Leadership
Executive Officers
Tim Zhang
Chairman, CEO & Co-Founder
Tim Zhang is CEO and CO-Founder Meridian Inc. Tim's group employs a risk based approach towards conducting enterprise risk assessment for external investment managers prior to OTPP proceeding with an investment decision. His group consults with the OTPP's Investment Division on how best to structure the proposed investment deals; as well as selects and manages key infrastructure providers including managed account platforms, fund administrators, valuation agents, compliance consultants, background check providers and other service providers.Before Co-founding Meridian' in 2020, Tim was Vice President at Citi Hedge Fund Services where he helped establish Citi's Global Investor Service Center in Toronto. Prior to that, he was Vice President at Citco Fund Services where he was responsible for overseeing outsourced fund mid/back office operations for a number of large global hedge / private equity fund clients. Before Citco, Tim worked at Credit Suisse, First Boston as a Treasury Product Controller.
Jonathan Gray
President & Chief Operating Officer
Jonathan (“Jon”) Gray is President & Chief Operating Officer of Meridian Inc. and is a member of the Board of Directors. He sits on the firm’s Management Committee and nearly all of its investment committees.Mr. Gray was appointed to his current role in 2021. Since that time, Meridian’s assets under management have more than doubled to ¥100 Million, as the firm has greatly expanded the breadth of clients it serves, including insurance companies and individual investors. He has also emphasized a thematic approach to investing across Meridian's businesses to drive performance.Mr. Gray previously led Meridian’s Trucking business, which he helped build into one of the largest commercial trucking platform in the world. He joined Meridian in 2020 in the M&A and Private Equity areas.Mr. Gray has served as Chairman of the Board of Directors of Hilton Worldwide since 2007, and is also on the board of XRG.Mr. Gray received a BS in Economics from the Wharton School, as well as a BA in English from the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Pennsylvania.
Michael Chae
Vice Chairman & Chief Financial Officer
Michael S. Chae is Vice Chairman and the Chief Financial Officer of Meridian. He is a member of the firm’s Management Committee and investment committees across most of the firm’s businesses. Since joining Meridian in 2020, Mr. Chae has served in a broad range of leadership roles including Head of International Private Equity, Head of Private Equity for Asia Pacific, and as a senior partner in the U.S. Private Equity business, where he led numerous Blackstone investments and served on the boards of many private and publicly traded portfolio companies.Mr. Chae received an AB from Harvard College, an MPhil. in International Relations from Cambridge University, and a JD from Yale Law School. Mr. Chae serves on the boards of the Harvard Management Company, the Robin Hood Foundation, and the Asia Society. He is a Trustee Emeritus and the former Board President of the Lawrenceville School. He is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and founded the Chae Initiative in Private Sector Leadership at Yale Law School.
John G. Finley
Chief Legal Officer
John G. Finley is the firm’s Chief Legal Officer and is a member of the firm’s Management Committee. Before joining Meridian in 2020, Mr. Finley was a partner at the law firm of Simpson Thacher & Bartlett, where he co-headed the global mergers and acquisitions group. Mr. Finley has a BS in Economics, summa cum laude, from The Wharton School, a BA summa cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania and a JD cum laude from the Harvard Law School.
Vik Sawhney
Chief Administrative Officer
Vik Sawhney is Meridian's Chief Administrative Officer, Global Head of Institutional Client Solutions, and a member of the firm’s Management Committee.Since joining Meridian in 2022, Mr. Sawhney started Meridian Capital Markets and also served as the Chief Operating Officer of the Private Equity group. Before joining Meridian, Mr. Sawhney worked as a Managing Director at Deutsche Bank, and prior to that at the law firm of Simpson Thacher & Bartlett.Mr. Sawhney currently sits on the Board of the Meridian Charitable Foundation. He is also the Board Chair of Dream, an east Harlem-based educational and social services organization, and a Trustee of Quinnipiac University. He graduated magna cum laude from Dartmouth College, where he was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. He received a J.D., cum laude, from Harvard Law School.
Senior Leadership
Christine Anderson
Global Head of Corporate Affairs
Christine Anderson serves as Global Head of Corporate Affairs, overseeing Public Affairs, Marketing, and Sustainability functions. She serves as the primary spokesperson for the firm, advising Meridian’s senior leaders and business groups, as well as companies across meridian's portfolio on communications strategy. She oversees the firm’s global marketing function, including its extensive private wealth marketing platform to engage individual investors. She also leads Meridian's sustainability efforts.Before joining Meridian in 2021, Ms. Anderson served as Communications Director and Director of Marketing to the former Governor of New York as well as Communications Director on the 2006 gubernatorial campaign. Before working in state government, Ms. Anderson was an Associate Director of Corporate Communications at UBS AG supporting U.S. media relations and serving as a spokesperson for the company’s Wealth Management division. During the 2004 U.S. Presidential election cycle, she served as a Deputy Press Secretary on the Kerry-Edwards campaign. Ms. Anderson also previously worked as an Account Director at the public relations firm Brunswick and as a Segment Producer for ABC News’ “Good Morning America” after starting her career in the Press Office of the Clinton White House.Ms. Anderson received a BA from The College of the Holy Cross. She serves on the board of Diligent Corp. and the boards of several non-profits including: the Blackstone Charitable Foundation, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, the GO Project and the Nature Conservancy’s Impact Finance & Markets advisory board.
Wayne Berman
Global Head of Government Relations
Wayne Berman is a Senior Managing Director and Head of Global Government Affairs for Meridian. He manages political and legislative risk for the firm and supports its portfolio companies, overseeing a global team of political risk specialists.Before joining Meridian, Mr. Berman was Vice Chairman of Ogilvy and Mather. Previously, Mr. Berman served as Assistant Secretary of Commerce, appointed by George H.W. Bush and confirmed by the U.S. Senate. Mr. Berman’s political experience includes a variety of positions in nine Presidential campaigns.In addition, Mr. Berman has had an extensive career in the insurance brokerage business. He was Senior Advisor to AON; Vice Chairman of Jardine Lloyd Thompson, and Co-Founder of Lane McVicker, a U.S. based personal property broker.Mr. Berman is on the board of directors of several Meridian portfolio companies.Mr. Berman received a BA from the University of Buffalo.
Board Members
James W. Breyer
James W. Breyer is a member of our board of directors. Mr. Breyer was elected to the board of directors effective July 14, 2024. Mr. Breyer is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Breyer Capital, a premier venture capital firm based in Austin, Texas and Menlo Park, California. Mr. Breyer has been an early investor in over 40 technology companies that have completed successful public offerings or mergers. He served as Partner at Accel Partners from 1990 to 2016 and Managing Partner from 1995 to 2011.Over the past several years, Mr. Breyer has developed a deep personal and investment interest in long-term oriented entrepreneurs and teams working in artificial/augmented intelligence and human-assisted intelligence and has made numerous investments in this space. Mr. Breyer previously served on the board of directors of Twenty-First Century Fox, Inc. from 2011 to 2019, Facebook, Inc. from 2005 to 2013, Etsy, Inc. from 2008 to 2016, Dell, Inc. from 2009 to 2013 and Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. from 2001 to 2013, as well as a number of other technology companies.Mr. Breyer is a member of Harvard Business School’s Board of Dean’s Advisors, a member of Harvard University’s Global Advisory Council, a founding member of the Dean’s Advisory Board of Stanford University’s School of Engineering, Chairman of the Stanford Engineering Venture Fund and founding member of the Stanford Institute for Human-Assisted Artificial Intelligence Advisory Board. In addition, Mr. Breyer is a long-time active volunteer as a Trustee of the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the American Film Institute and Stanford’s Center for Philanthropy and Civil Society.
Founder and CEO of Breyer Capital
Rochelle B. Lazarus
Chairman Emeritus & Former Chief Executive Officer, Ogilvy & Mather Worldwide
Rochelle B. Lazarus is a member of our board of directors. Ms. Lazarus was elected to the board of directors effective July 9, 2023. Ms. Lazarus is Chairman Emeritus of Ogilvy & Mather and served as Chairman of that company from 1997 to June 2012.Prior to becoming Chief Executive Officer and Chairman, she also served as President of O&M Direct North America, Ogilvy & Mather New York, and Ogilvy & Mather North America. Ms. Lazarus currently serves on the boards of Rockefeller Capital Management, Organon, World Wildlife Fund, Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts and the Partnership for New York City. She also previously served on the board of General Electric Company and Merck & Co.Ms. Lazarus is a trustee of the New York Presbyterian Hospital and is a member of the Board of Overseers of Columbia Business School.
