Antoine Firmenich

Antoine Firmenich is the Managing Director of Aquilus - the Singapore-based research office of Aquilus Management, a diversified value Investment Manager. The firm was originally created to coordinate personal and family investments and presently acts as Manager to the Aquilus Inflection Fund. At the request of a number of leading multigenerational business families and global investors wishing to gain deeper insights and exposure to Europe, the partnership was opened to a select group of external capital partners.

Dr. Firmenich also serves as the Chairman of Sentarom SA, the holding for the Firmenich group of companies. Firmenich International, founded in 1895, is the world’s largest privately-owned flavors and fragrance company. It was the recipient in 2011 of the prestigious IMD-LO Global Family Business Award, the international jury having been impressed with Firmenich’s relentless focus on innovation, sustainable growth, family values and corporate governance. Past winners include family companies such as Hermès, SC Johnson, Merck, Lego, Yazaki and Henkel.

A native of Geneva, Switzerland, Dr. Firmenich is a 1996 graduate of the Stanford Graduate School of Business; a 1994 graduate from Stanford Medical School, where he received his Ph.D. in Biochemistry under the tutelage of Dr. Paul Berg, Nobel Laureate; a 1988 alumnus of MIT, where he was Scholastic All-American, John Asinari Award winner and elected to Phi Beta Kappa. Dr. Firmenich was also the recipient of a fellowship from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute.

Upon the completion of his studies in 1996, Dr. Firmenich joined the family business where he gained extensive experience in managing global industrial businesses. From 1996 to 2006, he held successive global executive management positions within the Firmenich group, where he orchestrated a number of successful turnarounds and management changes.

In 2006, Dr. Firmenich left the day-to-day running of the family company to focus on his board responsibilities and to pursue his passion for investing with a long-term value philosophy. He co-founded with Richard Vogel Alatus SA, a European-based value investment advisor working closely with Aquilus. The firm’s flagship fund, the Aquilus Inflection Fund, seeks to identify unique and compelling value investment opportunities with a free option to significant capital appreciation. The portfolio exists since 2003 and has proven its ability to generate superior long-term double-digit net returns over the past 9 years.

Dr. Firmenich serves (and has served) on a number of corporate boards and is a passionate supporter of several nonprofit organizations. He has been appointed by the President of Stanford University to serve on the Advisory Council of its Graduate School of Business.

Dr. Firmenich currently works and resides in Singapore with his wife and their two daughters.