EMMA CQ brings together a highly experienced team with a long history of collaboration and an outstanding track record.
Our team combines unparalleled operational and deal making experience, as well as long-term managerial, risk and governance expertise.
Pavel Horák is an Executive Director and the Chief Executive Officer with over 25 years of experience in finance and management. Pavel is also the Chief Investment Officer of Emma Capital.
During his career to date, Pavel has served on the boards of multiple organisations across Europe including as a second vice president of the Supervisory Board of Casinos Austria AG, as a director of SAZKA Group and as a vice chairman of the Board of Directors of OPAP S.A. In the past, Pavel was a member of senior management of the PPF Group.
Pavel first gained experience in finance and management in the early stages of his career as an auditor at Deloitte & Touche (now Deloitte) and as the Chief Financial Officer of TV NOVA. Pavel is a graduate of Masaryk University (Faculty of Economics and Administration) in Brno and of Prague University of Economics and Business (Faculty of Finance).
Petr Stöhr serves as the Chief Financial Officer and has over 23 years of experience in the finance and investment sectors, working in organisations across Europe, the United Kingdom and North America.
Petr has held roles including investment director, director of M&A and partner at Emma Capital and the PPF Group. Earlier in his career, Petr was appointed as a vice president and investment manager at Citigroup Private Equity, working in both the London and New York offices in a team responsible for managing Citigroup’s USD10 billion international private equity portfolio and generating returns well in excess of industry benchmarks.
Earlier in his career, Petr was a founding member of the private equity group at Republic Private Equity, where he sourced and led multiple acquisitions in the U.S. and also gained experience in finance and accounting, working as an investment banking analyst at Salomon Smith Barney in New York and auditor for Arthur Andersen in Colorado.
Petr is a graduate of the University of Colorado at Boulder, with degrees in accounting and logistics, where he graduated Magna Cum Laude and holds a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from the London Business School and Columbia Business School, jointly.
Michal serves as the Head of M&A and has over 15 years of experience in the investment sector, gained from roles in organisations across Europe, including his current role as a partner at Emma Capital, where he has served as a partner since 2016.
Earlier in his career, Michal served as a member of the Board of Directors and Chief Financial Officer of OPAP SA in Greece, where he contributed to OPAP SA’s successful restructuring after which the company’s EBITDA almost doubled in two years.
Michal's first gained experience in M&A, finance and management was in the PPF Group where he worked in various roles. He was also employed as a project manager at Nomos Bank in Russia, where he contributed to the bank’s successful initial public offering on the London Stock Exchange.
Michal is a graduate of the University of Economics, Prague, where he majored in business administration.
The five-strong Board of Directors, including three independent members, provides strong governance and enhances our sourcing capabilities across European markets.
Kamil Ziegler is a non-executive Director of the Company, serving as the Chairman of the Board. Since 2013, Kamil has served as Executive Chairman of the Board of Directors of OPAP S.A, a role he continues to hold. In addition, Kamil serves as the Chairman of the Board of Directors of SAZKA A.S., where he previously acted as the Chief Executive Officer.
During his career to date, Kamil has served on the boards of multiple organisations across Europe, including as the Chairman of the Board and the Chief Executive Officer of Raiffeisenbank Czech Republic, as the Executive Director of Finance for the PPF Group, where he also served as a member of the Board of Directors and as Chairperson of the Board of Directors.
Kamil is a graduate of the Prague University of Economics and Business (Faculty of Trade) and the Southern Graduate School of Banking at the Southern Methodist University, Dallas, Texas.
José Martin Garza is a non-executive Director of the Company, alongside his role as an investment director and a country manager of Greece and Romania for Emma Capital.
Earlier in his career, José gained experience in the investment sector, as a director of M&A for the PPF Group, as a managing director of M&A at Salomon Brothers (London) and working at Merrill Lynch (London), where his focus was on the European and U.S. M&A.
José is a graduate of the University of Chicago, holding both a Bachelor’s Degree and Master’s Degree.
Çağlayan Cetin is a non-executive director of the Company, alongside his role as the Chief Executive Officer of the DOME Group, a corporate finance and M&A advisory firm, that he co-founded in 2016. Çağlayan has also been appointed as a president of the Trendyol Group in 2021, the largest e-commerce platform in Turkey.
Prior to founding the DOME Group, Çağlayan was a senior managing director and chief country officer of Turkey for Goldman Sachs. Earlier in his career, Çağlayan held a number of roles at Citigroup, including as Head of Turkish Investment Banking and establishing the Istanbul office in 2002. Çağlayan first gained experience in investment banking at Salomon Smith Barney in New York from 1998 to 2008 where he focused on M&A.
Çağlayan is a graduate of Macalester College in Minnesota, where he graduated Magna Cum Laude in 1998 with majors in economics and political science.
Anna Klara Linskog brings unique, sustainability perspectives to the team. After 14 years at Nestle, she is now responsible for Corporate strategy including M&A strategy, Strategic Platform Partnerships and Sustainability at LIVEKINDLY Collective Inc.
Anna’s previous experience includes P&G EMENA as well as 14 years with Nestlé, including Business Executive Officer for Nestlé Infant Nutrition for South East Europe based in Romania.
Anna is a Swedish and German citizen and a graduate of the University of Cambridge, holding an MBA.
Jíří Šmejc is the founder of EMMA Capital and one of the most prominent and respected entrepreneurs and managers in CSEE with a 25+ year track record.
Jiří acts as a special advisor to EMMA CQ. Jiří served as the CEO of Home Credit N.V. from 2012 until 2018, growing the Group into one of the largest POS financing providers in the world. Since July 2018 he holds the position of Chairman of the Board of Directors and Non-Executive Director of Home Credit N.V.
Earlier in his career, Jiří was a minority shareholder of the PPF Group. During this era, he, among others, successfully managed the PPF Group’s assets through the 2008 global economic recession.
Before joining the PPF Group, he held multiple roles at TV NOVA, growing the company into one of the most profitable commercial television stations in Europe.
Jiří gained experience in management early in his career, working as the Director of PUPP Consulting s.r.o, and as Business Manager and Member of the Investment Committee of Middle Europe Finance s.r.o.
Jiří Šmejc is a graduate of the Charles University, Prague, where he specialised in mathematical economics.