Wayne Sharpe, Chairman

Wayne was the founder and CEO of Bartercard from its inception 19 years ago to its current position as a global leader in the barter industry operating from over 120 offices today with some 3,000 personnel. Bartercard is the worlds largest non cash credit unit exchange and has operated in 20 countries.

After selling Bartercard’s flagship operation in Australia in 2007, Wayne attended the UN climate change conference in Bali, and has shifted his focus and entrepreneurial skills to helping save our planet. Wayne is the major shareholder in S.T.O.P. (Stop Trashing Our Planet Limited) which is the parent company of Carbon Trade Exchange, a company which is currently establishing a global online exchange for the spot trading of voluntary carbon credits.

Sam Reynolds, Director

Sam has approximately 10 years' experience working in Corporate Broking, Equity Capital Markets and M&A. He is a degree graduate in Commerce from the University of New England, majoring in Accounting and Marketing. After graduating, Sam was selected to join the Elders Limited Graduate Cadet Program in 1999. Following this Sam moved into Elders Rural Bank as a Risk Analyst before moving to ANZ Banking Corporation in Sydney as an Account Manager in Corporate Finance in 2002.

Sam relocated to Edinburgh, then onto London joining the Corporate Finance team of independent investment bank Execution Noble & Company Limited in 2004. During his time with Execution Noble he has managed a large range of UK and European mergers & acquisitions and capital markets transactions.

Sam joined Ventura Carbon as a Director in September 2010.

William Rae, Director

William is a degree graduate in Commerce from the University of Sydney, majoring in Finance and Accounting. After graduating, William joined Ernst & Young in 2004 in their Financial Services Advisory division and qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 2006.

William arrived in the UK in May 2007 to live indefinitely and to broaden his experience in corporate finance. Since then, he has gained significant experience in corporate finance advisory, valuations and environmental M&A services with European and global renewable energy transactions ranging from wind farms in Germany and Italy, Geothermal in Asia and, more recently, Tidal Energy for the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) in the UK.  

With the vision of embracing the private sector in solving the problem of climate change, and facilitating green investments, William co-founded Ventura Carbon in 2009.

Nathan Rockliff, Director

Nathan is a Lawyer dual qualified in both Australia (N.S.W) and the UK. Nathan has lived and breathed entrepreneurial law since a young age with a family of lawyers at his family law firm Rockliffs, in Sydney.

Having commenced working at Rockliffs in 2002 in a variety of corporate, insurance litigation and personal legal matters, he relocated to London in 2007 where he worked in two London Law firms in corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions, and a number of corporate transactions including PLUS and AIM listings. In September 2009, Nathan was seconded to assist Carbon Trade Exchange in developing its trading platform, which included advising on and structuring a number of its commercial, registry and banking relationship negotiations and the development of its trading rules.

Nathan is also qualified in Corporate Finance with the Securities & Investment Institute in the UK.

Driven by the desire to encourage entrepreneurship and forward thinking in the carbon, clean-tech and renewable energy markets, Nathan co-founded Ventura Carbon in 2009. 

Ben Stuart, Director

Ben comes from a multi generation Farming background in both livestock and cropping. He has a lifetime passion to implement a modern environmental impact into these sectors, and has now made the connection of how to monetise Rural assets into the Carbon Sector.

Ben graduated from the University of Sydney in 2005 before relocating to the UK to pursue his Rugby career. In March 2008, Ben joined Tullet Prebon as a broker in the European carbon market. Specialising in the secondary carbon market, Ben was integral to business development within Europe, USA and Australasia. Since then, Ben has gained extensive knowledge and contacts in the European Emissions Trading Scheme and global carbon trading and renewable energy markets.

Ben has extensive knowledge in Agricultural sector, specialising in Australian based project development, and is a founding Director of Ventura Carbon since 2009.