Kerr Neilson

Kerr Neilson was born in Johannesburg, South Africa in 1949. He first demonstrated a penchant for investing when he bought his first stock at the age of 13. In 1971, Neilson graduated with a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Cape Town.

Neilson began his career in 1973 as an investment analyst in the pensions department of Courtaulds in London, before joining mutual fund manager Sage Holdings in South Africa in 1976 where he assisted in the management of the South African equities portfolio. From 1978 to 1983, Neilson headed the industrial equities research department at Anderson, Wilson & Partners Inc, a stockbroking firm in Johannesburg.

Bankers Trust Australia

Upon migrating to Australia, Neilson joined Bankers Trust Australia Group in May 1983, where he rose from the role of analyst in the wholesale funds management division to Executive Vice President and senior portfolio manager of multiple retail equity trusts. The funds he was responsible for had total funds under management of approximately A$5 billion at the time of his departure in January 1994.

At Bankers Trust, Neilson built a reputation for being an astute contrarian stock-picker and achieved outstanding returns across multiple funds:

BT Select Markets Fund +22.7% per annum 1984-1993.

BT Select Markets Imputation Fund +18.6% per annum 1986-1992.

BT Select Markets LATAM Fund +79.8% per annum 1991-1993.

Neilson rose to fame after the October 1987 Black Monday stock market crash when his funds demonstrated remarkable resilience during down markets. During the Australia fiscal year of 1988, the BT Select Imputations Fund achieved +39.8%. By comparison, the Australian All Ordinaries Index fell 13.3%.

Argyle Fund | Neilson Family Office

After retiring from portfolio management and investment research responsibilities at Platinum Asset Management in 2020, Neilson remained active in financial markets and continued to manage investments personally and for The Neilson Foundation through his family office, Argyle Fund.

Kerr Neilson and his former wife, Judith Neilson, divorced in 2015. They have two children. In 2009, Kerr and Judith Neilson established the White Rabbit Gallery in Chippendale Sydney to display Judith Neilson's collection of Chinese contemporary art. Judith Neilson accumulated the collection from frequent visits to art galleries and artist studios across China since 2000; and has one of the world's most significant collections of contemporary Chinese art. The White Rabbit Collection has been reported in many publications as a collection without comparison.

Kerr Neilson and his family established The Neilson Foundation in 2007 to support both the arts and charities that work towards social cohesion. Since its inception, The Neilson Foundation has disbursed more than A$185 million to more than 40 organisations. The Neilson Foundation favours innovative initiatives in two principal areas:

Those that improve accessibility to the arts, with the aim of enriching cultural diversity within Australian society; and

Those organisations that assist individuals and communities facing extreme disadvantage. Programmes that help vulnerable youth, migrants, domestic violence, or those with mental health problems.