BCWM was born out of, and continues, a 75 year old tradition of advising clients and their families. The service was originally provided by the accountancy firm Bastow Charleton, (now known as Crowe). In the mid 1990’s the financial planning and investment advice function of that firm was established and the appropriate specialist skills were developed and recruited to provide a total wealth management service for clients.
In 2006, the Wealth Management function was incorporated into a new dedicated investment firm, now known as BCWM plc.
For over a decade, the firm’s management team has continued to develop its skills and experience such that we believe we now have an unparalleled depth of expertise and experience, dedicated to serve the client.
Our firm is led by a Board of five members with a diverse range of skills, expertise and areas of interest with a culture of risk management, compliance and corporate governance in the provision of advisory services.
Gerard McHugh
Brian Conroy
Andrew Whitty
Noreen O’Shea
BCWM PLC
13 Upper Mount Street
Dublin, D02 F407, Ireland
BCWM SARL
10 Rue des Capucins, L-1313
Grand Duchy of Luxembourg
© BCWM. All Rights Reserved. BCWM plc is regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland
Website by www.create.ie
Managing Director
Brian Conroy is the Managing Director of BCWM since 2005. A Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland and an Associate of the Institute of Taxation in Ireland, he has a particular expertise in owner-managed business. He has 37 years’ experience since qualifying as a chartered accountant and has worked in Canada and London with well-known firms of chartered accountants. He has lectured extensively on project appraisal and public sector analysis for Trinity College Dublin and other professional bodies.
Brian has developed the wealth management business for 12 years and leads the wealth management team. He holds a Diploma in Financial Advice (QFA). He has extensive experience in banking and financing transactions, investment appraisals, and developing systems of analysis for the assessment of disposals of state-owned entities. He is an acknowledged expert on investment appraisal, developing a system of analysis for State assessment to cover disposal of State owned entities, and major State investment initiatives. For the past 10 years, he has advised publicly held and owner managed companies on property development projects, business structuring, purchase and sale of businesses, and wealth management.
Executive Director
Noreen has been with BCWM since it became a MiFID investment firm in 2009. Prior to her current role as acting Chief Operating Officer, she served as Head of Advisory and was responsible for investment allocation and client asset management. Noreen has experience in analysing investment risk and creating client portfolios, in particular on key aggregate financial planning elements, on the basis of the risk assessment. She oversees development of investment strategies dependent upon varying levels of risk. In addition, she oversees monitoring performance measurement of the Firm’s assets under management. Over the course of her career Noreen gained extensive knowledge of both the firm’s processes and the regulatory environment. Noreen chairs the Firm’s Investment Committee.
Noreen is a Qualified Financial Advisor (QFA) and graduated from University College Cork with an honours degree in Economics.
Head of Property
Killian Conroy has been the head of property with BCWM since 2011. A chartered member of Engineers Ireland, he has a particular expertise in property investment, construction and management. Since graduating from Trinity College Dublin as an engineer in 2002, Killian has worked in the UK and Ireland with well-known construction and consulting firms. He has an MBA from the Smurfit School of Business in UCD and has extensive experience in managing large property investments and transactions incorporating off-shore investment structures.
Killian manages the property side of the business, leads the property management team and is a Qualified Financial Advisor. He has extensive experience in property, banking and financing transactions. He is an acknowledged expert on property investments and on investing tax efficiently within pension structures.
Head of Client Asset Oversight
Sonia is a qualified Chartered Certified Accountant and graduated from Institute of Technology Tallaght with a degree in Business Studies Accounting. She has over 10 years experience in the financial services industry and has a broad range of experience of the regulatory environment for financial services, investment and pensions. She has gained a strong understanding of the funds Industry and experience in the different types of investments. She has worked in large financial institutions, one of which had her based in Bermuda for a number of years.
Sonia joined the firm in 2015 and is responsible for all client asset oversight for all investment portfolios.
Portfolio Manager
Gary McGrath is a Chartered Accountant (ACA), Qualified Financial Advisor (QFA), Retirement Planning Adviser (RPA) and Pensions Trustee Practitioner (PTP). Gary graduated from University College Dublin with an honours degree in Commerce in 2010. He then went on to complete an MSc in Accounting in the Dublin Institute of Technology in 2011.
Gary joined the firm in 2015 following the completion of his Chartered Accountant training contract in Crowe Ireland. He works closely with clients based on their risk profile to devise tailored financial planning solutions, retirement planning and pension planning solutions.
Investment Specialist and Portfolio Manager
Peter graduated University College Dublin with an honours degree in International Commerce in 2012. He is a qualified Chartered Accountant (ACA) and joined the firm in 2016, having completed his training contract in Crowe Horwath. Peter also holds a Higher Diploma in Financial Advice as a Qualified Financial Advisor (QFA).
Having specialised in Corporate Finance and Performance Management (APM) during his training, Peter has extensive experience in financial modelling and market technical analysis. He performs company valuations and market analysis to clients on an ad-hoc basis. He also holds BIWS certificates in financial modelling.
Peter is responsible for monitoring the performance of both active and passive funds recommended by BCWM. He attends the Firm’s investment Committee and advises on both portfolio allocation and risk mitigation to individual and corporate clients. He is also a portfolio manager for a number of clients for whom he provides holistic wealth and estate planning along with investment recommendations.
Client Services Administrator
Margueryte joined the firm in 2016 as Client Services Administrator of the Client Services team. She has been working in the Pensions sector since 2011 after graduating with an honours degree in Business Studies in DCU. She previously worked in Standard Life before joining BCWM. Margueryte deals with the day to day servicing of our clients.
Property Manager
Anne joined the firm in March 2018 as part of the Property Management Team. Anne has extensive knowledge of the property industry having worked in the Property Sales and Rental sector for almost 20 years. Anne is responsible for the day to day management of our clients’ property portfolios.
Head of Risk and Compliance
Rosemary has been with BCWM since early 2019 as Head of Compliance and Risk. She has attained an LLB and LPC. Although born and substantially educated in Ireland she has worked in the UK for over 20 years in banking, insurance and retail and wholesale investment management firms. Rosemary has specialised in the area of Compliance in the UK which included over four years with the Financial Conduct Authority authorising and supervising UK firms.
She has spent 10 years as a member of the senior management team of three leading MiFID investment management firms including an online discretionary manager. Rosemary manages the Risk and Compliance functions of BCWM and leads the liaison with relevant regulatory authorities.
Chairman of the Board and Non-Executive Director
Dr Gerard McHugh is Associate Professor of Accounting and Dean of Development at Trinity College Dublin. He qualified as a Certified Accountant with the Dublin office of Deloitte, and subsequently earned his M.A. and Ph.D from the Universities of Sheffield and Loughborough respectively.
He has served on the Board of BCWM for over three years and is a valued member of the non-executive governance team, chairing the Board’s audit committee. Dr McHugh also serves on the Board of the Insurance Institute of Ireland, and as a trustee of Trinity College’s Foundation. He is a member of the Government’s Standing Advisory Group on Government Accounting and Financial Reporting.
Dr. McHugh lectures extensively on financial analysis and financial reporting in Ireland and abroad. He is the author of two books on financial analysis and reporting, and his research has been published in Irish Banking Review, Irish Business and Administrative Research, The European Accounting Review, the Irish Marketing Review, and Organisation Studies.
Portfolio Manager
Mark has over two decades of experience working in the financial markets. Having started his career as a Market Risk Analyst for one of the top two Banks in Ireland, Mark switched to Stockbroking and Portfolio Management in 2004. He has developed a wealth of knowledge in Portfolio Construction, Risk Management and Investment Advice over the years.
Mark is a Registered Representative of the Irish Stock Exchange, a Qualified Financial Advisor (QFA), Specialist Investment Advisor (SIA), and Certified Financial Planner (CFP®). He has an honours degree in Economics and Finance from NUI Maynooth and a Graduate Diploma in Wealth Management from University College Dublin.
Mark joined BCWM in 2020. He is a Portfolio Manager for the firm and also manages the Dealing Desk.
Finance Director
Andrew graduated with a Bachelor of Business Studies (Honours) in Accounting degree before entering a Chartered Accountant’s training contract with Horwath Bastow Charleton (now Crowe) in 2005. Andrew qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 2009 and was admitted as a Fellow member of Chartered Accountants Ireland in 2021.
Andrew joined BCWM as the Head of Finance in January 2019. Andrew has extensive experience advising a wide client base in the areas of Hospitality and Tourism, Charitable Organisations, Property and Construction, Motor Trade, Professional Organisations, Manufacturing and Retail.
Operations Supervisor
Danielle joined the firm in 2021 as Supervisor of the Operations team. She has an honours degree in Economics from UCD. Danielle has previously worked in one of Ireland’s largest brokers for 15 years. Danielle is responsible for the day to day supervision of the client asset accounting function for client portfolios.
Client Asset Accountant
Diarmuid graduated from Tallaght Institute of Technology in 2012 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Accountancy.
Diarmuid joined BCWM in 2015 and is part of the Operations team dealing with payment processing and Asset Reconciliation and is currently pursuing his ACCA examinations.
Non-Executive Director
Andrew is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland and a Member of The Irish Tax Institute. After qualifying as a chartered accountant in 1980 he was appointed a partner in Bastow Charleton, a well known firm of Chartered Accountants in Ireland and quickly developed a high level of expertise with the provision of advices to many Irish businesses and high net worth individuals in the areas of taxation and financial services during the following 42 years.
Chair of the Investment Committee
Joe Mottley founded Clarus Investment Solutions with Paul McCarville in 2008. Clarus is a consultancy which provides independent expert investment advice to a range of clients, including wealth management firms, corporate entities, charities and other organisations. Prior to this he had been chief investment officer and a director of Setanta Asset Management, having spent 22 years altogether in the fund management industry. He was a Council Member of the Society of Investment Analysts in Ireland for part of that time.
His early career was as an engineer and a policy analyst in the Department of Finance. He holds a B.E. degree from UCD and an M.Sc in Economics and Statistics from Trinity College, and is a Qualified Financial Advisor.
Joe is a co-founder and director of Verus Advisory Limited, a specialist firm which provides oversight services to pension schemes using Fiduciary Management arrangements. He has also served as an independent non-executive director of a UCITS fund.