Regularly during the school year, the Dean hosts roundtable discussions with prominent guests who have utilized their law degrees in a variety of nontraditional ways. Over lunch with a small group of students, guests speak autobiographically about their work experiences, sharing valuable insight about how they found their chosen path. Please note that the roundtables are informal and off-the-record.
Francis Daniels LLM ’86, ’87, who will be the Dean’s Guest on Thursday October 29, is the director and co-founder of Africa Opportunity Partners, an investment management firm specializing in value investing in African capital markets. He also manages its subsidiary, Anibok Investment Research Chambers Ltd., in Johannesburg, South Africa.
Mr. Daniels earned his LLB from the University of Ghana in 1981 and his LLM from the University of Toronto in 1983. He also obtained an LLM degree and an LLM (Corporations) degree from NYU Law in 1986 and 1987.
After graduating from NYU Law, Mr. Daniels began his career as an associate in the banking department of Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy, where he gained hands-on experience in large corporate transactions. After his role at Milbank, Mr. Daniels worked at the international law firm of Watson, Farley & Williams and then at Schulte, Roth & Zabel. Shortly after, he realized his passion was investing in companies rather than working for them. Mr. Daniels was presented with the opportunity to transition into finance in 1997 and in 1998 he took it, moving to live and work in South Africa.
His interest in investing in Africa began as a hobby in the early 1990s. Over the years, his interest in African investing grew as he discovered an affinity for value investing and acquired experience in different African markets, first for his own account, then gradually for other clients. Until 2006, his investing life co-existed with a legal career, providing corporate legal advice to the Zimbabwe-based investment holding company TA Holdings Ltd.
By 2007, he had become a fund manager of the Africa Opportunity Fund, a closed-end investment fund managed by Africa Opportunity Partners and traded on the Alternative Investment Market of the London Stock Exchange. The launch of Africa Opportunity Partners in 2007 and its first fund, the Africa Opportunity Fund, led to Francis’ emergence as a full-time investor.
In addition, he also serves on the Board of Directors for both TA Holdings as well as its parent company, Masawara PLC. Mr. Daniels is also a member of the advisory board of the Mandela Institute of Development Studies based in Johannesburg.
The Dean’s roundtables are open to 18 interested NYU School of Law JD and graduate students. In order to achieve a representational mix of students, we will designate a proportionate number of seats to JD students and graduate students, respectively, to be assigned on a first-come, first-served basis. The roundtables will begin at 12:30 PM in Snow Dining Room. If you would like to attend a roundtable, please sign up in advance by emailing Ken Seagreaves at ken.seagreaves@nyu.edu. Please indicate whether you are a JD or graduate student, and whether you have any dietary restrictions.