Who we are
Nathan Cohen
Principal Adviser and Director
Nathan is a wealth management specialist who puts his clients’ objectives and goals at the centre of the decision making process.
Nathan has worked in the financial services industry for more than 10 years. Nathan holds a Business Management degree in Economics and Accounting along with the New Zealand certificate in Financial services level 5 specialising in investment. He is a member of Financial Advice New Zealand and has been awarded the Financial Advice NZ Trusted adviser mark.
Alongside his career, Nathan achieved resounding success as a high performance athlete. A talented rower, he won back-to-back world championships in 2010 and 2011, and has represented New Zealand twice in the Olympics, bringing home gold in 2012. This lead to him being appointed a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to rowing.
Nathan’s strong sense of determination and firm grounding in family values remain core to his work today. He is committed, respectful, driven and passionate about helping clients achieve desired outcomes.
How we work
The Ohana approach – what you can expect from working with us.
Genuine care
We provide attentive one-to-one relationships and handle all family affairs with care and discretion.
A long-term mindset
We are here for life, quite literally. We use sound judgement to help you get great long-term outcomes for you, your family and generations follow.
Open doors
We provide access to experienced local and global investment managers, wholesale pricing, and connect you with a curated network of professional partners to keep your affairs ship-shape.
Buttoned-up professionalism
We invest carefully and wisely, following an evidence-based investment strategy. We also provide independent reporting and all assets are held by an independent custodian and administration.
A focus on good
From the way we run our business to the ethical investments we offer, we strive to promote social and environmental wellbeing as much as we can within our sphere.
Backing you can trust
Ohana has an external investment committee comprised of four investment specialists from Consilium.
Damon O’Brien
Chief Investment Officer
Damon’s career path has included exposure to a boutique wealth management firm, a national advisory dealer group and a ‘fund of hedge funds’ company. Working in these differing businesses has provided him with a unique perspective across the wider investment and advisory industry in New Zealand.
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Damon is the chair of the Consilium investment committee.
He has a B Comm. majoring in Economics and Operations Research from University of Canterbury and, after joining the wealth management industry, went on to complete a Post Graduate Diploma in Business Studies (Personal Financial Planning) through Massey University.
As a CFA® charterholder, Damon is bound by the CFA Institute’s Code of Ethics and Standards of Professional Conduct.
Mitchell Bristow
Head of Research
Mitchell returned to New Zealand after a number of years working in Hong Kong as a Quantitative Analyst and Risk Manager for funds across a broad range of investment strategies. Mitchell’s professional career has focused on financial modelling and data analysis, with significant experience in tracking, monitoring and reporting on the performance of recommended investments.
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In his role at Consilium, Mitchell is an integral part of the investment committee, with a range of primary and supporting responsibilities in the areas of investment analysis, performance monitoring, supplementary fund due diligence, asset allocation and research.
Mitchell holds a Bachelor of Science (majoring in Statistics) and a Bachelor of Commerce (majoring in Management Science) from the University of Canterbury.
In 2019 Mitchell completed the CFA programme and as a CFA® charterholder, is bound by the CFA Institute’s Code of Ethics and Standards of Professional Conduct.
Ben Brinkerhoff
Head of Partner Firm Services
Ben has a background in wealth management. Prior to moving to New Zealand, he was Chief Operating Officer at Index Fund Advisors, an advisory firm with $2.2 billion of funds under advice.
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His career has also seen him undertake the role of senior economic consultant, and economic manager for the Qatar Economic Free Zones.Ben’s main role is to facilitate growth and improve efficiency in Consilium partner firms, and help them achieve their strategic initiatives. He is also a member of the Consilium investment committee. Ben is an Authorised Financial Adviser (AFA) and an Accredited Investment Fiduciary (AIF) and has a BA in History and Economics from University of California.
Prof Ben Marshall
Independent Academic Consultant
Professor Ben Marshall holds the MSA Charitable Trust Chair in Finance at Massey University. He has undertaken research in areas such as the impact of climate on financial markets, factors that influence stock returns, quantitative approaches to portfolio management, transaction cost and illiquidity measurement, and exchange traded funds.
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Ben’s research has been published in leading international journals and he is a regular speaker at international finance conferences. He is currently ranked in the top 1% of authors based on downloads of his working papers.
Ben serves on the editorial board of a number of journals and has consulted to public and private companies in a range of different areas.
He is an Independent Academic Consultant, with a particular focus on governance, analytical support and policy review.