Meet The Team
Finance Isle of Man
Finance Isle of Man is made up of the Agency's board members and internal team, who are responsible for developing and implementing a strategy which will support long-term, sustainable economic growth as well as promoting and developing the Island’s significant financial and professional services industry, ensuring the Isle of Man's continued recognition as an International Finance Centre of Excellence.
Internal Team
Michael Crowe
CEO
Michael joined the Department after working in the Accountancy profession for 27 years. He was a Director at Grant Thornton Limited, and prior to that at PKF. Michael is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales, the former President of the Isle of Man Chamber of Commerce and former Chair of the Isle of Man Society of Chartered Accountants. During his professional career he worked on the Island with a wide variety of clients and organisations of all sizes, covering all sectors of the local economy.
“My focus is on the future of the Island’s financial services sector, being part of the leadership team within the Department for Enterprise and Finance Agency and working to ensure that our economic success continues.”
Simon Pickering
Head of Insurance & Pensions
In his role as Head of Insurance and Pensions, within the Finance Agency, Simon will call upon his 38 years of experience in the Island’s Financial services industry. A key part of that role is to support the existing Isle of Man businesses in the Life, Captive, Pensions, Funds and Wealth and Financial Advisory sectors.
Acting as a conduit between these traditional sectors and wider Government he will look for opportunities for growth through marketing, new initiatives, and media opportunities both locally and internationally. He will also look to assist any new licence holders looking to make the Island their home.
Paul Blake
Head of Banking & Fiduciaries
As Head of Banking and Fiduciaries for the Finance Isle of Man Agency, Paul has over 25 years of experience across a range of Financial Services sectors including banking, legal and fiduciaries. Paul first came to the island in 2001 with Lloyds Banking Group as a senior manager in their corporate banking team, responsible for a range of clients from SME’s to Multinationals both locally and internationally.
In the legal sector, Paul was Chief Operating Officer at two leading Isle of Man Law firms and was responsible for strategic development and driving operational excellence. Most recently, Paul was a Director at a boutique Trust and Corporate Service provider specialising in Yachting and UHNW clients. Paul has a degree in Politics from Staffordshire University and is a Fellow of the Chartered Management Institute.
Paul will be working closely alongside the financial and professional services sectors in the Isle of Man to support growth and success as well as ensuring, in conjunction with business partners, that we promote the Island's highly professional financial services.
Dina Hill
Marketing Manager
Dina joined the Department for Enterprise in November 2018 as a marketing manager with responsibility for Finance Isle of Man Agency, Isle of Man Ship Registry and Isle of Man Aircraft Registry.
Dina is a Member of Chartered institute of marketing after having completed her CIM Diploma in Marketing in 2009. With over 10 years’ experience in Marketing and Business Development working within CSP environment, Dina will oversee the Agency’s marketing strategy both in the Island and internationally.
Cecilia Albertyn
Business Development Consultant
Mike Batey
Executive Consultant
Brad Meechan
Marketing Executive
Brad joined the team in June 2023 as a Marketing Executive. Prior to joining the team, Brad ran a digital marketing company specialising in web design, advertising and videography.
Brad brings his wealth of experience from the private sector and is eager to support the Finance Isle of Man marketing strategy, promoting the Isle of Man as the Natural Choice for Excellence in Finance.
Laura Myrie
Lead Project Coordinator
Laura joined the joined the Department in February 2021, supporting the Finance Isle of Man Agency.
Prior to this Laura worked within the Department for Enterprise as a Business Development Officer for New Product Development within the Visit Isle of Man agency.
Before joining the Department for Enterprise, Laura worked within the Department of Health & Social Care at Nobles Hospital for over 10 years. Her roles varied from Healthcare/ Advisory services to Administration Support.
Laura is looking forward to embracing this challenging new role and helping to develop and promote the Island’s financial & professional services industry.
Rob O'Connor
Business Development Manager
Rob O'Connor is a seasoned financial services professional with over 25 years of experience in the regulated advisory space and over 30 within financial services. Having recently joined the Finance Isle of Man team, Rob brings a wealth of expertise gained from his time working in London, the Channel Islands, and over two decades on the Isle of Man.
Throughout his career, Rob has held several senior positions, including serving as a Key Person with four local Independent Financial Advisors (IFAs), one of which he led as Managing Director. He also successfully ran his own business, specializing in providing holistic financial planning solutions for both corporate and private clients. Rob holds a Level 4 Diploma in Financial Advice and a Certificate in Discretionary Investment Management from the Chartered Insurance Institute (CII), underscoring his commitment to professional excellence and client-focused service. Rob is an active member of both the Chartered Insurers Institute (CII) and Personal Finance Society (PFS), as well as the Institute of Directors (IOD).
As Business Development Manager for the Finance Isle of Man team, Rob is passionate about shaping the Isle of Man into a premier global business destination, driving sustainable growth and a thriving future.
Katrina Skinner
Secretariat
Katrina joined the Department as the Senior Secretary to the Financial Services Team in 2012 after several years working in the private sector.
Despite the steep learning curve initially, Katrina finds working for the Department an enjoyable and interesting experience, taking a keen interest and involvement in the different areas of the Department and Government.
Alongside the rest of her colleagues, Katrina has played an important part in the setting up of the Department for Enterprise and the four Executive Agencies.
Katrina feels very privileged to be part of this new era of Government and private sector partnership and is looking forward to assisting the Finance Isle of Man Agency in developing and promoting the Island’s financial and professional services industry.
Board Members
Sue Preskey
Chair
Sue is Managing Director of The Law Trust, an established provider of independent corporate fiduciary services to international corporate groups, private clients and professional advisors.
With a career that spans over 35 years, in UK and international financial services as a practitioner and a regulator, Sue’s diverse Board and leadership experience has been gained with a number of providers both large and small, this has ranged from UK Clearing Banks, Offshore Private Banking, Corporate and Trust, Investment and Fund Management through to more entrepreneurial environments, including business start-ups.
Sue is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Bankers and the Chartered Institute of Securities and Investment, and she served as Isle of Man President on both Isle of Man committees.
Michael Crowe
Chief Executive
Michael joined the Department after working in the Accountancy profession for 27 years. He was a Director at Grant Thornton Limited, and prior to that at PKF. Michael is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales, the former President of the Isle of Man Chamber of Commerce and former Chair of the Isle of Man Society of Chartered Accountants. During his professional career he worked on the Island with a wide variety of clients and organisations of all sizes, covering all sectors of the local economy.
“My focus is on the future of the Island’s financial services sector, being part of the leadership team within the Department for Enterprise and Finance Agency and working to ensure that our economic success continues.”
Peter Greenhill MLC
MLC & Department Member
Mr Greenhill is a member of the Department for Enterprise and is responsible for Finance Isle of Man and the Department's Properties.
Mr Greenhill has over 40 years of international business experience as a director, managing director and CEO in international banking, eBusiness, manufacturing, technology, national lotteries and eGaming. Most recently he has acted as a non-executive director, consultant and mentor to growing and new companies.
Robert Cattle
Robert is a board member of Equiom (Isle of Man) Limited and has in excess of 20 years in the fiduciary sector.
In addition to his board duties, Robert oversees Equiom’s business development function and heads the Real Estate area of the business, whilst holding a number of key corporate and private client relationships.
Robert is passionate about ensuring that the Isle of Man maintains its position as a leading international financial centre and is a director of the local fiduciary services industry body, the Association of Corporate Service Providers. In this role, Robert is active in shaping government policy in line with the views of the ACSP’s members and is also involved in the training and CPD functions.
Robert is a Chartered Governance Professional with the Chartered Governance Institute UK and Ireland.
Mark Dougherty
Mark is the Law Society representative on the Finance Agency and is also Managing Director of DQ Advocates a leading law practice on the Isle of Man.
Mark has extensive experience both in the Isle of Man and Bermuda in corporate and commercial law and is ranked as a leading individual in his field of law on the Island by both Chambers (Corporate and Finance) and Legal 500 (Corporate and Commercial).
Mark regularly advises multi-national companies, listed entities, banks and private equity houses as well as high net worth individuals in a wide range of Isle of Man corporate and commercial matters. He also sits on the IOM Government Regulatory and Legislative Innovation Working Group and sat on the IOM Law Society council for many years as head of the education committee.
Dougie Elliot
Dougie is a skilled professional with a unique knowledge of all sectors of offshore finance but with specialist expertise in banking, fund management and pensions. Throughout the years he has developed a particular understanding of the intricacies of risk and the management of it.
He spent over 30 years in banking before joining the board of a major investment management company. He also owned and ran a local pension administration firm. His current business, Alexander Elliott, which he operates alongside his daughter, carries out internal audits, mainly for local government and he is on the Board of Sovereign Pensions.
In addition, he is the current Chairman of the Association of Pension Scheme Providers and was a former President of the Chartered Institute of Bankers. He serves and has served on a variety of IOM Government finance sector related Committees and Boards over the years.
John Hunter
John has worked in financial services for over 40 years spanning a wide spectrum of sectors including, Fiduciary, Private Client, Life and Captive Insurance, Banks and Funds. During that period, he has worked in London, Cambridge, Bristol and Guernsey but settled in the Isle of Man 15 years ago. Having previously spent 4.5 years working for the IOM Department for Enterprise promoting the Isle of Man as the place for financial services businesses he is currently engaged with a number of financial services businesses at Board level and is Managing Director of a Financial Technology business. John is also a trustee of the Manx Wildlife Trust.
Gill Marples
Gill started her career in financial services working for a large UK insurance group. She has worked in the Isle of Man insurance sector for over 20 years managing compliance and operations departments. Gill is now a Director and Head of IntegraLife International Limited.
Gill is also the immediate past chair of the Manx Insurance Association and is a council member of the Isle of Man branch of the Chartered Insurance Institute.
Claire Milne
Claire is a partner in the Corporate department at Appleby Isle of Man, and is a Non-Executive Director at Zurich International Life Limited.
Claire specialises in advising online gaming and gambling operators, e-business companies and telecoms companies and also advises on data protection, outsourcing and regulatory issues. She has been accredited as a specialist in IP law by The Law Society of Scotland since 2002 and was the co-author of the first book on intellectual property law for Scottish lawyers, published in 2002.
Claire was Chair of the Isle of Man Gambling Supervision Commission from 2007 – 2012 and was a Non-Executive Director of Playtech Plc for over 5 years. Claire is a member of the Institute of Directors, a General Member of the International Masters of Gaming Law and a former member of the Isle of Man Data Protection Tribunal and Copyright Tribunal. She is a Notary Public both in Scotland and the Isle of Man and a Writer to Her Majesty’s Signet. Claire is also very proud to be a founding member of Love Tech Isle of Man, a charity that encourages girls and young women to consider careers in STEM.
Stuart Nelson
Stuart Nelson is a Director of Barclays in the Isle of Man. He heads up their Fiduciary, Family Office and Funds Team, which focuses on delivering Financial Services needs to a wide range of both domestic and international clients. Stuart has over 25 years experience in Offshore Banking across multiple segments.
Stuart is passionate about the future success of the Island and is married with 3 children.
Chris Till
Chris joined Standard Bank Isle of Man Limited in 1996 as Credit Manager and in 2014 became the CEO of Standard Bank Isle of Man Limited and Island Head for Standard Bank having been an executive director of the bank since 2006. Chris was also responsible for the Isle of Man branch of the Standard Bank of South Africa and the international companies of the Group based on the Island as well as being on the board of the bank's Captive Insurance company. He left Standard Bank in December 2022 after a career of over 38 years in Banking. He is currently a Corporate Governance Consultant for a Financial Services business on the island.
Dina Hill*
Marketing Manager
Dina joined the Department for Enterprise in November 2018 as a marketing manager with responsibility for Finance Isle of Man Agency, Isle of Man Ship Registry and Isle of Man Aircraft Registry.
Dina is a Member of Chartered institute of marketing after having completed her CIM Diploma in Marketing in 2009. With over 10 years’ experience in Marketing and Business Development working within CSP environment, Dina will oversee the Agency’s marketing strategy both in the Island and internationally.
Mark Lewin*
Chief Officer, Department for Enterprise
Mark first joined the Department in 2012 following an extensive career spanning over 25 years on and off the Island that included senior executive positions across a range of sectors including financial services, technology, hospitality and leisure.
Mark has previously been the Managing Director for one of the Isle of Man’s largest banks, the head of operational strategy for a global wealth business, director of a significant pan-Island technology and change function and an independent consultant in both financial services and in technology based transformation and in his career has worked extensively in the Isle of Man, London and Channel Islands.
Mark has a breadth of experience in the Island’s key sectors, strong connections with industry and first-hand experience in implementing large scale strategies and prior to his current role Mark was the Executive Director for Government Technology Services within the Cabinet Office, the shared service for technology services and digital transformation within Isle of Man Government.
As interim Chief Executive of the Department for Enterprise, Mark instated a full strategic review of the existing structure, implementing a fundamentally different format and introducing Executive Agencies enabling them to leverage the private sector expertise and knowledge and create a partnership approach to product development, policy input, and promotion.
Mark is a Fellow of the Institute of Directors, a Chartered Member of the British Computer Society, and a Fellow of the Chartered Management Institute.
*Denotes Non-Voting Board Member