Team

New York

Manfred Ernst
Managing Director
mernst@auriacap.com

Manfred Ernst is the head of Auria Capital’s global operations. Before Auria Capital, Manfred was employed by Fieldstone Private Capital Group, Inc. for 28 years. He was a founding member and most recently the CEO of Fieldstone Private Capital Group, Inc. in New York.  During 2004-2010, he served as Executive Chairman of the group of Fieldstone companies worldwide.

Manfred’s experience spans origination and execution of energy and infrastructure transactions, both domestically and internationally. His proficiency includes acquisitions and divestitures, strategic joint venture formations, privatizations and assignments structuring and arranging senior and mezzanine debt and development and permanent equity. His clients include governments, industrial companies, development companies and regulated and non-regulated utilities. He has provided expert testimony before regulatory bodies in arbitration proceedings and litigations. He has managed and worked on transactions totaling well over $25 billion.

Prior to joining Fieldstone in New York, Manfred was employed for nine years by Bankers Trust Company. He received his M.A. and Ph.D. in International Relations from Tulane University and was an Assistant Professor at the College of William & Mary and Georgetown University.

Anastasia Pozdniakova
Managing Director
apozdniakova@auriacap.com

Anastasia Pozdniakova has two decades of experience as an investment banking professional. She started her career at Fieldstone Private Capital Group, Inc. as an analyst in 2000 rising to the position of Managing Director in 2009. She leads financial advisory teams in executing transactions ranging from acquisitions and divestitures of power generating facilities to financings of greenfield energy and infrastructure projects.

She is fluent in a variety of complex financial, accounting and tax analyses critical to understanding the economic value of a single asset or a large portfolio. She coordinates teams of engineering/market consultants and other advisors to project sponsors to unlock value.

Anastasia has a significant track record in capital solicitation assignments for underlying non-recourse credit structures. Her experience includes structuring and placing development equity, construction financing, permanent equity and debt, and acquisition financing and arranging joint ventures. She executed mandates in the natural gas-fired and renewable power generation, energy technology, second-generation biofuels, water, pipeline and telecommunication sectors in many of the world’s countries.

She holds a B.S. in Economics and an M.B.A. both from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. At the University of Pennsylvania, Anastasia served as the captain of the Women’s Tennis Team. She was inducted into the University of Pennsylvania Tennis Hall of Fame.

Michael Lyng, CFA
Managing Director
mlyng@auriacap.com

Michael Lyng has over 10 years of experience in the financial industry, starting in sales and trading and then as a part of the investment banking teams at Fieldstone Private Capital Group, Inc. in New York and Auria Capital.

His experience includes raising financing for both traditional and renewable energy projects spanning the entire project capital spectrum from early development to construction financing. Further, Mike has a specialized understanding of both the federal and state regulatory framework associated with advanced biofuels and anaerobic digestion.  This knowledge is essential to allow clients unlock value available through environmental programs and credits.

He is well versed in advanced financial modeling and is able to leverage his analytical background to produce dynamic analyses. He understands how to break down complicated financial data into a clear and simple conclusion, aiding clients to make informed decisions and maximize their bottom line efficiently.

He holds a B.A. in both Mathematics and Economics from the University of Virginia and is a CFA Charterholder.


Hong Kong / Kuala Lumpur

Willy Lim Chong Meng
Managing Director
wlim@auriacap.com.my

Willy Lim is the head of Auria Capital’s Hong Kong and Kuala Lumpur offices and responsible for managing the company’s operation in Asia.

Willy has over 30 years of experience in banking and project finance. His career spanned from founding and leading Fieldstone’s practice in Asia (1991-2001), to managing Babcock & Brown’s Asia Infrastructure and Project Finance teams in Hong Kong and Kuala Lumpur (2001-2008), to re-joining Fieldstone’s operation in Asia in 2009.

Prior to his joining Fieldstone in 1991, Willy worked in London directing the debt structuring and syndication efforts of Security Pacific Merchant Bank in Europe and Japan. He has also worked in various senior capacities for Citicorp Investment Bank in Hong Kong and Banker Trust Company in Hong Kong and London. He holds a degree in Economics from the University of Malaya in Kuala Lumpur.

Patrick Low Hock Guan
Executive Director
plow@auriacap.com.my

Patrick Low has close to 20 years of project finance experience and has successfully advised and closed financings for clients in the power, renewable energy and transportation sectors as well as completed real estate and mineral resources transactions.

In his professional career, Patrick was a Director at Fieldstone and at Babcock & Brown in their Infrastructure and Project Finance Group. He also gained experience working for an ASX-listed global investment and asset management firm, focusing on the firm’s principal investments in China. At China Sonangol, a Sino-African private investment fund, he was a Vice President of Direct Investments.

He holds a B.Eng. Mechanical Engineering Degree from University of Glasgow.

Anthony Chua Hong Khai
Associate
hkchua@auriacap.com.my

Anthony Chua is part of the advisory team working on business development and financial analysis.

He was an Audit Associate for KPMG Malaysia involved in external audits of companies in the healthcare industry. He served as an Analyst at Fieldstone 2014-2018, where he gained experience in project development, financial modeling and cash flow analysis.

Anthony holds a BSc (Hons) in Applied Accounting from Oxford Brookes University. He is an affiliate of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) and has completed Level III of the CFA Institute examinations.