Robin Saunders is a founding partner of Clearbrook and its Chief Investment Officer, with more than 30 years’ experience leading and managing investments across Europe, the US and the Middle East. Over the course of her career, she has been responsible for investments and related managed assets in excess of $30bn and is recognised for combining rigorous capital markets discipline with a strong commercial instinct for value creation and risk management.
Robin began her career at Northern Trust in Chicago before moving into senior roles at Citigroup, Deutsche Bank and Westdeutsche Landesbank, specialising in capital markets and principal finance investments. This early grounding in structured finance and complex transactions underpins her later work as an investor, where she has led deals across multiple sectors, ownership models and jurisdictions.
She currently serves as Chair of PensionPay Ltd, a non-executive director of NWS Music Group Ltd and as Senior Director at Quarterhill Inc. Robin has held a wide range of board positions spanning infrastructure, consumer, regulated utilities,...Robin Saunders is a founding partner of Clearbrook and its Chief Investment Officer, with more than 30 years’ experience leading and managing investments across Europe, the US and the Middle East. Over the course of her career, she has been responsible for investments and related managed assets in excess of $30bn and is recognised for combining rigorous capital markets discipline with a strong commercial instinct for value creation and risk management.
Robin began her career at Northern Trust in Chicago before moving into senior roles at Citigroup, Deutsche Bank and Westdeutsche Landesbank, specialising in capital markets and principal finance investments. This early grounding in structured finance and complex transactions underpins her later work as an investor, where she has led deals across multiple sectors, ownership models and jurisdictions.
She currently serves as Chair of PensionPay Ltd, a non-executive director of NWS Music Group Ltd and as Senior Director at Quarterhill Inc. Robin has held a wide range of board positions spanning infrastructure, consumer, regulated utilities, financial services and media. Her previous directorships include Formula One Holdings Ltd, Pubmistress, International Stadium Group, BHS, Whyte & Mackay, Odeon Cinemas, Mid Kent Water, Harbourmaster Capital Management, Hawk Group, the UK Office of the Rail Regulator, Seamless Distribution AB and other private and public companies. Across these roles, she has worked closely with founders, families, private equity sponsors and public market investors, often in situations involving growth, restructuring or strategic repositioning.
Alongside her board and investment work, Robin is actively engaged in education and transatlantic exchange. She is a Visiting Fellow at Saïd Business School, University of Oxford, a Governor of the British Film Institute and formerly a Commissioner of the UK-US Fulbright Commission.READ MOREVIEW LESS
Robin is the Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Clearbrook Capital Partners, a private investment and advisory firm specialising in growth companies engaged in healthcare, financial services, business services and property sectors. Clearbrook has investments in the UK, Europe, the Middle East, Africa and the US.
WestLB (Now: Portigon AG)
Managing Director, Asset Securitisation & Head of Global Principal Finance Group
Vice President of Corporate Asset Funding; Associate in Trade Finance Group
1988
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1991
Chicago, IL, USA
Robin was an early member of the Asset Securitisation Group at Citi in Chicago. Her clients included companies such as Coca-Cola Bottling, Ryder Trucks, Carolina Freight Corp.
Robin completed her credit and capital markets training at the Northern Trust Company in Chicago and New York. She later served in the Export and Trade Finance group as an originator and product specialist.
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Other Business Interests
Venture Capital Investments
Robin is an active investor in start-ups and early stage companies focused on healthcare diagnostics, corporate SaaS solutions, fintech, IoT and others, mentoring founders and C-suite teams.
The appointment of Governors to the Board of the BFI is made by the UK's Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport. The BFI is the UK’s lead organisation for film, television and the moving image.
Fulbright Commission
Commissioner
London, UK
The aim of the US-UK Fulbright Commission is to encourage cultural understanding between both nations through educational exchange programmes. There are 14 Commissioners (or Trustees), 7 appointed from each nation.
Previously known as The Office of the Rail Regulator UK, The Office of Rail and Road is a non-ministerial department that monitors the safety and regulation of railways across Britain.
Formula One Holdings is the former holding company of the Formula One Administration that holds exclusive commercial rights to Formula One Grand Prix races.
Pubmistress Limited
Board Member
The parent company of the Pubmaster group, owner of approximately 3,200 UK based pubs.
Subsequently acquired by ALS, this was the holding company for the Eclipse group of companies and the eight follow-on acquisitions in the regulated food testing sector.
Rambert is a leading British dance company, formed at the start of the 20th century. Launched a cutting edge digital platform as a well-being online venue for dance patrons in response to the Covid pandemic. Robin Saunders was a Board Member of Rambert from December 2019 until May 2021 since when she has acted as an Ambassador for the company.
The Executive Programme at Singularity University encourages leaders to apply emerging and disruptive technologies to address some of the world's most pressing issues.
Robin has acted as mentor to CEOs within FTSE 100 companies. Mentore (now: Merryck) is a bespoke mentoring service designed to enable businesses to develop their most talented people by placing them with senior mentors.
The Oxford Foundry
Mentor
Robin is an Oxford Foundry mentor. OXFO was set up in 2017 by Oxford University’s Said Business School for the benefit of all students and alumni of the university. Their accelerator, OXFO L.E.V8, helps budding entrepreneurs by providing mentoring from exceptional senior level advisors.
