equity and buyout manager focused on resource efficiency / cleantech. Dr Meir served as CEO of Ludgate Investments until 2016. Before that, he was Vice Chairman of Pioneer Alternatives. Dr Meir began his career as a hospital clinician at teaching hospitals in the UK and the Middle East. He received his medical degree and an MPhil in Middle East Studies from the University of Oxford and holds British and Israeli citizenship.

Chief Counsel

Edgar Park is Chief Counsel at SEAL Partners. Mr Park has acted as counsel to numerous high technology, life sciences, software companies at boutique and AmLaw 100 law firms, with an emphasis on venture capital and private equity investments, mergers and acquisitions, and public and private securities transactions. As counsel he has extensive experience in cross-border transactions across the major economies in Asia. Mr Park holds a BA in Ethics, Politics & Economics from Yale University, and a JD from the University of Southern California Law School. He has been a member of the California Bar Association since 1998.

Senior Adviser, Europe

Mario Shiliashki is a Senior Adviser to SEAL Partners and is based in London. He most recently served as the CEO of PayU Global, a leading global online payments player across Latin America, Africa, Europe and Asia. Prior to PayU, Mr Shiliashki led MasterCard’s global eCommerce and cross-border trade initiatives, before launching and commercialising MasterCard’s first open API developer platform. In addition, he drove PayPal’s expansion into Asia and was on the founding team of PayPal in Europe. In his early career, he was a Consultant at Bain & Company in London and an Equities Analyst at Goldman Sachs in New York. Mr Shiliashki holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and an International Directors Programme diploma from INSEAD.