Daniel Szor

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Daniel Szor
BornSeptember 1962 (1962-09) (age 63) [1]
New York City
Citizenship United States, United Kingdom [2]
OccupationDistiller
Employers

Daniel Szor (born 1962) is an American-British entrepreneur and distiller. He is known as the founder of the Cotswolds Distillery, producers of English single malt whisky and craft spirits. [3] Prior to his career in distilling, Szor spent more than two decades in the international foreign exchange investment management industry, including senior roles at FX Concepts. [4] He has also held a number of leadership and public appointment roles within the UK spirits industry and related public bodies. [5] [6]

Contents

Early life and education

Szor was born in New York City in 1962. He was educated in the United States before beginning a career in international finance. [7]

Career

Foreign exchange career

FX Concepts

Szor spent over 25 years working in the foreign exchange (FX) investment management industry. [4] In 1987, he joined FX Concepts, a New York-based currency investment management firm founded by John Taylor, which became one of the largest specialist FX managers globally. [8]

Early in his career at FX Concepts, Szor worked in research and client advisory roles focused on foreign exchange and interest-rate markets. In 1993, he was responsible for opening the firm’s first European office in Paris, reflecting the growing importance of European institutional investors in currency management. He subsequently focused on developing the firm’s European institutional client base and its advisory and overlay businesses. [9]

By the late 1990s and early 2000s, Szor was described in industry and pensions trade press as head of European marketing at FX Concepts, and was frequently quoted on currency overlay strategies, risk management and euro-denominated investment products. [10] He later became a managing director of the firm and was associated with the expansion of FX Concepts’ European operations, including the establishment of a London office. [11]

UK corporate records list Szor as a director of FX Concepts’ UK entities during the period of the firm’s London operations. He left FX Concepts in the late 2000s, after which he began transitioning away from finance. [12]

Cotswolds Distillery

In 2014, Szor founded the Cotswolds Distillery in Staunton, Gloucestershire, located within the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The distillery was established to produce premium small-batch spirits, including gin and single malt whisky, using locally sourced ingredients. [13]

The distillery released its first whisky following the required maturation period and has since become one of the best-known producers within the emerging English whisky category. [14] Under Szor’s leadership, the business expanded both domestically and internationally, and has been widely cited in industry and business press as a contributor to the revival and global recognition of English whisky. [15] [16]

Appointments

In addition to his role at the Cotswolds Distillery, Szor has held a number of leadership, governance and public service positions. He has served as a board member of the Wine & Spirit Trade Association (WSTA), the principal trade association representing the UK wine and spirits industry. [17] He has also served as a board member of the Gin Guild, the historic membership body promoting excellence and education in gin distilling. [18]

In 2017, Szor was appointed as a Secretary of State–appointed member of the Cotswolds Conservation Board, the statutory body responsible for conserving and enhancing the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. [19]

On November 21, 2025 Szor was appointed as the 378th Master of the Worshipful Company of Distillers. one of the City of London’s historic livery companies, in recognition of his contribution to the British spirits industry. [20]

Publications

Szor is the author of Spirit Guide: In Search of an Authentic Life (2020), an autobiographical work describing his career in international finance, his move to rural England, and the founding of the Cotswolds Distillery. [21]

References

  1. ↑ ltd, company check. "MR LEON SZOR director information. Free director information. Director id 917887441". Company Check. Retrieved 2025-11-22.
  2. ↑ "Leon Daniel SZOR personal appointments - Find and update company information - GOV.UK". find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk. Retrieved 2025-11-22.
  3. ↑ Bowes, Lauren (2025-11-21). "Daniel Szor to lead Worshipful Company of Distillers". The Spirits Business. Retrieved 2025-11-21.
  4. 1 2 "An Inside the Cask chat with…Dan Szor | Inside the Cask". Inside the Cask. 2021-03-23. Archived from the original on 2024-04-23. Retrieved 2026-01-19.
  5. ↑ Rothbaum, Noah (2025-09-09). The Whiskey Bible: A Complete Guide to the World's Greatest Spirit (The History, Secrets, and Lore Behind the Best Scotch, Bourbon, Irish, Rye, Canadian, Japanese, Single Malt, and More). Workman Publishing Company. ISBN   978-1-5235-3258-2.
  6. ↑ Mensah, Emanuele (2025-01-28). Big Gin: The Rebirth of One of the World's Oldest Spirits. Cider Mill Press. pp. 165–166. ISBN   978-1-4003-4204-4.
  7. ↑ "Meet Daniel Szor: Creating an Authentic Life - StoryTerrace - Books That Matter". www.storyterrace.com. Retrieved 2026-01-19.
  8. ↑ "FX Concepts launches two currency funds". www.professionalpensions.com. 2002-02-14. Retrieved 2026-01-19.
  9. ↑ Brooksbank, Daniel. "Bedfordshire scheme seeds new currency fund". IPE. Retrieved 2026-01-19.
  10. ↑ "FX Concepts launches currency overlay funds". www.fnlondon.com. Retrieved 2026-01-19.
  11. ↑ "An Inside the Cask chat with…Dan Szor | Inside the Cask". Inside the Cask. 2021-03-23. Archived from the original on 2024-04-23. Retrieved 2026-01-19.
  12. ↑ "From Finance to Fermentation: Dan Szor's Cotswolds Whisky Story". The Whiskey Scoop. Retrieved 2026-01-19.
  13. ↑ Brooke, Simon. "Currency trader swaps Wall St for whisky". Financial Times . Retrieved 2026-01-19.
  14. ↑ "Meet the former City worker making whisky in the Cotswolds". Square Mile. 2023-11-06. Retrieved 2026-01-19.
  15. ↑ Kiely, Melita (2025-03-17). "Cotswolds Distillery: scaling a business and spearheading English whisky". The Spirits Business. Retrieved 2026-01-19.
  16. ↑ "English Whisky Guild's first annual report praises category's". www.whiskymag.com. Retrieved 2025-11-22.
  17. ↑ "WSTA appoints two new Board members". The Wine and Spirit Trade Association. Retrieved 2026-01-19.
  18. ↑ "The Gin Guild Appoints Two New Directors to its Board". Business Mondays. 2025-11-24. Retrieved 2026-01-19.
  19. ↑ "National Park Authorities, Broads Authority and AONB Conservation Boards appointments". GOV.UK. Retrieved 2026-01-19.
  20. ↑ Bowes, Lauren (2025-11-21). "Daniel Szor to lead Worshipful Company of Distillers". The Spirits Business. Retrieved 2025-11-21.
  21. ↑ Szor, Daniel (November 3, 2020). Spirit Guide: In Search of an Authentic Life. p. 179. ISBN   979-8687160254.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)
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