The Team
Pierre Maliczak
Altarius Group CEO
Pierre is the founder and CEO of Altarius Group. After graduating from Boston College in 1989, where he received a Master of Science in Finance, he worked in the Capital Markets Division of Société Générale as an equity derivatives trader. He then moved to London, taking responsibility at Banque Paribas and then at Bank of America as head of fund derivatives EMEA. Finally, Pierre joined Refco Alternative Investments as head of Europe and as a member of senior management. Pierre is deeply involved in new technologies. He is an executive director of Mt Pelerin, a Swiss-based company specialised in asset tokenisation and digital processes.
Heinz Daxl
Managing Director
Altarius GmbH
Heinz is the Managing Director of Altarius GmbH and part of the Senior Management of Altarius Group. He graduated from the University of Linz, Austria in 1993 where he studied business informatics. He worked initially as a market-maker registered with the Vienna Stock Exchange and trader with the Austrian bank Allgemeine Sparkasse Oberoesterreich. From 1999 to 2010 he was the Managing Director of Absolute Plus AG in Munich a company specializing in the setup and distribution of alternative investments. Heinz is an executive director of several hedge funds.
Laura Zordan
Head of Legal and
Compliance
After obtaining her law degree, Laura obtained an MBA specialising in administrative financial control and finance. Ms. Zordan undertook general legal practice and worked as an in-house lawyer for a large national manufacturing business before focussing on the finance sector.
In Malta, she has been appointed member of the Board of Directors in a few AIFs regulated by the MFSA. She has also been registered by the FCA in the UK and before joining Altarius she was Compliance Officer for a large Investment Manager based in Malta.
Arnaud Salomon
Board Member
Arnaud is the founder and CEO of Mt Pelerin, a platform to buy and hold crypto, and a board member at Altarius. After obtained in 2008 his Master in Communication Systems with a specialization in IT security, Arnaud conducted his thesis at UBS Investment Bank. He then began his career in Geneva as a trader, first in commodities then in forex.
It was in 2012 that he discovered Bitcoin and the world of the blockchain and cryptocurrencies, before getting deeply involved in the sector and building financial products through Mt Pelerin.
Toni Krastev
Director & Risk Manager
Mr Toni Krastev joined Altarius shortly after completing his studies at the University of Malta in 2014. Initially, Mr Krastev oversaw trading on behalf of CISs managed by the company via various trading platforms and currently he is responsible for the operations of the funds, overseeing the daily activity and performing the day-to-day tasks. Mr Krastev is also pursuing the CFA charter.
Edward Mangion
Head of Accounting
Edward Mangion joined Altarius Asset Management as Head of Accounting in 2016. He is responsible for the accounting operations, periodic financial reports and budgets.
Prior joining Altarius in 2016 Mr Mangion was part of an audit, accountancy and tax advisory firm for five years and was responsible for a wide range of clients across a portfolio of industry sectors.
Edward holds a Diploma in Management and a Diploma in Finance. He is a member of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants and the Malta Institute of Accountants.
Cynthia Pagani
Co-Head of Operations
Cynthia is responsible for the monitoring of the funds’ activities and liaising front and middle office operations. She started her career in 2011 when she joined Culross Global Investment Management Ltd as an Investor Relations Manager. In 2014, she moved to London to join the company’s investment team where she was responsible for the monitoring and oversight of investments and for carrying out quantitative and qualitative analysis across investments, asset classes and peers. Cynthia holds a B.Com (Hons) degree in Banking and Finance from the University of Malta.
Joanna Balzan
Co-Head of Operations
Johanna Balzan is co-heading Altarius' day-to-day operations and has demonstrated a history of working in the financial services industry for more than 10 years. Prior to joining Altarius, she worked as Fund Manager at Alter Domus and as an Accountant Supervisor at Apex.
She has also acquired some strong knowledge of the banking industry and the payment sector.