Castlebay Investment Partners LLP

Michael Crawford
Partner & Chawton Global Investors

Whilst at University studying Law and Chemistry, I spent time with several investment firms and quickly realised that fund management was exactly the career I wanted to pursue. I returned to University thinking about how I might develop the knowledge and skills to equip me for a career in investing. I moved away from Law and instead embarked on a degree in accountancy, after which I completed my MBA - it was a revelation! I learned the importance of corporate strategy, marketing, operational management and finance. An elective in Economic Value Added (EVA) drew me to Warren Buffett and his investment approach. I've been investing in financial markets for over 25 years and established Chawton Global Investors in 2019 when I launched the Chawton Global Equity Income fund.

I joined Castlebay as a Partner in January 2026, having worked closely with the Partners and investment committee since 2019, and I now manage the Chawton Global Equity income fund under their oversight.

John Poulter
Non-working Partner

I have worked in a variety of US based software companies throughout my career, ranging from start-ups with a small number of employees to multi-nationals with thousands of employees. Each business had a unique offering, which helped to deliver significant value to its customers. When we discussed establishing Castlebay, I saw similarities in the way both Davids wanted to manage their business and the assets entrusted to them by our clients - of which I am one.

Having known David MacNeil for many years, he described a way of investing which was different. I jumped at the chance to be part of a unique firm, in the investment management sector. Now, nearly a decade after our initial discussions, Castlebay is an established and growing business.

David MacNeil
Partner & Compliance Officer

davidmacneil@castlebayinvestments.com

Investing and its influence has grown on me throughout the course of my career. I initially became involved in the world of investment by chance and thoroughly enjoyed a summer spent working in a stock broking firm before starting what would turn out to be my last year of University. Managing someone else’s money is challenging and rewarding in so many ways. It is also a great privilege.

I have always been very interested in entreprenuership and before founding Castlebay developed relationships and friendships with people who had started their own businesses. A seed was planted and before long the genesis of Castlebay was formed. At our heart is a desire to be in partnership and manage our own money alongside our investors for the long term. A simple but effective alignment of best interests which is all too lacking in our industry.

Emily Barr
Business Support

emily@castlebayinvestments.com

I have been working in Financial Services since 2018 and was delighted to be invited to join the team at Castlebay in December 2023. I have worked in various financial advisory firms and during that time I have developed my financial sector knowledge in many areas.

I am an organised, ambitious and positive person. I enjoy meeting new people and derive satisfaction from creating a structured office environment. I am looking forward to working with my colleagues to help grow the business.

Alistair Mackintosh
Non-working Partner

After many years as a private equity investor, I was looking for like minded people to manage my public market investments when I met David MacNeil and David Ridland. It was quickly apparent that we shared a similar philosophy so when the discussion turned to establishing Castlebay, I was delighted to become both a client and Partner.

How would I sum up the founding principles of the partnership? Looking after client money as if it is our own, first class levels of communication and a transparent, valued focused approach to costs. We are focused on developing a business for the long term and each building block is vitally important.

Advisory Panel

The Castlebay Advisory Panel provides the opportunity for us to benefit from the skill and experience of three former fund managers with a different perspective. The panel also provides a corporate governance overlay to our Qualty value investment process.

The panel consists of the working partners and:

Russell Crichton

Russell retired as head of Rathbones Scotland in 2020 and was Chief Executive Officer of Speirs & Jeffrey for nearly a decade before it was purchased by Rathbones in 2018. Prior to joining Speirs in 1997, he spent the early part of his career as an institutional fund manager at Murray Johnstone and then Norwich Union.

Richard Burns

Richard joined Baillie Gifford as an Investment Trainee in 1973, becoming a Partner in 1977 and joint Senior Partner in 1999. He retired in 2006. During his time as a partner, Baillie Gifford grew its assets under management from £500 million to over £40 billion, becoming one of the leading fund management businesses in Scotland. In retirement, Richard has had a portfolio of Chairmanships and Directorships at a number of Investment Trusts managed by JP Morgan, Bankers Trust and Standard Life. He has also been actively involved in the Charity sector sitting on a number of Charity committees.

Mick Brewis

Mick retired as head of US Equities at Baillie Gifford in 2014 after spending 29 years at the firm. Long term investment, conviction portfolios and eschewing the market noise & investing herd were all key ingredients to long term outperformance in the US, a market well known for being difficult to beat.

Get in touch

If you would like to find out more please get in touch with the team.

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