Our Team

Damon Vickers

Managing Director & Chief Investment Officer

Damon Vickers has navigated both bull and bear markets over the last 25 years. His clients and investment partners have invested in a who's who of some of the best performing stocks of the last two decades, companies like Cisco Systems, Starbucks coffee, and Amazon.com to name a few. Damon called the top of the equities markets in 2000 and in 2008, during the worst market year since 1987, a private fund initially capitalized by Mr. Vickers had a return of 63% by shorting GM, Lehman, AIG, and others. Damon's Trend Following approach allows him to embrace both up and down markets equally. Damon's fluid investment style have resulted in him consistently called upon by Financial Networks such as: CNBC, Bloomberg, Fox News, and CBC.

Damon is the third generation in a financial family. His father was a floor trader for Goldman Sachs on the NYSE and his grandfather worked at Kidder Peabody & Co. Subsequent to his fathers career on Wall Street, they moved to California to live at Odiyan, a Buddhist monastery in northern California. Damon was initiated by Lama Tarthang Tulku Rinpoche at the age of 13 and is still a practicing Buddhist today.  Damon enjoys quiet moments in the forests of the Pacific Northwest and collecting Tibetan art.

Luiza Vickers

Director of New Relationships and Private Client Accounts

Luiza Vickers is the Director of New Relationships and Private Client Accounts. Luiza is a native of Poland, immigrating to the US at the age of 16. She completed three years of high school in two, and earned a full four-year scholarship at John Jay College. Luiza entered the world of finance in 1998, handling media relations and seminars. Luiza spends her time away from work gardening and spending time with her children. Her three daughters love the piano, and spending time with the family dog.

Benjamin Simpson

Director of Computational Analytics

Ben Simpson is the Director of Computational Analytics, focusing on mathematics and systems. Ben is a native of New Mexico, where he graduated from the New Mexico Tech (NMT). He holds a B.S. in Business Management of Technology with special emphasis on Mechanical Engineering. During his time at NMT  he  worked as a Research Assistant for the National Science Foundation, allowing him to travel and spend time in Mexico researching and implementing water quality operations. Ben’s interests in finance and business include computational finance, and systems  analysis. He was also a member of the Mises Institute. He spends most of his free time reading and enjoying the outdoors with his fiancé and their dog. Ben has a passion for natural world and enjoys gardening and growing shiitake mushrooms.  

George Bonini

Of Counsel

George E. Bonini is of counsel with the international law firm of Ater Wynne, LLP. The firm serves its clients through offices located in Seattle, Washington; Portland, Oregon; Manlo Park, California; and Salt Lake City, Utah.

Mr. Bonini is a business, securities and tax attorney with a practice focused on organizing business ventures and complex partnership transactions. George also advises companies regarding mergers and acquisitions, tax matters, private equity transactions, and provides general business counsel. George has extensive experience assisting hedge funds and other private investment funds structure transactions, and complying with applicable federal securities laws. In addition, he is able to assist clients with loan, secured finance, and real estate transactions. Finally, George has expertise assisting in resolving tax disputes with the Washington Department of Revenue and the Internal Revenue Service.

George earned a B.A. from the University of Montana, a J.D. cum laude from Seattle University School of Law, and a Masters (LL.M.) in Taxation from the University of Washington. George is a member of the Washington State Bar Association.

In the 2002-2004 Washington Law & Politics surveys, Mr. Bonini was listed as a "Rising Star" in the areas of corporate finance and taxation.