Adriana Roman-Holly, Co-Founder
Adriana has spent her entire career in corporate finance and M&A, accumulating more than 20 years of experience advising business owners, entrepreneurs, large corporates, and private equity clients across the UK and internationally.
Her focus is sell-side M&A, buy-side mandates, and growth capital and fundraising, with a particular specialism in Media and Technology developed over the past 8+ years. Prior to founding ILEX Partners, she held senior M&A roles at specialist boutique firms, where she led transaction processes end-to-end, helping clients execute on their strategic and exit objectives.
Her earlier career included US experience, working on US and international assignments at a leading Midwest investment banking firm, and serving as a Project Manager at a global consultancy specialising in business intelligence services.
Adriana combines strong technical and financial modelling skills with commercial acumen and a meticulous attention to detail. She is a confident communicator who brings clarity to complex processes, and is particularly passionate about working with women-led businesses, helping to address the persistent under-representation of women in business ownership and entrepreneurship.
Education: MBA (with Distinction), Weatherhead School of Management, Case Western Reserve University · MA, International Economic Relations
Michal Holly, Co-Founder
Michal is a senior finance and strategy professional with more than 20 years of experience, the majority of it as an investment banker at some of the world’s most respected global institutions, including Morgan Stanley, HSBC, UBS, and ING.
Throughout his career, Michal has advised a diverse range of clients, from entrepreneurs and family business owners through to private equity firms, multinational corporates, and institutions, on M&A and financing transactions spanning Europe, the US, Asia, and Africa. His breadth of sector and geographic experience means he brings a genuinely global perspective to every mandate.
More recently, Michal has extended his work to include fractional CFO and advisory roles with entrepreneurial start-up and scale-up companies in Europe and the US, giving him first-hand insight into the challenges and opportunities that growth-stage business owners face. Michal also teaches Corporate Finance and Strategy courses at Hult International Business School in London.
Education: DBA, SDA Bocconi, Milan (focus: business models, digital platforms, and industry evolution) · MBA (with Distinction), Weatherhead School of Management, Case Western Reserve University · Dual MA degree in Economics and Law