CDC, the UK’s publicly owned impact investor, has strengthened its non-executive director line-up with two new appointments.
Krishnakumar Natarajan, the co-founder of global IT business Mindtree and Kathryn Matthews, the former Chief Investment Officer, Asia ex Japan Equities at Fidelity International, have joined the Board of CDC as non-executive directors.
Ms Matthews also becomes the Chair of CDC’s Risk Committee. She replaces outgoing director Wim Borgdorff.
Prior to working at Fidelity, she held senior positions at AXA Investment Managers, Santander Global Advisers, and Baring Asset Management. She has also previously been on the Board of Directors for a number of investment companies including Fidelity Asian Values and J.P. Morgan Chinese Investment Trust. She was also, until recently, on the Board of Trustees for The Nuffield Trust.
Ms Matthews is currently a Member of the Council for the Duchy of Lancaster, and a director of the Vietnamese Opportunities Fund. She also sits on the Board of Directors for Barclays UK plc and Pendal Group, a global asset management company based in Australia.
She said: “Impact investing is fundamental to trying to help countries improve the quality of the lives of all their people and never more so than in these difficult times. I look forward to being able to use my experience to help support this process.”
Sir Graham Wrigley, Chairman of CDC, said: “As well as being delighted that CDC has, again, attracted such an experienced and respected person to join our Board, Kathryn’s appointment means that we have achieved the milestone of realising 50:50 gender balance on our Board.”
Krishnakumar Natarajan is currently Managing Partner at Mela Ventures, an early stage venture capital fund in India and alongside his wife runs the Mela Foundation which helps girls living in rural parts of India to gain professional qualifications. He is also the Chairman of NASSCOM, the Indian trade association for the country’s IT industry. He replaces Keki Mistry.
Graham said: “Krishnakumar is one of the best-known businessmen and entrepreneurs in India. He was employee number seven at Wipro and grew Mindtree into a business with 20,000 employees and operations in 42 countries. He brings a wealth of experience of the Indian market to CDC, especially in the IT and tech space – an area which is increasingly important to the organisation.”
“I would also like to offer my huge thanks to the outgoing directors Wim Borgdoff and Keki Mistry for their dedication to CDC and its mandate.”
Mr Natarajan added: “The work of impact investors such as CDC as providers of patient capital to south Asian and African economies has never been more important. I am delighted to be joining CDC as it fulfils its vital mandate.”
