News

Maryann Mannix-White, AIST’s chief membership officer, is leaving the organisation having held a variety of senior executive roles, including the general manager role, for more than 15 years. She will leave on October 7 and is looking forward to a holiday before deciding on her next adventure. During her time at AIST, Maryann drove the…

Integrated Portfolio Solutions has appointed Damien Hatfield, one of the founders of the hedge fund industry in Australia who, more recently has focused on marketing a range of alternative and some traditional investment strategies for big and small providers, as the newest member of its board. Integrated Portfolio Solutions (IPS) is a low-cost platform which…

by Greg Bright It had to happen, of course, but sometimes when it does it is still a bit of a shock. John McMurtrie, the driving force for nearly 20 years behind what became Link Group, announced last Friday (August 7) his intention to retire early in 2021. The Link board has gone outside the…

The Netherlands, Denmark, and Australia were ranked as the top three pension systems by country, according to a report from Visual Capitalist analytics company. New Zealand, despite having little in the way of compulsory savings, came in at 8th in the world. Rounding out the top 10, in order, were: Finland, Sweden, Norway, Singapore, New…

Big investors seem reasonably sanguine about both their performance during the current market volatility and the outlook for markets generally over the next few months, according to a report by global manager search firm and investment advisor bfinance. The report was based on a survey, in June, of 368 of the largest pension funds in…

Martin Currie Australia last week, on August 6, sent a letter to the chairs of all of the companies in which the firm invests in Australia and New Zealand for its income strategies, emphasising what it has relayed in meetings about the “power of dividends” for investors – especially for retirees, charities and foundations. Dividends…

As super funds have grown and, with mergers, sometimes grown very quickly, so has their rosters of outsourced funds managers. For several years most funds have been looking to have fewer but deeper relationships with their service providers, because this tends to be more efficient. At least one manager, Parametric, is looking to make this…

The annual Money Management Awards were a bit different this year, as all awards have been. They were virtual, like the others, and they weren’t run, in Money Management’s case in conjunction with the ‘financial planner of the year’ and ‘BDM of the year’ awards as previously – those awards being put on hold until…

AvSuper has appointed a new global manager, US-Based Hardman Johnston, in a mandate which shifts its portfolio towards the growth end of the spectrum. Hardman Johnston Global Advisors has been one of the best-performing managers in its category for more than 10 years. The $2 billion aviation industry fund, which speaks for about 6,500 members,…

This year’s FEAL conference theme proved prescient when chosen, what seems a long time ago, in February. The theme was: ‘Resilience: How to Survive and Thrive in a Time of Disruption’. With a bit of luck, the organisation is showing similar foresight in announcing that the postponed annual members’ dinner will take place on November…

Investment organisations are not learning from their experience when it comes to improving investment committee (IC) practices and governance, according to new research from the ‘Thinking Ahead Institute’, a not-for-profit member group linked to Willis Towers Watson. The research, ‘Going from Good to Great‘, identifies the aircraft industry’s structured-learning environments as one for pension funds…

FNZ, the company which brought new-age investment options to Australia’s largest super funds, could be forced to sell down its acquired Australian software firm, GBST, by November 19, after the takeover was deemed anti-competitive by a UK regulator. In a decision handed down last week, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) ruled the $260 million-plus…