Interviews

Chris Taylor has spent more of his 25 years with State Street, where he started as a graduate fund accountant in Sydney, in either the UK or Asian offices. On his recent return to Australia to head up the firm’s Global Services and Global Markets businesses, he said he was “really struck” by the local…

‘I don’t see how financial planners, or anyone, can set investment strategies without forecasting returns’ – Tim Farrelly Institutional investors tend to have constraints on when they can, versus should, make significant changes to asset allocation – much more so than financial planners, according to Tim Farrelly, a veteran advisor to the advisors. But this…

Scott Webster of UBS: ‘fund engagement with their members is the holy grail’ The introduction of sophisticated member-directed investment options (MDIOs) may have been prompted by a defensive frame of mind among trustees of big super funds, which have been losing higher-balance members to the SMSF market. But, in the rapid evolution of these options…

Toby Potter, the chair and one of the founders of the Institute of Managed Account Providers, probably has more experience in this growing part of the industry than anyone in Australia. He founded, just over 10 years ago, what became the recently listed Managed Accounts Ltd and  developed what is now a portfolio of more…

The dynamic approach to risk management being pioneered by global consulting firm Milliman is gaining traction in Australia, according to Milliman’s head of fund services, Michael Armitage. He explains the firm’s hedging strategy to Brendan Swift and how some hedge fund-style processes can be used to protect retirees, along with super fund portfolios. The global…

For Tim Hodgson, the co-founder, with Roger Urwin, of Towers Watson’s ‘Thinking Ahead Group’ back in 2002, the job is the longest he has ever been in during his working life. He says it’s a great job, as it is, but last year he wanted to push the envelope a little further. As head of…

Northern Trust has been probably the most successful provider of securities services in Australia, in terms of new business wins, over the past several years. Patrick Liddy, a former securities services executive himself, speaks with Rohan Singh, country head of Northern Trust in Australia and New Zealand, while putting his unique spin on the story….

John Fildes… “We have grown faster than any other alternative trading venue anywhere in the world since our platform was launched.” When Chi-X Australia commenced full operations in November 2011 it set in train a number of positive developments for investors, including an improvement in the offerings of the former monopoly exchange, the ASX. Greg…

Fiona Trafford-Walker … ‘we have to be the voice of members who don’t have a voice’ On the cusp of its 20th birthday, Frontier Advisors will hold its annual conference in Melbourne next week. Greg Bright spoke with the big asset consulting firm’s Director of Consulting, Fiona Trafford-Walker, about the evolution of Frontier and the…

Robert da Silva, a fixed income specialist and new co-CIO at van Eyk Research, is about to begin a review of the fixed income sector and hints that ‘minor enhancements’ will be made in the process After leaving school and stocking shelves at Coles for two years, Robert da Silva went back to university and…

Andrew Proebstl… ‘I think there’s too much negativity surrounding SMSFs.’ If there’s one super fund that knows a thing or two about mergers, it’s legalsuper, a product of seven mergers inside as many years over the last decade. The chief executive, Andrew Proebstl, has been involved in all of them. He spoke with Greg Bright about…

When Bev Durston returned to Australia last year after seven years working overseas, mostly in London, she was surprised that super funds had not made more progress in adding additional alternatives strategies. She spoke with Greg Bright about the local industry and her time at British Airways Pensions and the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation….