Rory Irvine

Warakirri Asset Management has appointed Rory Irvine as a Business Development Manager responsible for expanding the firm’s relationships in the Retail Advisory, Family Office and High Net Worth markets across New South Wales, the ACT and Queensland.

Based in the firm’s Sydney office and working alongside Trent Faehndrich who joined Warakirri’s Distribution team in early 2025, Rory joins at an exciting time for the business as it continues to broaden its footprint across its agriculture and equities offerings. 

Warakirri Head of Distribution, Stuart Devlin said: “We’re delighted that Rory has joined Warakirri as we continue to build the firm’s relationships across the retail and wholesale markets. Rory’s client-first approach aligns well with sophisticated advisers who are demanding differentiated, quality solutions.”

“Our recently announced strategic partnership with ClariVest Asset Management to bring a new global small companies solution to market alongside our existing Emerging Markets Equities and Australian Equities capabilities managed by Northcape Capital, strongly positions us in the advisory market,” Mr. Devlin added.

The Warakirri Global Emerging Markets Fund recently surpassed $200 million in funds under management with Warakirri experiencing sustained inflows over the course of the last 12 months as investors sought differentiated sources of return outside of developed markets, while the ClariVest Global Small Companies Fund launched in August of last year and exclusively distributed by Warakirri recently achieved an inaugural “Recommended” rating from Zenith. 

Rory brings more than 10 years’ experience working in financial services across asset management and investment distribution. He joined Warakirri from Nanuk Asset Management having previously held roles at Ellerston Capital and AMP Capital.  Rory holds a Master of Commerce majoring in Finance from UNSW and a Bachelor of Commerce from Macquarie University.

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Jim McKay

Warakirri Asset Management (Warakirri) has announced a partnership with a US-based investment manager to exclusively deliver a new offering to local investors. 

The partnership between Warakirri and San Diego-based ClariVest Asset Management (ClariVest) is set to offer Australian wholesale and retail investors access to ClariVest’s global small companies strategy. 

Established in 2006, ClariVest is a specialist global equities manager that is focused on identifying ‘underappreciated growth’ – where behavioural biases have created a gap between investor sentiment and improving fundamentals. ClariVest seeks to exploit investor inefficiencies around company growth cycles to find opportunities that are yet to be appreciated by the market.

Warakirri has recently launched the ClariVest Global Small Companies Fund and will provide ClariVest with a full suite of services including operations, marketing and distribution. Warakirri’s support, together with ClariVest’s proven performance track record in global small cap investing, provides a strong platform for the growth of the new fund.

Jim McKay, Warakirri Managing Director said: “We are excited to announce this partnership which delivers a valuable new offering for our clients with easy access to an asset class with higher growth potential.  ClariVest’s unique approach to investing has resulted in a portfolio that is diversified by country and sector, and has consistently delivered excess returns across market cycles, making this strategy a compelling addition to client portfolios.”

David Vaughn, Founder and Chief Investment Officer at ClariVest said: “We look forward to our new partnership with Warakirri. We believe there is a real opportunity for global small caps to offer meaningful upside given current valuations, and this is an exciting time to bring our strategy to a broader set of investors across Australia.”

“Humans are wired to react inefficiently to change, and we believe we can consistently capitalize on this behavioral pattern in small cap equities across the globe,” he added.

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Steve Jarrott

Warakirri Asset Management has announced a new investment for the Warakirri Farmland Fund (Fund), a large-scale kiwi fruit aggregation in one of Australia’s prime horticultural zones.  Totaling 200 hectares in the Goulburn Valley region of Victoria, the aggregation of three orchards, primarily produces kiwifruit, together with small volumes of nashi pears, corella pears and jujubes. 

The deal is a first with new Tenant Partner and renowned kiwifruit producer and supplier, Seeka Limited. A New Zealand (NZ) publicly listed company, Seeka is the largest kiwifruit grower in Australia and New Zealand, and one of the largest integrated horticultural businesses across the two countries. With significant production, packing, and marketing operations based out of Te Puke in the Bay of Plenty region, the business has been operating in Australia since 2015 and accounts for as much as 70% of Australia’s kiwifruit production.  Seeka is also Australia’s largest grower, packer and marketer of Nashi pears.

Steve Jarrott, Portfolio Manager for the Fund, said: “We’re really pleased to add another prime horticultural asset to the Warakirri Farmland Fund, but equally excited to start a new relationship with Seeka.  The Goulburn Valley is one of the most productive agricultural areas in Australia and Seeka are not only a horticultural leader in this region, but a best-in-class operator in NZ and major global player in the kiwifruit category.”

“We’re very much looking forward to working with Seeka on these industry leading assets,” he added. 

Michael Franks, Seeka Chief Executive, advised: “The company is delighted to have Warakirri Asset Management as a partner in Australia. It opens up a number of opportunities for future sustainable development in the region. Warakirri are a progressive and complementary partner and we are very pleased to be alongside them.”

The investment of just over $33m is a well scaled addition for the Fund, building on and diversifying the current portfolio with a deal that is accretive to the Fund’s current return profile.

The Warakirri Farmland Fund provides domestic and international institutional investors unique access to investment grade agricultural property with an attractive and stable income profile. The Fund’s portfolio of investments currently feature high quality stone fruit, wine grapes and fruit assets, with best in class Tenant Partners across three states.

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Trent Faehndrich

Warakirri Asset Management has appointed Trent Faehndrich as Regional Manager responsible for expanding Warakirri’s relationships in the Family Office, High Net Worth (HNW) and Retail Advisory markets in New South Wales and Queensland.

Reporting to Warakirri’s Head of Distribution, Stuart Devlin, and based in the firm’s Sydney office, Trent joins at an exciting time for the business as it looks to broaden its retail footprint leveraging its existing agriculture and equities offerings, and as it actively seeks to add and distribute new investment partners as part of the growth of its managed funds platform.

“We’re delighted that Trent has joined Warakirri as we continue to build the firm’s relationships across the retail and wholesale markets. Trent’s strong network, coupled with his client-first approach and significant industry experience across key facets of the advice market, will help build on our relationships with our key client groups,” said Mr. Devlin.

“His experience working with sophisticated advisers who are demanding differentiated, quality solutions will help deliver on our ambition to provide unique investment solutions,” he added.

Trent has over 25 years’ experience working in the financial services industry and joins Warakirri from La Trobe Financial where he was previously State Manager – Client Partnerships NSW. His previous experience includes business development and relationship management roles at National Australia Bank and Macquarie Bank. Trent holds a Diploma of Financial Markets, Diploma of Financial Services, Diploma of Financial Planning and is RG146 accredited.

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Steve Jarrott

Warakirri Asset Management has announced the addition of its newest asset for the Warakirri Diversified Agriculture Fund (Fund), taking the strategy beyond a A$150m portfolio value milestone.

Adding to the Fund’s existing exposure to the citrus sector, the acquisition brings together two nearby holdings in the Riverina’s Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area.  A modern 160-hectare planting, the aggregation is a great example of a best-in-class Australian citrus orchard, and the first NSW investment for this portfolio. 

Featuring a range of quality citrus varieties, first-class infrastructure and high security water entitlements, the $15 million off-market deal also brings a new Tenant Partner to the Fund.  Eureka Farms Australia, a subsidiary of long-time citrus industry farm manager, Southern Cross Farms (“SCF”) supported by significant and highly regarded packer/marketer Mildura Fruit Company (“MFC”), will operate the aggregation under a long-term agreement that will underpin the ongoing supply of high-quality citrus into MFC’s nearby Pacific Fresh facility in Leeton.  SCF is a horticultural manager and operator with over 30 years of experience operating horticulture and viticulture assets, including citrus, almonds, avocados and winegrapes; while MFC are one of the largest packers, marketers and exporters of quality citrus in Australia.

Steve Jarrott, Portfolio Manager for the Fund, said: “We’re delighted to add another prime horticulture asset in a great region and a sector we believe to be one of the most attractive in the high value space.  The Riverina is one of the most productive and agriculturally diverse regions in Australia, and the citrus orchards of the Leeton and Griffith area are renowned for both high-quality fruit and productivity”.  

“This new asset increases the Fund’s citrus exposure to around 13% of the DAF portfolio, while significantly enhancing geographic spread and diversifying climate, water and counterparty exposures.  We’re very much looking forward to working with Eureka Farms on this industry leading orchard,” he added.

The Warakirri Diversified Agriculture Fund’s portfolio of investments feature high quality berry, citrus, almond, soft leaf vegetable, agri-infrastructure and wine sector assets, with eight best in class Tenant Partners across five states.

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Reporting to Warakirri’s Managing Director, Jim McKay, Ms. Jordan will lead the development of Warakirri’s groupwide Sustainability and ESG strategy and oversee its implementation and reporting across its various business lines and joins the firm as it continues to grow both its agriculture and funds management platforms.

Ms. Jordan most recently held the role of Sustainability and Environment Manager at Select Harvests and is a sustainability and corporate responsibility leader with more than 15 years’ experience having worked on numerous sustainability, environmental and social initiatives across the private and public sectors. Her prior experience includes sustainability development strategy and communication roles at City of Melbourne and Bank Australia.

Commenting on the appointment Mr. McKay said: “Warakirri has a long and proud history of providing ethical and sustainable investment outcomes right across our capabilities and this continues to be one of our top priorities.  Nikki’s strong and diverse sustainability skillset and her knowledge of the evolving policy landscape make her a valuable addition to our team.”

“Nikki’s appointment will continue to drive our leadership in the sustainable and responsible investing areas and help us to deliver on our clients’ responsible investment objectives,” he added.

Warakirri Asset Management is a PRI signatory;  is certified carbon neutral by Climate Active – a partnership between the Australian Government and Australian businesses to drive voluntary climate action; and in late 2023, was one of the first Australian agriculture asset managers to achieve certification to the Leading Harvest Australia Farmland Management Standard – a world-first sustainability assurance program designed to harmonise sustainability reporting across crops and agriculture regions across Australia.

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Steve Jarrott

Warakirri Asset Management has announced the addition of two new investments for the Warakirri Diversified Agriculture Fund (Fund), taking Fund assets to over $140 million.

A $22m initial investment made under a sale and leaseback structure, the deal involves two established vineyards in Western Australia on a 15-year lease with another high-quality Tenant Partner, Margaret River Wine Production Pty Ltd which forms part of the Fogarty Wine Group (Fogarty Wine Group).

Both vineyard investments build on the Fund’s diversification by geography, climate, water source and counterparty, while adding further scale and complementing the Fund’s existing premium wine sector exposure.

The subject assets, known as ‘Amadeus Vineyard’ and ‘Smithbrook Estate’, are located in the highly sought-after and productive regions of Margaret River and Pemberton respectively. Supported by reliable climate and water, these vineyards produce premium grapes for a number of the Fogarty Wine Group brands.

Steve Jarrott, Portfolio Manager for the Fund, said: “Through this investment we’re adding another two great premium wine assets and a fantastic new Tenant Partner for the Fund.  Fogarty Wine Group is not only one of Australia’s most awarded wine producers, but a best in class, market leading operator producing a strong range of ultra-premium wines across a number of great brands and regions.”

Peter Fogarty, Executive Chairman of Fogarty Wine Group, added: “We are pleased to be partnering with Warakirri on two of our vineyard assets. With significant expansion of our owned vineyards in Tasmania, we saw the opportunity to balance our owned versus leased vineyard portfolio and Warakirri presented as the best partner for these vineyard assets. The reallocation of capital allows Fogarty Wine Group to plant additional vines on our vineyards owned in Margaret River and Tasmania as well as support funding for the ongoing growth of our ultra-premium wine brands.”

The addition of what are the Fund’s seventh and eighth assets, builds on the portfolio’s existing investments that include high quality Wine, Almond, Berry, Citrus, Soft Leaf Vegetable and Agri-infrastructure assets, with seven best in class Tenant Partners across five states.

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Steve Jarrott

Warakirri Asset Management has announced the addition of its newest asset for the Warakirri Diversified Agriculture Fund (Fund), taking the strategy beyond a A$100m portfolio value milestone.

Adding the Fund’s first exposure to the nut complex, the Fund’s sixth investment is located in the Sunraysia region on the Murray River near Mildura (north-west Victoria) and is one of the most land and water efficient large-scale almond orchards in the country, spanning over 350 planted hectares.

In a $30 million off-market deal, the Fund’s Tenant Partner for this asset is one of the largest and fastest growing privately owned almond growers in Australia, the Bright Light Agribusiness group.

Steve Jarrott, Portfolio Manager for the Fund, said: “We’re delighted to add another first-class horticulture asset and a further high-quality Tenant Partner to the Fund. The Bright Light group own and operate almond orchards across the Sunraysia region and have recently completed development of a new, state-of-the-art processing facility, to become only the 4th integrated grower, processor and marketer of almonds in Australia.”

“As well as another strong new Tenant Partner, the asset adds new exposure to one of the Fund’s key target sectors, and valuable geographic diversification to the portfolio. We look forward to working with the Bright Light team on this stand-out property” he added.

The Warakirri Diversified Agriculture Fund’s portfolio of investments currently features high quality Berry, Citrus, Soft Leaf Vegetable, Agri-infrastructure and vineyard assets, with six best in class Tenant Partners across five states.

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Steven Carew

Warakirri Asset Management has announced the appointment of Steven Carew to the newly created role of Head of Multi Boutique Platform.

Reporting to Warakirri’s Managing Director, Jim McKay, Mr. Carew joins the firm as it continues to grow its funds management business and will have responsibility for the oversight of existing manager relationships, researching markets to identify opportunities for potential new investment strategies, and execute on new boutique opportunities for the Warakirri platform.

Following a more than 20 year career with JANA Investment Advisers, where he held the role of Chief Investment Officer until late 2021, Mr. Carew brings to the role more than 30 years of experience in the investment management industry, including asset allocation, portfolio construction, manager research and selection, risk management, and superannuation member investment choice and product design.

Mr. McKay said: “We’re delighted to have someone of Steven’s calibre and deep industry experience join our team as we continue to build Warakirri’s business and achieve our growth objectives. Steven’s significant investment and manager research experience will play a critical role around the identification and execution of new boutique partnerships that can consistently exceed client objectives as well as working with our existing investment boutique partners to further enhance our funds management capabilities.”

Commenting on his appointment, Mr. Carew said: “I am excited to join Warakirri, an organization I have interacted with for many years, as it has not only continued to grow and diversify its business but remained focused on delivering superior outcomes for its clients.”

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The former Victorian Funds Management Corporation (VFMC) and AXA Asia Pacific Holdings Australia & New Zealand Chief Executive Officer is a welcome addition to the privately owned Warakirri Board.

Mr. Lee has over 30 years’ experience in the financial services sector domestically and internationally. He has a strong focus on strategy development and execution, stakeholder management and significant financial management experience.

His board experience is extensive with Mr. Lee currently a member of the Boards of Metlife Insurance Limited, MyState Limited and Tower Limited.  Mr. Lee is also Chair or member of several Audit, Risk and Remuneration Committees.

Warakirri managing director Jim McKay welcomed the appointment saying: “I am delighted to welcome Warren to the Warakirri board. His extensive knowledge and experience will be a huge asset as our business continues its rapid growth. We look forward to his advice and guidance as we manage our role as a fiduciary of our client’s assets and as employer of choice for our people.”

For his part, Mr. Lee called the appointment a great privilege.

“I am delighted to join Warakirri and am committed to ensuring that the firm’s focus remains on delivering superior outcomes for clients, which has underpinned the firm’s almost 30-year history. I look forward to helping guide the team’s actions and decisions to continue to achieve this,” he said.

He further noted that he was attracted to Warakirri through its growing and diversified business and its strong commitment to independent governance.

Mr. Lee has also been appointed as a non-executive director on a number of related Warakirri entities including Warakirri Holdings, as well as becoming a member of Warakirri’s Audit and Risk Committee.

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