The General Manager

Team Composition

Keystone Equity Partners W.L.L., the General Manager, is comprised of the founding partners in addition to a team of talented executives and key officers. The management team will grow with the selective addition of new partners, managing directors, and associates who will be responsible for a variety of investment areas/disciplines in specific sectors. The team has dedicated members for Portfolio Companies, Advisory Services, Legal and Operations. All team members have a strong background in financial, legal and tax issues, management practices, high execution capacities, and a solid track record in completing large, complex transactions in different countries throughout the Middle East.

The senior team comprises the following professionals:

Mr. Karim A. Souaid, Managing Partner

Mr. Ahmed Doumani, Partner

Mr. Haythem Macki, Partner

Mrs. Randa Khoury, Partner

Mrs. Joelle Achkar - Juvelekian, Managing Director - Investment Advisory Services Team

Ms. Reina Achkar, Vice President - Portfolio Management Team

Ms. Paula Rizk, Corporate Manager

The professional staff:

Mr. Kamil Baaklini, Senior Associate - Investment Advisory Team

Ms. Lorna Dabanjian, Analyst - Investment Advisory Team

Mr. Karim Karami, Associate - Portfolio Management Team

Ms. Youmna Freiha, Assosiate - Portfolio Management Team

Ms. Dina Fares, Assosiate - Investment Advisory Team

Deal origination

The team identifies potential investments through active origination and research and through its ongoing dialogue with numerous executives, active managers, industry specialists, and potential corporate partners with whom it has built long-term ties. The team has developed a broad and deep-routed network of contacts within the professional advisors’ community throughout the MENA region which permit it to generate additional deal flows from its network of accountants, consultants, lawyers, commercial and investment bankers.

Disciplined, value-oriented investment philosophy

The General Manager’s approach will seek to reduce risk in investments by:

§ Focusing on strong management teams with experience and leadership skills

§ Seeking businesses with leading market positions and strong cash flow;

§ Engaging in extensive due diligence from the perspective of a long-term investor;

§ Investing at low price to cash flow or earnings multiples; and

§ Adopting flexible transaction structures by drawing on the experience of the General Manager in using equity and quasi-equity investment instruments.

Track Record

Professionals who form the core management team have been directly involved, since 1995, in investment banking transactions conducted throughout the Middle East (GCC markets and Levant) in a range of sectors that are directly relevant to the target industries of GrowthGate. These transactions include the capital raising through IPOs and Private Placements and the direct sale of equity interests or of entire businesses through M&A transactions, for both private and public sector entities, which have culminated, as of 2006, in an aggregated stated value (at the time of the completion of each transaction) of circa US$ 5 billion.