Econopolis was born of our unique vision of our (financial) world, economy and society after the "Econoshock".
Econopolis (°2009) translates the words in the Econoshock book and TV series into actions: asset management for the new financial and economic age.
With an unusual approach, attuned to the new economic realities and built on sacred basic principles of impartiality, sustainability and transparency.
A team of specialists translates the Econopolis principles into a unique strategy for your assets, focused on capital preservation and growth via the numerous opportunities offered by the new economic landscape.
Econopolis aims to be a quality label for financial-economic investments and advice. Our organisation was born during the financial crisis of 2008-09. That means that we had a blank page on which to design a new organisation, taking account of everything that went wrong in the financial sector. We invest continually in creativity, quality and human talent. We also screen our financial partners for their sustainable features, ethics and transparency.
From our genuine concern for the world, our clients and our co-workers, we always look with a critical eye at our ideas and decisions. That same concern makes us aware of our social commitments. Acting with ethical and social responsibility is a fundamental component of the way we work.
In our strategies we look at the long term; we are not swayed by the issues of the day. We communicate clearly and openly about our strategy and insights. In this way we try to build long-term relationships with the investors in our funds. That is the best guarantee for success and satisfaction.
Our management is built on a number of foundations and principles that we believe make all the difference:
Simplicity & honesty
We focus on simplicity, transparency and the long term, in close dialogue with the client.
Tailor-made
Every client is different, every assignment is different. There is no such thing as a standard approach at Econopolis. Tailor-made is our style.
Ethical and sustainable
From our genuine concern for the world, our clients and our co-workers, we always look with a critical eye at our ideas and decisions.
Faithful to our 10 principles
Preserving Wealth, Security, Simplicity, Transparency, Reputation, Slow Money, Trust, Discretion, Stewardship, Professionalism
... supported by a team of experts
Geert Noels
/ Founder & Partner - Chief Economist
Geert Noels / Founder & Partner - Chief Economist
Geert Noels is a macro-economist and a much sought after commentator on financial and economic matters. After 15 years working as the chief economist with a financial institution, he founded Econopolis in 2009. He described his view of the financial-economic future in his best-selling book Econoshock, awarded the ABN-AMRO public prize for the best non-fiction book. The content of that book is the basis and guiding principle for the strategies of Econopolis.
Geert Wellens
/ Partner & Founder - CEO
Geert Wellens / Partner & Founder - CEO
Geert Wellens has written a number of remarkable bestsellers on investing, real estate and finance. He was successively a journalist, publisher and director for the financial-economic publishers Roularta (Trends, Knack, Kanaal Z) and Mediafin (De Tijd, L’Echo). He has also worked for a number of years on the stock market for a major financial institution.
Gregory Christians
/ Director
Gregory Christians / Director
After obtaining his diploma of business engineering from ICHEC, Gregory began his career in financial markets as institutional equity sales specialist, mainly in New York, for both Petercam and Kempen&Co. In 2006 he moved to Private Banking as responsible for the investment and wealth planning departments of UBS Belgium where he later became Executive Committee and Board member, a position that he kept at Puilaetco Dewaay after the takeover of UBS Belgium. Since January 2018, he supports Econopolis in the development of Private Banking activities and new products.
Valérie Coene
/ Management Assistant
Valérie Coene / Management Assistant
Valérie Coene has a degree in applied economics. She gained experience as an executive secretary and ICT teacher. She provides management support and is responsible for events and Middle Office reporting.
Michaël De Man
/ Fixed Income Strategist
Michaël De Man / Fixed Income Strategist
Michaël De Man graduated as Master in Economics at Ghent University in 2005. Driven by a strong interest in investments, he obtained a Master in Banking and Finance at the same university. After his studies he started as a bond specialist for a large Belgian bank. In that period, he also became CFA charterholder. In the aftermath of the financial crisis, he dedicated himself to risk management. At the end of 2015, he joined the investment team of Econopolis, where he focuses on the bond strategy.
Lise Devloo
/ Legal & Regulatory Advisor
Lise Devloo / Legal & Regulatory Advisor
Lise graduated as a Master of Laws at the University of Ghent in 2014, whereafter she chose to specialise in financial law at the University of Glasgow. She started her career as a financial services consultant at a big four consultancy firm, where she focused on data protection and cyber security.
Lise joined Econopolis in March 2018 as a Legal & Regulatory Advisor.
Kristof Eggermont
/ Business Analyst
Kristof Eggermont / Business Analyst
Kristof graduated as a Master of Business Engineering at the University of Antwerp in 2018 (major in Corporate Finance and Financial engineering). In his master thesis, he examined the profitability of a momentum strategy on various government bond markets. Kristof joined the team of Econopolis as a Business Analyst in September 2018, focusing on data management and the follow-up of the latest wealth management technologies.
Thierry François
/ Partner
Thierry François / Partner
Thierry François has more than 20 years experience in corporate finance, wealth management and private equity. He qualified as a ‘commercial engineer’ at the Solvay Business School (ULB) and is CFA charterholder. He has built extensive experience working for financial institutions (BNP Paribas Fortis and ING) and families (Korys, the family office of the family Colruyt). Thierry is part of the Econopolis private and institutional wealth management team.
Maxim Gilis
/ Senior Fund Management & Fixed Income Analyst
Maxim Gilis / Senior Fund Management & Fixed Income Analyst
Maxim Gilis obtained a Master in Applied Economics at the University of Antwerp in 2015. His master thesis examined the diversification of stocks in emerging markets. Next he obtained an additional Master of Finance at the Antwerp Management School, where he researched sustainable responsible investing for a European asset management company. He joined Econopolis in the summer of 2016 as a Fund Management Analyst.
Joost Houtman
/ Communication Manager
Joost Houtman / Communication Manager
At Econopolis, our content wizard is Joost Houtman. As our communication manager, Joost is in charge of storytelling, content marketing and copywriting, and he is also responsible for drawing up creative communication strategies. As a content marketing consultant, he was/is active at various companies, advertising agencies and production houses. As a journalist, Joost provided content for numerous newspapers and magazines. In addition, he is the author of several fiction and non-fiction books and also operates as a ghost writer.
Matthieu Jacobs
/ Operations & Technology Officer
Matthieu Jacobs / Operations & Technology Officer
After obtaining a Master in Engineering at the University of Ghent, Matthieu Jacobs started to work as a consultant. After one year experience, he decided to follow an extra Master in Finance at the Antwerp Management School, after which he joined the Econopolis team in June 2016. Within Econopolis Wealth Management, he is responsible for Operations and closely following the newest technologies.
Fred Janssens
/ Compliance Officer
Fred Janssens / Compliance Officer
Fred Janssens obtained a Master’s degree in Applied Economic Sciences at the University of Brussels (VUB) and an additional Master of Finance at the Antwerp Management School. After internships at a large international institution specialised in asset custody and an independent Belgian private bank, Fred joined Econopolis where he led the Middle Office departement for several years. He is currently Compliance Officer of our wealth management activities.
Jeroen Kerstens
/ Wealth Manager
Jeroen Kerstens / Wealth Manager
Jeroen Kerstens obtained the degree of Master in Applied Economics at the University of Antwerp in June 2015 and graduated as a Master of Finance at the Antwerp Management School a year later. After finishing his Master’s project at a European asset manager, Jeroen joined the Econopolis team in July 2016 as a Wealth Management Analyst.
Marc Langeveld
/ Senior Fund Manager & Director Econopolis The Netherlands
Marc Langeveld / Senior Fund Manager & Director Econopolis The Netherlands
Marc has been active in Financial Markets since 1989 and has as a focus and passion for technology investments. In the last 30 years Marc has worked as Senior Technology Analyst at various investment firms, before switching to become Director of Equity Sales at Petercam. In 2006, Marc and three Petercam colleagues founded Antaurus, active in Asset and Fund Management, where he was responsible for the selection of shares of the successful Antaurus Europe Fund. Marc sold his stake in Antaurus in 2016 and currently works at Econopolis as Technology Fund Manager.
Bob Leysen
/ Relationship & Wealth Manager
Bob Leysen / Relationship & Wealth Manager
Bob Leysen graduated as a Master in Commercial sciences (Financial Management). He started his career as a financial consultant, and consequently worked at a large bank. There he first served as an investment adviser in the branch network. In 2015 he made the move to private banking, before stepping over to Econopolis. As a Wealth Manager, Bob serves private clients and he is responsible for the Crelan contacts.
Liesbet Loos
/ Accounting & Reporting Manager
Liesbet Loos / Accounting & Reporting Manager
Liesbet Loos is a master in Applied Economic Sciences. Before joining Econopolis, she was the manager of several cultural organizations, among which the Cultural Center 'De Velinx' in Tongeren. Liesbet was the operational director of the vzw Rataplan in Antwerp. At Econopolis, she's Office Manager and is responsible for accounting and FSMA reporting.
Filip Palmans
/ Director Wealth Management
Filip Palmans / Director Wealth Management
Filip Palmans holds an academic degree in translation, but has spent the last 23 years working in the financial sector. He started his career with a global custodian where he held various positions in operations and relationship management. In 2005 he made the switch to asset management and worked successively for Petercam, Edmond de Rothschild Asset Management and ABN AMRO Private Banking. As a Senior Wealth Manager at Econopolis, Filip serves both institutional and private clients. He is also a Board Member at Make-a-Wish Belgium-Vlaanderen.
Cedric Stichelbaut
/ Portfolio Analyst
Cedric Stichelbaut / Portfolio Analyst
Cedric Stichelbaut obtained the degree of Master in Applied Economics at the University of Antwerp in June 2017. His master thesis examined the performance of hedge funds after the crisis of 2008. Next he obtained an additional Master of Finance at the Antwerp Management School, where he researched sustainable responsible investing. In the summer of 2018, he joined Econopolis team as a Portfolio Analyst. He assists the Wealth Managers in the management and reporting of the portfolios.
Bernard Thant
/ Equity Analyst
Bernard Thant / Equity Analyst
Bernard Thant graduated as master in Commercial Sciences at EHSAL (now known as Hogeschool-Universiteit Brussel). Afterwards he completed a one-year postgraduate in Finance and Investment Management. After his studies he joined Société Générale Private Banking Belgium (previously Bank De Maertelaere) where he worked for most of his career as a financial analyst. During that time, he also acted as portfolio manager equities at the same company for a number of years. Bernard joined the Econopolis Wealth Management team in September 2014 as an equity analyst.
Marine Van Reeth
/ Office Manager
Marine Van Reeth / Office Manager
For many years Marine Van Reeth is working as an allround administrative assistant in different sectors.
She was working as handling en operations assistant in private aviation and administrative co-worker in the oil sector. In 2014 she took a step to the financial business. Since mid 2016 she joint Econopolis to be responsible for the office management.
Guido Van Woensel
/ Senior Investment Director
Guido Van Woensel / Senior Investment Director
Guido Van Woensel graduated as a Master in Law (KU Leuven) and also holds a degree in Public Administration Sciences (University of Antwerp). In his career he worked as a company lawyer for different international enterprises in the construction business. He also managed Public Development Companies: Domus Flandria (long term financing and building of 10.000 social houses), POM Antwerp (land development of industrial sites).
Guido has a large experience of more than 30 years as a general lawyer and he is specialized in PPP development and real estate.
Marijn van Zundert
/ Senior Wealth Manager
Marijn van Zundert / Senior Wealth Manager
Marijn van Zundert obtained a Master in Applied Economics from the University of Antwerp in 2005, followed by a Master in Financial Management from Vlerick in 2008. He became a CFA Charterholder in 2012. Marijn started his career in the financial sector as a consultant in 2005, before moving to private banking in 2010. Within Econopolis Marijn is part of the Wealth Management team for the private and institutional clients as well as for the families.
Gino Delaere
/ Senior Emerging Markets Consultant
Gino Delaere / Senior Emerging Markets Consultant
Gino Delaere is master in Applied Economics (University of Antwerp) and holds an MBA (Xavier Institute of Management in Bhubaneswar, India). For over a decade he has been specializing in emerging markets worldwide and traveling the world looking for interesting investment opportunities. Previously he worked for several large asset managers where he was actively involved in several thematically inspired equity funds. Today, as the head of the Econopolis office in Singapore, he spends a significant amount of his time in Asia and Latin America, and is responsible for the stock selection in the emerging markets funds.
Leona Tan
/ Equity Analyst
Leona Tan / Equity Analyst
Leona Tan Siew Hoon graduated from Indiana University Bloomington, US, majored in Finance and International Business. She started her career as an analyst in a financial-data company in the US. Upon her return to Singapore, she spent a few years in corporate finance before dedicating herself to working as an equity analyst at a brokerage firm in 2004. She joined a large Singaporean asset manager in 2007 and was involved in various roles such as portfolio manager for global and China-India equities funds. She joined Econopolis Singapore Pte Ltd in April 2017 and is responsible for stock selection in the emerging markets funds.
Jacqueline Floch
/ Wealth Manager
Jacqueline Floch / Wealth Manager
Jacqueline Floch holds a Masters Degree in applied mathematics and finance. She has worked in banking and re-insurance. Initially focused on interest rate risk management in a bank, Jacqueline then became responsible for liability insurance risk analysis and the pricing of re-insurance contracts at Munich Re group. At Econopolis Switzerland, she is currently responsible for the Wealth Coaching activities. Jacqueline is based in Geneva.
Timothy Verhoest
/ Legal Counsel & Consultant
Timothy Verhoest / Legal Counsel & Consultant
Timothy Verhoest is our General Counsel. He is responsible for legal & compliance and active in the group’s corporate finance activities. He has hands-on experience as a lawyer and assistant professor occupying various functions in the financial sector and the political world, most recently as spokesperson and deputy chief of cabinet of the Minister for Economic Affairs.
… who believe in open & transparent communication
Econopolis is a transparent organisation. A company that believes in open communication about our opinions and strategy.
We share our unbiased views on the economy, the financial world and our society through traditional and new media channels. We explain our investment strategy to our clients in a very comprehensible and accessible way, so they understand in detail what we are doing and why.
And we organize seminars for the Econopolis community with the world’s leading economic opinion makers. Economists with a clear insight, a well argued opinion, a global view. Opinion leaders who see through the mist of every day events. And focus on what really matters: the bigger picture.
Over the past years, we had the pleasure to welcome such renowned economists and visionary speakers as Jeremy Rifkin, Nassim Taleb, Nouriel Roubini, John Mauldin, James Robinson, Pierre Lagrange, Brad Templeton and many more.
We believe in the art of transparent communication: challenging mainstream opinions and questioning generally accepted truths. Through the confrontation of opinions and fact based arguments we build a long term strategy and an investment policy aimed at safeguarding your assets and helping them to grow in challenging financial times.
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