Our team
Meet our team
Meet the people behind Tacking Point, and the committee framework that keeps us accountable.
Our founder
The vision behind Tacking Point
Behind Tacking Point is Paul Bray, its founder, who has over more than four decades in the industry. A strategic architect of Australia's first Separately Managed Account structures, Paul grew the country's first SMA provider, scaling before its sale to Ascalon and OneVue. Formally Managing Director and CEO at ABN AMRO, Westpac Investment Management and vanEyk Research, he has overseen more than $15 billion in domestic and international assets. That instinct for building differently is the foundation Tacking Point stands on: rigorous, research-led, and focused on where the market is heading next, with the conviction to act early.
Leadership
Leadership Team
Tacking Point was assembled by design. Drawing on four decades in the industry, Paul Bray brought together a team of specialists chosen for their judgement, their independence, and a proven record of delivering for investors. Together they bring the experience to read markets clearly and the discipline to act on that view with conviction. It is a deliberate approach to fund management, defined by independent thinking, genuine accountability, and a singular focus on investor outcomes.
Jay Mertens
Director | Portfolio Manager | Investment Committee MemberJay has more than two decades across private credit, alternative investments, corporate advisory and capital markets, giving him perspective across asset classes. As a Director at Tacking Point, he leads investment management on the Investment Committee, alongside compliance and risk oversight. He was previously a Partner and Shareholder of a mid-market private debt fund, and before that an Investment Director at an alternative asset firm investing across private equity and debt. He also spent ten years in financial services covering equities research and property finance. His approach pairs a forward-looking read of markets with the discipline to act.
CA, BBus (UTS)
Mitch Dallimore
Investment ManagerMitchell brings the discipline of institutional private equity and the instincts of an operator. A Chartered Accountant with 15 years across the full investment lifecycle, he has worked every stage, from fund structuring and strategy through deal origination, due diligence and execution to post-acquisition value creation. His experience spans international markets, including Australia, New Zealand, the UK, Canada and the USA, and sectors from healthcare and manufacturing to insurance, hospitality and property. Having served as both deal-side Principal and portfolio-company CFO, he pairs the rigour to assess an opportunity with the hands-on judgement to realise its potential.
CA, BCom, DipGrad (Otago)
Governance
Investment Committee
The strength of our Investment Committee lies in its range. Headed by Paul Bray and our investment team, it draws on specialist expertise from beyond the firm, bringing independent thinking to investment strategy, manager selection and risk oversight. It is a deliberate structure, designed so that no decision rests on a single point of view.
Nick Burmester
Independent Investment Committee MemberNick brings more than 25 years in capital markets and financial services to the committee, specialising in institutional equities, large-scale deal origination and execution, emerging companies and hedge funds. Across senior roles in Australia, the UK and Europe, he has built institutional businesses from the ground up and led cross-border transactions and institutional equity structuring at scale. A trusted corporate adviser, he has served on the Board of the Stockbrokers and Financial Advisers Association, bringing board-level governance and regulatory oversight to the table. His networks span hedge funds, institutional investors and corporate boards, adding market depth and global reach to the committee.
LLB, BCom, GradDipAppFin
Ivan Tchourilov
Independent Investment Committee MemberIvan Tchourilov brings almost two decades of experience across Australian capital markets, wealth technology and financial services distribution. As Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of InvestHouse, he leads the operating layer connecting listed companies with the investors looking for them. Ivan co-founded TradeFloor and helped scale Openmarkets into one of Australia's largest DMA execution and wealth technology platforms, and has been an advocate for improving the accessibility of financial advice and market infrastructure for everyday investors.
BBus (Monash)
Tony Tighe
Independent Investment Committee MemberAnthony Tighe brings more than four decades of experience across chartered accounting, forensic investigation, corporate advisory and wealth strategy. As founder and Director of A H Tighe & Associates for over thirty years, Tony works with local and global companies across multiple industries and market conditions, with particular expertise in family law forensics, financial strategy and corporate restructure. Earlier partner at Lawler Partners (now PKF), with prior senior roles at Williams Hatchman & Kean and Thompson Douglass Etherington. Tony has held Non-Executive Director roles at URSA and eBET Group, and served as Executive Director of Direct Portfolio Services.
BBus (UTS), CA, Registered Tax Agent
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