Maximum returns

‘The world is changing fast, economies are changing fast, and clients cannot keep pace,’ he says. ‘Our job is to protect our clients from the risks that are emerging. We try to help them in their everyday decisions, plus we are asset allocators, helping them to optimise their returns, based on their individual risk profiles.’

Gravity assists its clients across a broad spectrum of financial needs — from minimising banking fees and optimising returns on cash and investment holdings to deploying surplus capital on accumulated wealth. ‘In the eyes of both the families and their companies, we represent one of their most valuable assets,’ he remarks.

The big draw

Cyprus itself has a powerful appeal for Gravity’s clients, he says, with its EU membership, a transparent and stable tax regime, the common law-based legal system and highly educated multilingual workforce. Clients also appreciate the stability, safety and ease of life.

‘Cyprus is a stable jurisdiction that can cater to international capital looking for a robust, regulated jurisdiction that is part of the EU,’ Tannousis says. His assessment is backed up by citizenship advisory firm Henley & Partners, which ranks Cyprus as the top destination in Europe in its Global Wealth Mobility Leaders 2026 index.

Climbing the ranks

Tannousis laid the groundwork for his future career from an early age, choosing a pathway in accounting, economics and maths at high school. Keen to study in both the US and the UK, he gained a degree in economics and finance at the University of Indianapolis, and then a master’s in economic development and international trade at the University of Reading. The master’s course gave him an ‘international flavour of thinking’ that would prove invaluable in his later career.

On his return to Cyprus, he briefly worked in the Ministry of Social Insurance and decided to start studying for the ACCA qualification. He believed it would give him a good grounding in how companies operate, what accountants and auditors do, and the requirements of international accounting standards – and it did not disappoint. ‘I got a strong, grassroots understanding of the system behind an annual report, a regulator’s report and an international accounting standards report,’ he says.

He landed a job in the financial services industry when he joined Demetra Investments as a US markets fund manager in 2001 but found himself juggling his ACCA studies with night shifts since his team had to cover the US markets until they closed. He went on to hold a string of roles with prestigious Cypriot financial institutions, navigating the banking crisis in 2013 as well as a raft of major regulatory changes, from MiFID I to tighter anti-money laundering rules. His last role prior to Gravity was manager of wealth management with the Bank of Cyprus, with both institutional and private banking clients.

In 2023, he joined Gravity with a mandate to launch the firm’s office in Cyprus and connect it with its Athens, London and Tel Aviv offices, ahead of its planned regional expansion into the Middle East.  The client base of the Cyprus office is a mixture of international and local clients, mostly wealthy families and entrepreneurs. Tannousis likes the sector because of the opportunities to build trust with clients and cater for both their investment and succession needs.

He notes that leaving the banking sector fundamentally transformed the nature of his role. ‘I moved from working on behalf of banks to working on behalf of the client. That represents a complete realignment of interests, and it means I know precisely which questions to ask.’ His in-depth understanding of banking operations and the regulatory environment in which they operate enables him to assist clients in dealing with banks and critically evaluating the information given.

Beyond the day job

His passion for the financial services sector is evident in how he has given back by sitting on various committees and boards. He sees his new presidential role with the Cyprus National Advisory Council of the Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment (the professional body for the securities and investment industry, headquartered in the UK) as an opportunity to support the transfer of expert knowledge and education and contribute to the pursuit of excellence in areas such as investment management, governance and  ethics. He is also a member of the board of the Cyprus Investment Funds Association (CIFA) as well as the advisory board of the European Institute of Management and Finance master’s programme in risk and governance.

Outside of work, he enjoys music, travel and sport. In fact, he has a background as an elite athlete, having played handball for the Cypriot national team during his teenage years and early 20s. He says the experience helped him to develop teamwork skills and learn how to balance different priorities as well as build ‘perseverance, teamwork and a clear focus on targets’.

Looking ahead, Tannousis believes the future is bright for financial services in Cyprus, as well as for Gravity Private Wealth. ‘Cyprus can be a hub for new ideas and new products within a European-regulated framework, which is very important for us and our clients,’ he explains. ‘Our company intends to help build that framework, not simply operate within it.’