Rob McGrath is the founder of ZigIQ, a unique consulting firm advising disruptive startup and early stage FinTech companies. Clients seek Rob’s expertise on strategy and product from his 31 years leading positive disruption in trading and investing. As a senior advisor to select companies, Rob multiplies his impact on the problem he is most passionate about: breaking down the conflicts and inefficiencies that impact returns in financial markets.

Rob is known across the industry for embracing change. As an investment executive in leading asset managers, he built unprecedented global trading capabilities and pushed for greater transparency and efficiency in the investment process. The results of this are a significant reduction in trading costs and better fund performance. Most recently Rob was Global Head of Trading for Abu Dhabi Investment Authority(ADIA), where he transformed trade execution capabilities across asset classes and markets. With ADIA, Rob pioneered the use of advanced data analytics and modeling to raise the foresight of the desk beyond what was possible before. This included using machine learning and AI to analyze
historical trading data for improved investing. Also, insights derived from a
combination of trader style, fund manager profile, and current market conditions
helped create investment strategies with a high likelihood of success. Rob also
developed innovations including hypermeasuring costs, analyzing suggested
urgencies, and trade automation. His leadership improved skills on the team,
increased collaboration with fund managers, and reduced costs to
do more with less.

Before joining ADIA, Rob was Global Head of Trading for Schroders Investment
Management. He led 42 traders servicing 80+ Portfolio Managers with over $500
billion in assets. Rob developed a strategic vision and purposefully transformed all
aspects of trading. He revamped trading infrastructure and led the industry in
sophisticated execution methods, broker independence, and custom trade cost
analysis. Through 14 years of leadership at Schroders, Rob’s results and reputation for integrity made him a global leader in FinTech. He has met with the SEC, members of Congress, and EU regulators as a voice for institutional investors. He is a sought after speaker at industry conferences and helped form a buy-side advocacy group to proactively improve markets. Prior to Schroders, Rob was Chief Executive Officer and Head of Trading for Nittany Funds Management. He co-founded this hedge fund, building operations for $40 million in assets. The fund focused on equities and currencies of emerging Asia, Europe, and Latin America. Rob started his career with CIBC Oppenheimer & Co., where he rose from Portfolio Accountant to Head of the trading desk.

Rob is a founding member of the Buyside Equity Trading Roundtable (BETR) and a member of The Economic Club of New York. He earned a Bachelor of Science Degree from Manhattan College, and currently holds FINRA Series 7, 63, and 55
designations.