Archives: Leadership

Leadership

Soraya Khan

Soraya was appointed to the Board of Massy Holdings Ltd. on December 20th, 2019. Soraya is a Finance Executive with over twenty years of experience within multinational organizations in the Energy and Financial services sectors. She started her career at Atlantic LNG after which she moved to Citibank where she quickly progressed to the position of Chief Financial Officer. Soraya returned to the Energy Sector taking on the role of Head of Finance at Centrica Energy before moving to her current position of Finance Manager at BHP Trinidad and Tobago.

Soraya brings valuable experience in corporate governance, company divestments, project valuations and sanctioning, strategic operational planning and forecasting, and treasury and financial controls. She holds a BSC in Accounting and Finance from State University of New York, and is a Certified Public Accountant. Soraya also holds an MBA in Business Administration with a specialization in International Finance from the Arthur Lok Jack Global School of Business.

Wendy Kerry

Wendy has been a part of the Massy executive team for over 13 years. Her roles have included Corporate Secretary & Legal Advisor, Senior Vice President, Corporate Governance and Corporate Secretary and over the past seven months, since January 8, 2024, she was appointed Acting General Counsel. We now congratulate Wendy on her confirmation in that role.

Wendy is an Attorney at Law and Utter Barrister, admitted to practice in Trinidad and Tobago and England and Wales. She is a member of the Law Association of Trinidad and Tobago and The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple in London, England.  She studied at the University of the West Indies where she obtained a Bachelor of Arts in History/Management Studies. She is also a graduate of; the University of London where she obtained a Bachelor of Laws, and City University, London where she obtained a Master of Science in Economic Regulation & Competition.

Wendy has a breadth and depth of legal, executive and board experience and serves as a Director on the Board of the Trinidad and Tobago Stock Exchange (TTSE). Over the past seven years she has served on TTSE board committees including audit, human resources and nominations. She is also a former director of the Trinidad and Tobago Central Depository, the Trinidad & Tobago Bureau of Standards, the Trinidad & Tobago Transparency Institute and the National Standing Committee on Air Service Agreements. Wendy has also served as a former Chair and member of the AmCham T&T Legislative committee which reviewed and provided recommendations on important draft bills and legislation impacting our corporate landscape including, the securities act, amendments to the companies act, the whistleblower bill, the fair-trading bill etc.

James McLetchie

James brings more than 30 years of financial, M&A, transformation, and strategy experience to Massy, with an emphasis on international M&A and growth. James started his career as an auditor, at Price Waterhouse in Trinidad. After 7 years, he left Price Waterhouse as an audit manager to complete his MBA in Finance and Management Information System (MIS) at Purdue University in the United States. He then joined PricewaterhouseCoopers, working in their Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York City offices, working with clients in many sectors to integrate their acquisitions focused on designing and delivering the full potential and synergies of those acquisitions.

James later joined McKinsey & Co, where he spent 13 years, designing and leading M&A integration programs until 2021. He was part of the McKinsey & Co global M&A leadership team and led the Merger Management and Organisation teams for the UK and Irish offices. He worked “on the ground” in over 30 cities across the world in countries including Brazil, Chile, United States, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Turkey, Japan, and India.

Most recently, James was Senior Vice President of Integration at AVEVA Group, a FTSE 50 company and world leader in industrial software company specialising in Power and Oil and Gas. James was responsible for integrating and delivering the value from AVEVA’s largest acquisition as well as their most ambitious business model transformation to a subscriptions business powered by cloud products.

Suresh Maharaj

Suresh Maharaj is an Independent/Non-Executive Director.  He is a highly-recognized Global Senior Executive with 43 years of experience in the financial services industry.  Prior to his retirement from Citibank in 2015, he held the position of Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Citibank Caribbean and Central America, with responsibility for Citibank’s Corporate, Commercial and Investment and Consumer operations in 27 countries in the Caribbean and Central America, with physical presence in 14 territories, namely Puerto Rico, Jamaica, Trinidad, Dominican Republic, Bahamas, Barbados, Haiti, Cayman, Panama, Costa Rica, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua.  He also served in the positions of CEO and Country Head for the company’s operations in Central America and Ecuador, the Philippines and Guam, Trinidad and Jamaica, spanning 30 years and he was a Senior Credit Officer of Citibank.

Mr. Maharaj is currently the Chairman of Citibank TT Ltd. and Citicorp Merchant Bank.  He is also a Director of Banco de Honduras.  Following his retirement in June 2015, he held a number of directorships for Citibank’s operations in Costa Rica, El Salvador, Nicaragua and Panama.  He was also the former Chairman of the Trinidad Cement Limited and served as a Director of the Trinidad and Tobago Unit Trust Corporation, Bankers Association of Trinidad and Tobago, Bankers Association of Philipines, American Chamber of Commerce Trinidad and Tobago, American Chamber of Commerce Philipines and the South Trinidad Chamber of Industry & Commerce.

His areas of expertise include organizational restructuring, return on economical capital strategies, revenue growth initiatives, compliance direction and management, corporate governance and global market identification.

Mr. Maharaj holds an MBA and Bachelor of Science Degree from Mellen University.  He is also a past student of Asja College and Naparima College in Trinidad and Tobago.

 

Patrick Hylton

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PATRICK HYLTON is an Independent/Non-Executive Director and is the Group Managing Director of Jamaica’s largest commercial bank, the National Commercial Bank Jamaica Limited (NCB). He first received public recognition, when the Government appointed him to a leading role in the rehabilitation of the Jamaican, financial sector during the mid-1990s. His wealth of experience in the financial services industry propelled him to the position of Managing Director of the Financial Sector Adjustment Company (FINSAC). He performed this role for five years and in, 2002, joined NCB as Deputy Group Managing Director.  In 2004, Mr Hylton was appointed Group Managing Director of NCB and has led the organisation to achieve record growth in profitability.  Mr. Hylton is an Honours Graduate in Business Administration and an Associate of the Chartered Institute of Bankers (ACIB), London. He is a Past President of the Jamaica Bankers Association, and in addition to being a Director of NCB, he is the Chairman of Harmonisation Limited and sits on several boards, including the Caribbean Information and Credit Rating Services (CariCRIS) and the Mona School of Business and Management (UWI). In 2002, Mr Hylton was awarded the Order of Distinction, Commander Class by the Prime Minister and Governor General of Jamaica.

Richard P. Young

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RICHARD PETER YOUNG is a Non-Executive Director. A Chartered Accountant by qualification, his career comprises the highest professional levels in accounting, auditing, insurance and banking.    

He worked in the regional, financial services sector for over forty years, with the last seventeen as the Managing Director of Scotiabank Trinidad & Tobago Limited and a Senior Vice President of The Bank of Nova Scotia, before he retired in 2012. He also served as Chairman of ScotiaLife Trinidad & Tobago Limited and Scotia Investments Trinidad & Tobago Limited and as Deputy Chairman of Scotiatrust and Merchant Bank Trinidad and Tobago Limited.

 Mr. Young served on the Council of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Trinidad and Tobago and was its President. He was also a board member of the National Housing Authority and served as its Deputy Chairman. He was a committee member of the Association of Insurance Companies of Trinidad & Tobago (ATTIC) and represented the insurance industry on the board of the Home Mortgage Bank.  He was also a board member of Development Finance Limited. Mr. Young was a director of the Trinidad & Tobago Stock Exchange and served as its Chairman. He was also the President of the Bankers Association of Trinidad and Tobago for three terms.  

In July 2013, Mr. Young was appointed Chairman of the Economic Development Board of Trinidad and Tobago. He is also Chairman of Catholic Media Services Limited (CAMSEL) and Youth Business Trinidad and Tobago (YBTT).  

Vaughn S. Martin

Vaughn brings over twenty five years of Financial & Business Management experience in various business sectors, with twenty one of these spent in the Oil & Gas industry. Prior to his appointment, Vaughn held the position of Managing Director at Massy’s joint venture company, Massy Wood Group Ltd., for seven years. He has held several other executive roles within the Massy Group including Country Manager in both Suriname and Ghana and Finance Director of Massy’s Energy & Industrial Gases Business Unit.

Vaughn holds an Executive MBA from the Arthur Lok Jack Graduate School of Business and is FCCA-designated by the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants. As a past national volleyball athlete, Vaughn maintains his passion for sport which continues to fuel his involvement in several sporting activities across Trinidad & Tobago.

David Affonso

David was appointed President & Chief Executive Officer in 2024. He joined the Board of Massy Holdings Ltd. in 2019 upon his appointment as Executive Chairman, Integrated Retail Business Unit.  David’s tenure with the Massy Group spans over three decades, during which time his extensive experience and keen business acumen have been invaluable assets to the Group.

David has held various leadership positions within the Group, particularly in the Retail and Distribution sectors across the CARICOM region. As Chairperson of the IRP, David oversaw a period of remarkable growth, with double-digit increases in both profit and revenue. His strategic vision and hands-on approach have positioned the IRP for continued success and expansion, including most recently their entry into markets outside of the Caribbean region with the acquisition of a chain of seven supermarkets in Jacksonville, Florida in 2023.

David retains his role as Executive Chairman, Integrated Retail Portfolio.

Robert Riley

ROBERT RILEY is an Independent/Non-Executive Director. He was elected Chairman of the Board of Massy Holdings Ltd. effective May 12th 2023. Mr. Riley previously served as Deputy Chairman of the Board of Massy Holdings Ltd. and Chairman of the company’s Governance, Nomination and Renumeration Committee.
 
Mr. Riley has also served in a variety of executive management and senior legal positions, including Head of Safety and Operations Risk, Safety Risk Leadership and Culture, BP PLC, London, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, BP Trinidad and Tobago; Vice President, Legal and Government Affairs, Amoco and BP/Amoco; and General Counsel and Corporate Secretary, BWIA. He has also served on the Boards of Amoco Trinidad and Tobago LLC and other Amoco entities, Titan Methanol; BP Trinidad and Tobago, Atlantic LNG, The Bank of Nova Scotia, Trinidad and Tobago Limited, the University of Trinidad and Tobago (UTT), Caribbean Airlines Limited, and Board of Management of J D Sellier & Co, Attorneys at Law. 
 
An Attorney-at-Law, admitted to the Supreme Court in 1987, Mr. Riley holds inter alia, an LL.B (Hons.) from the University of the West Indies, Barbados; and a BSc. (Hons.) in Agricultural Science from the University of the West Indies, St. Augustine, Trinidad. In 2003, he was awarded a Chaconia Medal (Gold) by the Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago for his contribution to National Development. In 2009, he was awarded a Doctor of Laws Honoris Causa by the University of the West Indies, St. Augustine