David is Vice Chairman of Gresham's corporate advisory business, Gresham Advisory Partners Limited.
Under his leadership from 1995 - 2013, the business grew from seven executives to be the market-leading independent investment bank in mergers & acquisitions. In this period, Gresham successfully executed well over 150 transactions with an aggregate value in excess of $270bn, participated in many of the largest and most complex transactions in Australian history and grew its corporate advisory team to more than 30 executives with offices in Sydney, Melbourne and Perth. David has also led the development and implementation of several international alliance relationships.
David has 39 year’s experience in M&A with personal involvement in over 150 advisory assignments including 5 of the 10 largest ever Australian transactions. His transactions have included the DLC merger of BHP and Billiton; the offer by BHP Billiton for Rio Tinto; the proposed BHP/Rio iron ore joint venture; the offer by BG Group for Origin Energy; the acquisition of Coles Group by Wesfarmers - Australia's then largest completed transaction ($20bn), and the formation of the $1.6bn USG Boral plasterboard joint venture.
David has had a significant involvement in the global resources sector consolidation having acted in assignments involving companies producing coking and steam coal, oil, gas, iron ore, bauxite, alumina, aluminium, nickel, gold, copper and uranium. These assignments have included acting for: BG Group in its acquisition of Pure Energy; a Chinese SOE in its acquisition of a strategic stake in PanAust; Billiton in the merger of BHP and Billiton (Australia's then largest ever transaction); Xstrata in its offer for WMC Resources; MIM in its acquisition by scheme of arrangement by Xstrata; Billiton in the merger of its nickel interests with QNI and its subsequent acquisition of QNI.
Beyond the resources sector, David has also led major transactions in the property, finance, health, industrial, engineering and contracting, mining services, transport and food and beverage sectors. These transactions have included hostile and recommended takeover offers and defences; takeovers and mergers by scheme of arrangement; cross-border mergers via the formation of a dual listed company; reconstructions; financial restructuring; refinancing and equity and debt capital raisings; business and asset sales and purchases; the formation of joint ventures and the provision of strategic advice.
David leads the Gresham relationship with US-investment bank RWBaird which has originated and closed 10 transactions in the last 4 years.
Before joining Gresham Partners, David spent 9 years with Macquarie Bank in Sydney (including two years on secondment to Hill Samuel Bank in London) and a further three years as a lawyer with Baker & McKenzie.
David is Chairman of the Australian Museum Foundation and is on the board of Trustees of the Australian Museum.
David holds Bachelors degrees in Economics and Law from the University of Sydney.