Henry Costa Partners, the independent merchant bank focused on the financial services sector, has announced two senior leadership appointments as it enters its next phase of growth. Jeanie Kim has joined as Partner to lead the firm’s Advice & Principal Investments business segment, and Katherine Rainwood has joined as Partner and assumed the role of group Chief Operating Officer.
The appointments follow the completion of a capital raise for affiliates of Henry Costa in the fourth quarter of 2025. The raise was backed by leading individual and institutional investors, including one of the world’s largest banking groups. Individual investors include Dr. Nikolaus von Bomhard, current Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Munich Re and former CEO of the world’s largest reinsurer for more than thirteen years, and an Insurance Hall of Fame Laureate, as well as William J. Wheeler, former Vice Chairman and President of Athene Holding and former Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, subsequently President of the Americas at MetLife. Wheeler currently serves on the boards of Evercore Inc. and Ethos Life, Inc.
Henry Costa said the hires reflect both the caliber of talent the firm is attracting and the support it has secured from investors as it builds out its platform. The firm believes financial services across Europe are evolving rapidly, with the roles of banks, insurers and other institutional investors being reshaped in the broader capital ecosystem. Against this backdrop, Henry Costa aims to combine technical and structuring capabilities with a principal-oriented mindset and a business model centered on alignment with clients, partners and investors.
Jeanie Kim joins from HSBC Holdings plc, where she served as Managing Director and Group Head of Mergers & Acquisitions. In that role, she led global acquisitions and disposals of regulated businesses across banking, insurance and asset management. She operated in a principal capacity, overseeing complex cross-border transactions as well as separation and integration processes. Based in London, Kim will lead Henry Costa’s Advice & Principal Investments platform, expanding the firm’s full-spectrum capabilities for financial institutions.
Katherine Rainwood joins as Partner and Chief Operating Officer, initially on a seconded basis. She brings partner-level experience in private fund formation, fund finance and institutional structuring from Gowling WLG, the international law firm ranked number one for listed funds by Legal 500. Previously a partner at Paul Hastings in London, she has advised several leading U.S. and European private credit firms. Her experience spans fund structuring across credit, private equity and fund finance, with particular depth in advising U.S. managers establishing European platforms. She will lead the build-out of Henry Costa’s operating, governance and structuring infrastructure across the platform.
Founded as an independent merchant bank for the financial services sector, Henry Costa operates as a principal investor, partner and advisor to insurers, banks, investment managers and other institutional investors across its Capital Markets and Advice & Principal Investments segments. The firm emphasizes alignment of interest as a core foundation of its business, seeking to align fully with clients and, where possible, commit its own capital behind the advice and propositions it advances.
KEY QUOTE:
“These appointments reflect the calibre of talent we are attracting, and the confidence our investors have in what we are building. Financial Services continue to evolve rapidly across Europe, with the role of banks, insurers and other institutional investors being redefined in the ecosystem of providing capital to the broad economy. We believe we have a role to play with best in class technical and structuring capabilities, a principal-oriented mindset, and a business model focussed on alignment with all our clients, partners and investors. This is what a merchant bank is all about to us. Jeanie and Katherine each bring highly valuable experience, capabilities and credibility to our business that our counterparties expect from us.”
Henrik Matsen, Partner at Henry Costa Partners
