Principals, not staff

Every engagement is handled by the people on this page. That is the point of a boutique.

John T. Martin, B.A. J.D.

Chair & Founder

A Hong Kong business executive and founder of Pan Ocean International Business Limited, which evolved into Pan Ocean Advisory Group Limited, John has 25 years of experience in the Canadian legal and financial industry.

His law practice focused on corporate and international law and represented numerous companies in their listings on North American stock exchanges. Along the way he built an extensive network across South East Asia, connecting senior executives in the private and public sectors and turning those connections into completed transactions.

M&A strategy · public listings · investor relations · cross-border transactions · regulatory navigation

Victor J. Elias, B.A. LL.B.

In-House Counsel

A Canadian lawyer with a long business resume alongside the legal one: Victor co-founded a Canadian electronics manufacturing services company with operations in Canada, the USA and China, and has served as director and president of a private hospital.

He advises corporate boards and senior management on strategic planning and transactional issues, and is a member of the British Columbia Law Society, the Association of Corporate Counsel and the International Section of the American Bar Association.

Corporate law · strategic planning · board governance · cross-border operations · manufacturing

Martin Brecknock

Events Partner

Martin has spent more than 25 years in financial services and private business, mainly in Asia. He came to Hong Kong to join the private wealth management division of a top-tier Canadian bank, where he was a key member of the launch team for its discretionary managed accounts service.

He later moved into capital markets with a boutique Canadian firm focused on mining and real estate, subsequently acquired by a Hong Kong listed brokerage, and into international wealth and risk management. In between, he co-founded a company using AI-driven visual monitoring to secure physical assets on remote sites. He runs the room at our investor events.

Corporate finance · capital markets · investor relations · private clients · resources sector

Mandi Au Yeung

Senior Advisor

Mandi holds a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Toronto and has lived in Canada and Australia. She has been with Pan Ocean since 2024.

She manages client communications and coordinates cross-border transactions in English, Cantonese and Mandarin, which is frequently the difference between a deal that moves and one that stalls in translation.

Client relations · project coordination · multilingual communication · transaction support

Reach us directly

jtm@panoceanadvisory.com mandi@panoceanadvisory.com