Jay Koh

Managing Director & Founder at The Lightsmith Group

Jay Koh is a Managing Director and Founder at the Lightsmith Group, and previously served as a Partner of Siguler Guff and was a member of the Firm's senior management team.

Prior to joining Siguler Guff, Mr. Koh was the Head of Investment Funds and Chief Investment Strategist at the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), the development finance institution of the United States government.  In this role, Mr. Koh led the agency's $2.6 billion active emerging markets private equity program, oversaw 33 funds and was involved in managing a $15 billion portfolio of political risk insurance, direct finance and private equity investments. 

Previously, Mr. Koh served as the Head of Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) Private Equity at R3 Capital, formerly the Global Principal Strategies Division of Lehman Brothers. Mr. Koh also spent nine years at The Carlyle Group where he focused on direct growth equity investing.

Mr. Koh has had experience reviewing and approving project financings and investment funds executing solar, wind, small hydro, and biomass projects as well as energy efficiency financing structures.

Mr. Koh is a graduate of Harvard College, Oxford University, and Yale Law School, and was also a law clerk to U.S. Supreme Court Justice David Souter.