Tim Wood’s lengthy banking and business career has spanned the globe from India, Indonesia and Africa, to Western Europe and the U.S., and given him a lifetime of experience working with and in diverse cultures and languages.

A graduate of both Stanford University (economics) and Stanford Graduate School of Business, Tim started his international career with a Fulbright Scholarship that took him to Bombay, India, to research the Bombay Stock Exchange. He next joined what was then First National City Bank of New York and was posted to (then) Djakarta, Indonesia, as part of the team to open the first Citibank in Indonesia. Over the next decade, Tim’s work with Citibank took him back to Bombay, India, then to Karachi, Pakistan, followed by a stint in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, and Paris, France, with a Citibank affiliate – work he conducted almost entirely in French. Tim next moved to Citi Italy where he was in charge of the corporate banking business in Citi’s branches in Milan, Rome and Turin and acquired a good working knowledge of spoken Italian.

After five years in Italy, Tim returned to Africa with Citi South Africa. This was the time of apartheid and Citi’s presence was contested by both local constituencies as well as U.S. investor groups.  Tim gave several presentations to the Citi board of directors regarding Citi’s efforts to be a model employer by giving opportunity to all racial groups. Ultimately, however, Citi disinvested.

Following a period with Citi Paris and work in the United States, Tim ultimately returned to South Africa following the end of apartheid. He helped to establish the first Black-owned investment/merchant bank in the newly democratic South Africa and later managed a $110 million private equity fund for sub-Saharan Africa.

Today Tim serves as a director of SACE, an alternative energy company that is building solar farms in Namibia with plans to expand in Kenya and Uganda. He is heavily involved with the American Chamber of Commerce in South Africa where he was made an honorary life member in recognition of his service to the chamber. Having spent his business career learning to bridge divides and barriers, Tim is looking forward to sharing his knowledge and experience with others as a Seed coach. 

Tim is married to Ann Hofmeyr, a practicing psychologist who is also a business coach.