Our People

Tom Foster, Chairman & CEO

Qualifications

Bachelor of Economics, Monash Uni
Bachelor of Laws, Monash Uni
Associate Program, Australian Society of CPAs
Financial Planning Diploma, Deakin Uni
Graduate Diploma in Applied Finance & Investment, Securities Institute of Aust.
Certified Financial Planner
Margin Lending Accreditation, Stockbrokers Association of Aust.
ASX Accredited Derivatives Adviser Level 1, Kaplan

Associations

AFS Licensed Authorised Representative (1985 to present)
Member of the FPA (1996 to present)
Certificate of Practice from the FPA (current)
Fellow of FINSIA (2003 to present)
Formerly Associate of Australian Society of CPAs, qualified for fellowship

Experience

Over the past 27 years Tom has worked in the financial services industry, primarily in investment advisory and management, and has gained the following experience on a full or part time basis:

Nine years as a Director of Ralton Asset Management Ltd, an AFS licensed entity, developing and operating a funds management business in Australian Equities. The business grew to having over $165 million in total funds under management and was responsible for the funds of a wide variety of clients from individuals to institutions
Seventeen years in either investment advising, or supervising an investment advisory team providing broad based advice on a full range of investments from cash and deposits to domestic and international listed securities and managed investments, as well as warrants and covered call options. Fourteen of these years were spent as the Managing Director of Ralton Group Ltd, also an AFS licensed entity, developing and operating an advisory business that grew to having funds under advice of well over $0.25 billion. Toward the later stages of this period, Tom spent a year writing a textbook style manual on investment advice, focusing on how investors have historically achieved rates of return superior to market
During the above period - four years assisting Ralton Group’s investment banking division provide advisory services to small, medium and large listed and unlisted corporate clients
Also during that period - six years as the manager of Microcaps Ltd, a privately held pooled development fund that first became licensed in 1996 and received its initial investor funds in 1997
Seven years in corporate banking, including roles as Manager Lending, Credit Lyonnais Australia Ltd and Credit Manager, Lloyds Bank NZA Australia for fellowship

Tom Gutowski, Executive Director

Tom’s background is in real estate and trading. Tom has 16 years experience in real estate, from an award winning real estate sales agent to real estate broker and successful property investor. Tom expanded his investment activities to include trading equities and options in order to capitalise on the cyclical nature of the property and stock markets. His mathematical bent enabled him to develop successful trading systems, including the integration of strict rules for money management, including stop losses and profit taking.

Qualifications

RG 146 Specialist Adviser - Investment Planning (General Advice)

Experience

Tom has been utilizing the core Intellectual Property that drives the Oceans18 strategies since Feb 2006 and has a thorough understanding of all aspects of the strategies employed by Oceans18, as well as day-to-day operational issues
Tom’s experience in real estate led to the establishment of Brighton Bay Apartments in 2004. BBA provides luxury serviced accommodation to Australian and international guests, specialising in the short-term accommodation needs of corporate clients. In the past, Tom had been responsible for all aspects of the business. However, he is now only involved on part time basis, as BBA's success has enabled him to contract staff to run its day to day operations
As a property broker, during the property boom of the early 2000s - Tom’s real estate skills were well sought after. This lead to the establishment of a property broking business in which Tom successfully matched property developers with prospective buyers
As a day trader, during the early 2000s, options and CFDs were successfully used to capitalise on the various market cycles in both real estate and equities. Tom also expanded his strategies to include trading on the Australian Stock Exchange in shares and derivatives

Russell Christensen, Director

Russell has extensive experience utilizing Oceans18’s core Intellectual Property, dating back to 2006. Having decided to take a less active role in his family businesses, Russell is well placed to handle his roles as a Director and Representative of Oceans18. His recent completion of a Diploma of Financial Services 4, Investment Planning (General Advice) consolidates his understanding of the financial services industry and, together with his commitment to Continuing Professional Development, will add to the foundations of his involvement with Oceans18.

Qualifications

RG 146 Specialist Adviser - Investment Planning (General Advice)

Associations

Master Builders Association (1993 to Present)

Experience

Central to Russell's family businesses has been a privately owned construction and development company. It has operated for seventeen years in both the residential and commercial building sectors. Russell's family has had an interest as a major founding shareholder and he as a Director / Secretary of the company since its inception in 1993. At times the company had multiple projects under construction and employed or contracted over fifty personnel.
Success in the building industry led to involvement in a diverse range of investments and interests including property, serviced offices, serviced apartments, holiday apartments, ownership in various businesses involved in medical imaging and payment technologies, ownership and trading of shares and options. All of these activities have been managed with a hands on approach by Russell giving him valuable experience particularily in investment markets