(pictured: Sara Gilbert)

AltaReturn, a US-based software and systems firm specialising in private equity and alternatives management, has set up in Asia Pacific with the recruitment of Sara Gilbert as director of operations, Asia. She is already looking to expand the presence.

On her first trip to Australia last week after joining AltaReturn in May, Gilbert said that she would soon be joined by a fund accountant in her Hong Kong office and was looking for a support person. She was also hopeful of appointing someone in Sydney down the track.

She has about 17 years experience in investment systems and is well known in Australia, having lived in Sydney previously. She also lived in Singapore before settling in Hong Kong.

Gilbert headed up the Asia region for SS&C Technologies most recently and before that had responsibility for North Asia for Sungard Investran, which is one of AltaReturn’s main global competitors.

AltaReturn was established in 2010 and currently has about 160 clients – mainly fund managers, family office-owned general partners and custodians. The company is headquartered in Miami, Florida and has also set up a London office to look after EMEA.

Vertice Technologies is its original flagship product for private equity, providing fund accounting, client relationships management, business intelligence, deal tracking and fund raising monitoring.

“We’re bringing the company into APAC,” Gilbert said.