MANAGEMENT

Günter Bauer, Chairman and CEO

Günter Bauer received his MBA from University St. Gallen (Switzerland) and started his professional career at UBS Switzerland in Investment Banking. In 1980 Mr. Bauer changed fronts and joined Alusuisse, a multinational aluminium/chemical group where he held senior positions in trading and treasury. In 1987 he was assigned to restructure the financial department for the BBC Brown Boveri Group, one of the two merging partners of ABB, a global leader in power and automation technologies. After the merger Mr. Bauer was appointed VP and Head of Corporate Finance of the ABB Group in Zurich and was apart from his duties responsible for implementing the merger process around the world. Shifting companies in 1991 he was appointed SVP, Group CFO, Board Member and Member of the Pension Fund Investment Committee of the Maus Frères Group in Geneva, a holding company owning prime real estate and department stores in Europe and the United States with nearly 12 billion in annual turnover at the time.

In 1995 Mr. Bauer entered the position of SVP and Regional Director for the German-speaking market of Unigestion Group – a Geneva-based bank with a strong affinity towards trading and capital markets. Thereafter he joined Commcept Trust AG as partner and member of the Executive Committee – an equities portfolio management firm with nearly $1.5 billion under management which later sold a controlling stake to Swiss Life AG (Switzerland’s leading life insurer). In 2002 he joined Hippocampus Corporate Development AG – a boutique consulting firm executing capital markets transactions and structuring deals in the commodities sector.

Mr. Bauer is married with 5 children and has served on the board of two charity organizations and two public companies.

Rolf Berweger, SVP Commodity Investments & Trade Finance

After working in different departments of UBS (Switzerland), Rolf Berweger became an Account Manager Commodity Trade Finance for UBS in New York and was promoted throughout various trade finance positions to the Head of Institutional Banking & Global Trade Finance Asia/Pacific and Managing Director at UBS in Hong Kong. Subsequently he was hired by Standard Chartered Bank as the Head of Corporate & Institutional Banking China in 1999 when SCB was the largest foreign bank in China in terms of network, noted that SCB purchased the international commercial banking business from UBS in 1999.

From 2002 until 2005 Mr. Berweger joined ABN Amro Bank as the Regional Head of Europe, Middle East and Africa in the Global Trade Advisory Division and from 2005 to 2007 he received an assignment from SCB to launch the China Bohai Bank as a Deputy President and Board Director. After his assignment was completed he re-joined Standard Chartered Bank as Managing Director/Head of Commodity Corporates in charge of all commodity-related relationships, both foreign-multinationals as well as Chinese enterprises.

Next to his activities in the SITCA Group he is an advisor to Capital Eight, an investment banking boutique in Shanghai, and enjoys spending time with his wife and two children. Mr. Berweger also supports non-profit institutions in the area of social work, welfare and sports.

Michael Smith, SVP Commodity & Trade Risk

Mr. Smith received his B.A. in economics and finance from University of Berkeley and started his first position as an oil analyst for Shell as his first step into the sector of soft commodities until he was recruited by Vitol to join the structured finance department where he was later appointed Director Credit & Structured Financing overseeing the structuring of trade flows throughout various areas within the value chain of the group’s trading activities.

His next steps lead him to Switzerland to join the Swiss Bank Corporation as Head of Risk Commodity Markets and thereafter back to the US where he was appointed Managing Director & Head of Commodities Lending at Bank of America. Beginning of 2000 Mr. Smith was recruited by Commerzbank as Director of Risk Management Commodities Trading until he accepted a mandate at a private Asian Family Office in Hongkong which invests 50% of its portfolio in cross-border trade finance deals involving goods shipped from Africa to China as well as investments in mining and agriculture.

Mr. Smith dedicates most of his free time coaching entrepreneurs engaged in businesses involving sustainable trade and natural resources.

James Ladner, Advisory Board Member

Mr. Ladner is an MBA graduate from the University of St. Gallen and was Executive Vice President of Coutts Bank (Switzerland) between 1964 and 1992, known today as Coutts & Co, where he held responsibilities in various sectors including securities trading and capital markets. Between 1992 and 2002 he was a Managing Director of RP&C International, London/New York/Zurich, an investment banking boutique of which he was also a co-founder. During the same time he served as the Non-Executive Chairman of Bank Austria (Switzerland) Ltd.

As a senior level director and advisor, Mr. Ladner served on the board of several corporations, investment funds and banks in Switzerland, e.g. The Royal Bank of Scotland AG, Interallianz Bank AG, Asahi Bank AG, F. Van Lanschot Bankiers (Switzerland) Ltd., Atlantic Finanz AG, Immofonds, Verit Immobilien and Ahold Finance Group. He is also a former member of the Capital Markets Commission of the Swiss National Bank and the Swiss Admissions Commission - Listing on Swiss Stock Exchanges. Outside of Switzerland the list continues with Energy Capital Investment Co plc, Equator Exploration Ltd., StrataGold Corporation, Nevoro Inc., Colombia Gold plc (now part of Gran Colombia Gold) and Porto Energy Corp, to name a few.

Presently, he is a director of Oracle Energy Corp. (OCL.V), Colt Resources Inc. (GTP.V), Red Rock Resources plc (RRR.L), Ghana Gold Inc., Guerrero Exploration Inc. (GEX.V), Global Diamonds Mining Corp and others.

Mr. Ladner is a Swiss citizen, married with four grown children and supporting several charitable organizations of which some are dedicated to job creation in emerging countries.