Bio

Jonathan is a Partner and Head of Merchant Banking at Alvarium. In 2011 he founded Lepe Partners, an independent merchant bank focused on the media, internet and consumer sectors, which merged with Alvarium in 2019. Prior to founding Lepe, Jonathan was Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder of LongAcre Partners, Europe’s leading mid-market media corporate finance house, which he sold to Jefferies in 2007. Prior to this, Jonathan was Group MD of the Wireless Group PLC, a UK radio group that was formed when he left Apax Partners to join a buyout of the radio station Talk Radio in 1997 with the backing of News Corporation and Liberty Media. In 2005, together with Brent Hoberman, he co-founded the Founders Forum: a series of intimate annual global events for the leading entrepreneurs of today and the rising stars of tomorrow. Founders Forum also has an innovation consultancy for top corporates (Founders Intelligence) and a recruitment company (Founders Keepers). Jonathan is also President Emeritus of Founders Pledge (a programme to encourage UK entrepreneurs to donate part of exit proceeds to charitable causes) and Treasurer of Centre of Policy Studies, as well as a member of the advisory board for the Tech City Future Fifty. Jonathan is an angel investor and in 2009 he co-founded PROfounders Capital. Jonathan received his OBE for services to the economy in 2018 and is a trustee and board member of the Media Trust.