Harvey McGrath

Sir Harvey Andrew McGrath (born 23 February 1952) is a British business and philanthropy executive. He served as the Chairman of the Man Group from 2000 to 2007 and Prudential plc from 2009 to 2011. He is the co-founder of Revere Capital Advisors, a hedge fund based in New York City and London. He serves as the Chairman of Big Society Capital and Heart of the City, promoting philanthropy in Greater London and the City of London.

Sir Harvey McGrath
Born (1952-02-23) 23 February 1952[1]
Belfast, Northern Ireland
EducationMethodist College Belfast
St Catharine's College, Cambridge
OccupationBusiness executive
Net worth£100 million[2]
Spouse(s)Allison McGrath

Early life

Harvey McGrath was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom.[3] He was educated at Methodist College Belfast, a grammar school in Belfast.[4][5][6] He joined St Catharine's College, Cambridge, a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in 1971, where he received a Master of Arts degree in Geography.[3][6][7][8]

Business career

He started his career as a commodity lender at Chase Manhattan Bank shortly after graduation, first in London, moving to New York City in 1979.[3][9] He joined the Man Group in 1980, where he worked as Treasurer, Finance Director, and later President of Man Inc., all of which were based in New York City.[4][5] He then moved back to London to serve as its Chief Executive from 1990 to 2000, and as its chairman from 2000 to 2007.[9][10][11]

He joined the board of directors of Prudential plc in September 2008.[9][12] He served as its chairman from January 2009 to 2011.[9][10][12] During his tenure, he oversaw a failed bid to acquire AIA Group Limited for £22.6 billion, incurring £377 million in useless fees.[12][13][14] The failed bid was unpopular with the Financial Services Authority and shareholders.[12][13][14]

In 2008, he co-founded Revere Capital Advisors, a hedge fund based in New York City and London, with two of his former Prudential co-workers: Daniel Barnett, formerly Finance Director, and John Kinder, formerly Head of Global Sugar Trading.[7][8][15][16]

Philanthropy

He is the chairman Emeritus of the East London Business Alliance and London First.[4][5] He served as the Vice-Chairman of the Mayor of London's Skills and Employment Board from 2006 to 2011.[5] He was then appointed by Mayor Boris Johnson as the Chairman of the London Development Agency.[9] He was appointed as the co-Chair of the Mayor of London's Enterprise Panel in July 2011.[17][18] He served as a Governor of Tower Hamlets College, a college of further education in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets.[11] He has supported research into philanthropic activity. [19]

He is a co-founder of New Philanthropy Capital and serves on its Board of Trustees.[10][20] In 2014, he became the Chair of the Big Society Capital, formerly chaired by Sir Ronald Cohen.[10] He is also the Chairman of Heart of the City.[10][14][21] Additionally, he is the chairman of the board of Trustees of The Prince's Teaching Institute, one of The Prince's Charities.[10][22] He is also the chairman of the board of Governors of Birkbeck, University of London.[18][23] He serves on the Board of Trustees of the Sutton Trust.[18] He serves as the President of the Board of Trustees of Children and Families Across Borders (CFAB), a non-profit organisation which offers protection to children who are separated from their families overseas.[9][24] He is Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the charity icould (www.icould.com) (note 23 below) website for 12- to 18-year-olds to find out more about job opportunities.[3][18][25] He also serves on the Advisory Board of Bridges Ventures.[3][26]

He has supported the Integrated Education Fund in Northern Ireland, which builds schools where both Catholic and Protestant schoolchildren are enrolled in an attempt to bridge religious gaps.[3] He has served on the Boards of Trustees of the Royal Anniversary Trust, which is responsible for the Queen's Anniversary Prize.[7][18] He has also been a member of the Richard House Society, the philanthropic arm of the Richard House Children's Hospital, and a patron of the Royal Society of Arts.[4] He was the recipient of an honorary degree from Queen's University Belfast in 2008 and a Doctor of the University (DUniv) from the University of Ulster in 2009.[4][5] He was the recipient of the Beacon Fellowship from the UK Community Foundations for his philanthropic work in 2013.[27]

He has made charitable contributions to his alma mater, the Methodist College Belfast.[11] He has also made charitable contributions to the University of Cambridge and to St Catharine's College.[6] For example, he donated £4 million to attract more students from disadvantaged backgrounds in 2008.[11] In February 2014, the college unveiled The McGrath Centre, a conference building erected as a result of a significant charitable gift made by McGrath.[28]

With his wife, he has also made charitable contributions to the Unicorn Theatre in the London Borough of Southwark, the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in the City of London, the Almeida Theatre in Islington, the Great Ormond Street Hospital in Bloomsbury, and the National Portrait Gallery, London.[29][30][31][32][33] They also made a charitable gift to the Lyric Theatre, Belfast, which led to the dedication of the McGrath Suite, named in their honour.[34]

McGrath was knighted in the 2016 New Year Honours for services to economic growth and public life.[35]

Personal life

He is married to Allison McGrath.[34] As of 2014, he was worth an estimated £100 million.[2]

References
  1. "McGrath, Sir Harvey (Andrew), (born 23 Feb. 1952), Chairman, Big Society Capital Ltd, since 2014 |". Who's Who. doi:10.1093/ww/9780199540884.001.0001/ww-9780199540884-e-249547. Retrieved 14 April 2019.
  2. "Sunday Times Rich List". Sunday Times (page 72). 18 May 2014.
  3. Philanthropy: Harvey McGrath, Coutts
  4. Honorary Graduates 2008: Harvey McGrath Archived 27 August 2015 at Archive-It, Queen's University Belfast
  5. Honour for International Business Leader Harvey McGrath, University of Ulster, 2 July 2009
  6. Why I support Cambridge: Harvey McGrath, University of Cambridge
  7. Bloomberg Business: Harvey McGrath
  8. Revere Capital Advisors: Founders
  9. Harvey McGrath, Forbes
  10. Debrett's 500 2015: Harvey McGrath
  11. Harvey McGrath, Financial Times, 10 May 2008
  12. Simon Goodley, Harvey McGrath to step down as Prudential chairman, The Guardian, 20 December 2011
  13. Jamie Dunkley, Harvey McGrath's exit is 'final chapter' in AIA saga, The Daily Telegraph, 20 December 2011
  14. Oliver Shah, After unruly Pru shareholders, social investment is kids’ stuff, The Sunday Times, 20 April 2014
  15. Revere Capital Advisors: About us
  16. Revere Capital Advisors: Contact us
  17. Harvey McGrath to co-chair new London Enterprise Board, london.gov.uk, 22 July 2011
  18. The Sutton Trust: Board of Trustees
  19. "More, better, together: A strategic review of giving in London". Centre for London.
  20. New Philanthropy Capital: Board of Trustees
  21. "Heart of the City: Governance". Archived from the original on 13 February 2015. Retrieved 10 February 2015.
  22. The Prince's Teaching Institute: Board of Trustees
  23. Governors: Harvey McGrath, Birkbeck, University of London
  24. Children and Families Across Borders: Board of Trustees
  25. icould: Meet the icould Board
  26. Bridges Ventures: Harvey McGrath
  27. 11 CITY PHILANTHROPISTS CELEBRATED AT BEACON AWARDS, City Philanthropy, 7 February 2013
  28. McGrath Centre opens for business at St Catharine's College, Cambridge Network, 17 February 2014
  29. Unicorn Theatre: Support us
  30. "Guildhall School of Music and Drama: Current donors". Archived from the original on 13 February 2015. Retrieved 10 February 2015.
  31. Almeida Theatre: Cabaret Gala 2009
  32. Great Ormond Street Hospital: Our supporters
  33. National Portrait Gallery, London: Sponsors and Supporters
  34. Queen shakes Martin McGuinness' hand in Belfast, ITV, 27 June 2012
  35. "No. 61450". The London Gazette (Supplement). 30 December 2015. p. N2.
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