The Synergis team
Sheryl Young
CEO
Sheryl Young has over 20 years experience in finance and business with a special emphasis on private equity and venture capital. She most recently established and raised funds for a Dubai based private equity company. Ms Young was CEO of BTS Holdings, a property/leisure investment company. She is a former general partner and Managing Director of Cross Atlantic Capital Partners (UK), a UK/US venture capital fund with $300 million under management which focused on seed and Series A investments in the TMT sector. She is a former Vice President of JP Morgan Securities on Wall Street focusing on Technology Equity Research, where she successfully took a number of companies public. She has an MBA from the Stern School of Business in New York University.
Shimi Shah
Director
Shimi was previously at Partnerships UK Plc (PUK) where she established the PUK equity business and was responsible for all of PUK’s investment activities in relation to UK Government departments and universities. Prior to this, she served as Chief Investment Officer at Hanson Capital managing their Anglo American fund based in the UK and California. Before that she was at 3i Plc as an investment executive specialising in technology investments. Shimi has also successfully started, established and sold an international distribution business.
She is a graduate of Queens' College, Cambridge with a MPhil in Management, and has a First Class Hons degree from King's College, London, in Management and Economics.
Terry Swainbank
Investment Director
Terry until recently managed the Rainbow Seed Fund and has significant experience with seed investments especially with PSREs. Previously he was Finance Director and Investment Manager of West Midlands Enterprise Ltd. Terry has a degree in minerals engineering and an MBA. He has over 20 years experience in the venture capital industry, having started his career in the industry with 3i in Manchester. He was a director of a Birmingham based SME angel investor matching service.
In addition to investing in seed stage proposals and managing STL’s investment portfolio, he will help to source technology-based proposals from business incubators, universities and research institutions.
Andrew Hegarty
Director
Andrew began his career as a corporate financier in 1994 with HSBC Investment Bank, involved in numerous public market transactions including IPOs, capital raisings, and M&A. He left in 1999 to join Hanson Capital, a privately-owned investment and advisory firm, based in London and Los Angeles, which specialised in early-stage situations and principal investing. In 2001, he joined Touchstone Securities, an independent advisory boutique, based in London, which provided high-level corporate finance advice to large corporates, private families and institutions.
Since 2003, he has been a principal with P&P Partners, a private family office with £150m under management, engaged in private equity and direct investment. Andrew studied Management Administration at Aston University
Dinali de Silva
Investment Manager
Dinali assists the Investment Director in originating and executing venture investments and has a background in technology transfer. She began her career as a Research Physicist at Sharp Laboratories, before becoming an editor with Elsevier Science. In 2001 she joined Evolution Capital as an investment analyst, before becoming a technology consultant with Oxford Innovation. Prior to joining Synergis, Dinali was the Technology Commercialisation Manager at Brunel Enterprise Centre, part of Brunel University. Dinali studied Chemistry at the University of Durham, before completing her PhD in Physical Chemistry.
Anne Taylor
Office Manager
Anne is a highly experienced office manager and personal assistant with an extensive background in investment banking, venture capital and Government. Prior to joining Synergis, Anne spent 12 years with Dresdner Kleinwort Benson and five years with HM Treasury. Anne is skilled in all aspects of office management and IT administration.