Sir Damon Marcus Buffini (born May 1962)^[1] is a British businessman, deputy chair of the BBC Board and chair of the BBC Commercial Board.^[3] He was formerly head of the private equity company Permira^[4][5] and governor of the Wellcome Trust.^[6]

Born in Leicester in 1962,^[1] the son of an African-American serviceman and a British woman, he was educated in Leicester and graduated with a degree in law from St John's College, Cambridge, and has an MBA from Harvard Business School.^[4]

Buffini worked for L.E.K. Consulting, and under the firm's scholarship scheme undertook an MBA from Harvard Business School.^[4] On return to the UK he joined Imperial Group working as a management consultant, before being recruited by Jon Moulton (now^[when?] head of rival firm Better Capital), in 1988 to join Schroders leveraged buyout team, known then as Schroder Ventures Europe.^[7]

Buffini became a partner in 1992, and was promoted to managing partner of the UK business in 1999, and managing partner in 2000, just before he led a management buyout group and renamed the firm Permira.^[4] Buffini took home £3.2 million plus bonuses in 2004.^[4]

In November 2021 he was appointed as a non-executive director of the BBC Board, effective from 1 January 2022, and subsequently also as chair of the BBC's commercial board.^[3] In December 2022 the BBC Board created the honorary title of deputy chair to be held ex-officio by the chair of the BBC commercial board,^[8] with Buffini assuming the title on 9 December 2022.^[9]

Buffini was also a non-executive board member of SVG Capital plc^[1] and chairman and co-founder of the Social Business Trust.

Buffini established The Buffini Chao Foundation with his wife, Lady Deborah Buffini, in 2005.^[10]

He is a main board member of the Royal Shakespeare Company and a trustee of the Royal Anniversary Trust, which administers The Queen's Anniversary Prizes for Higher and Further Education.^[when?]

In September 2012 Buffini was appointed to the board of governors at The Wellcome Trust.^[6]

In July 2020, the UK Government announced Buffini as chair of the Culture Recovery Board, an administrative body tasked with managing the £1.57bn Culture Recovery Fund intended to protect UK arts and heritage assets during the COVID-19 crisis.^[11]

Buffini was appointed Chair of the Royal National Theatre in 2016.

Buffini was ranked first in the men's Top 10 of the 2007 Powerlist, a publication ranking the most influential Black Britons.^[12] Buffini's influence has also been recognised in Business, having ranked number three by the Times Power 100 for people who hold sway over British Business.^[13] Boasting power and influence, together with a personal fortune of between £100m and £200m. Buffini was appointed to then Prime Minister Gordon Brown's business advisory panel.^[14]

Buffini was knighted in the 2016 Birthday Honours for voluntary and charitable services.^[15]

Married to a solicitor, Deborah (née Chao), the couple have three children and a family home in Weybridge^[16] and a city flat in Wandsworth.

Buffini plays tennis and golf, football for a local amateur side, and supports Arsenal.^[17]