Generali Investments
The asset management arm of insurance giant Generali Group, has appointed a new investment chief to oversee €452bn (£399.5bn, $541.3bn) in assets as the company focuses its strategy on offering tailored products to institutional funds.
Francesco Martorana will become head of investments at Generali Investments on 2 October, having served as head of group asset liability management and strategic asset allocation for Generali’s general account assets.
Martorana takes over from Anna Khazen, who has left Generali Investments “to pursue other opportunities”. Prior to joining Generali in November 2013, he held management positions at Allianz, Deutsche Bank and JPMorgan.
Also joining the investments team is Anna Maria Reforgiato Recupero, who started in the newly created role of head of insurance and liability driven investor solutions on 18 September.
Zurich
Zurich North America chief executive Mike Foley plans to leave his position at the end of 2017 after more than a decade with the Swiss insurance giant.
His successor has already been chosen. She is Kathleen Savio, who has been president of the insurer’s North America Alternative Markets unit since 2012. She’ll take over as of 1 January.
Foley joined Zurich in 2006 as North America chief operating officer.
Manulife
Financial services group Manulife Asia has announced the appointment of Anil Wadhwani as president and chief executive from 13 November.
Wadhwani joins the company “to drive better alignment with its strategic priorities, accelerate the company’s growth, optimize legacy blocks of business in North America and leverage Manulife’s talent across geographies,” the firm said.
Most recently, he served as the global head of operations for Citi’s consumer bank, based in New York.
Quilter Cheviot
Old Mutual Wealth subsidiary Quilter Cheviot has added three investment managers to its London office, as it plans to launch a new investment management team focusing on private clients.
Mats Arthursson, Suneet Kumar and James Gatehouse will all join the £22.5bn assets under management firm as part of the fresh team.
Arthursson, who will lead the team, joins from Arbuthnot Latham & Co, where he most recently served as a director of investment management.
Kumar joins from Seven Investment Management, where he spent nearly four years as an investment relationship manager, while Gatehouse joins from Fiske where he was most recently a senior investment manager.
The three hires, who will report to managing director of investment management Andrew McGlone, brings the total number of investment managers in Quilter Cheviot’s London office to 69.
Janus Henderson
Janus Henderson Investors has appointed Columbia Threadneedle Investments’ long-time head of fixed income, Jim Cielinski, as global head of fixed income.
Cielinski has 30 years’ investment management experience, most recently as global head of fixed income at Columbia Threadneedle. He will join the firm on 1 November.
Colin Lundgren, who has been with Columbia Threadneedle for 31 years, will assume Cielinski’s role.
Commonwealth Bank of Australia
As part of the sale of its life insurance businesses in Australia and New Zealand, the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) also announced its head of wealth management Annabel Spring will leave the company in December.
Spring will continue to lead the wealth management businesses, the divestiture, and the strategic review until the end of the year.
Commenting on Spring’s confirmed departure, CBA chief executive Ian Narev said Spring had led the CBA’s insurance arm during “challenging and changing times” for the insurance industry.
CBA also announced that current chief financial officer of the international financial services, Michael Venter, has been appointed chief operating officer of wealth management following Spring’s departure.
Jersey Finance
Promotional body Jersey Finance has appointed Lisa Springate as head of technical with effect from 20 November, replacing Tom Cowsill.
Springate joins from Bedell Cristin’s Jersey office, where she has been a part of the commercial litigation team for more than 17 years and a partner for nine years.
Prior to moving to Jersey in 1993, she practised as a barrister in Chambers in London and with leading law firm Mayer Brown JSM in Hong Kong. She qualified as an advocate of the Royal Court of Jersey in 2000.
Neuberger Berman
Neuberger Berman has bought Canadian quant firm Breton Hill Capital in a move to bolster its quantitative investment capabilities.
Based in Toronto, the firm has $2bn assets under management investing for a range of clients including institutions, ultra-high net worth individuals and retail investors.
The company comprises co-founders Ray Carroll, Simon Griffiths and Frank Maeba, who have worked together for over 19 years. They are supported by 11 additional investment professionals, all of whom are expected to join Neuberger Berman.
The firm’s solutions have a focus on alternative risk premia and multi-factors spanning equities, currencies, commodities and rates.
PineBridge Investments
London-based multi-asset manager PineBridge Investments has named former Candriam investors group executive Gregory Ohlson as the company’s consultant relations manager for Emea.
In his new role, Ohlson will focus on consultant relations in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. He joins a team led by global consultant relations director Mandy Adamou.
Personal Finance Society
After taking over from Nick Turner earlier this week, the newly-appointed Personal Finance Society (PFS) president Sharon Sutton chaired the inaugural meeting of the Financial Planning Practitioner Panel.
Amongst those appointed as consultants to the panel of 12 financial planners are the former Institute of Financial Planning (IFP) chief executive Steve Gazzard, marketing consultant Carrie Bendall, Magenta Financial Planning chief executive Julie Lord and Eldon Financial Planning director Gemma Siddle.
The PFS said the panel was set up to help guide the professional body, as it looks to broaden its CPD programme to incorporate good practice in financial planning.
The full line-up of the panel is:
- Chair – PFS president and Thornton Chartered Financial Planners managing director Sharon Sutton;
- Vice-chair – Money Honey Financial Planning managing director Jane Hodges;
- Brunel Capital Partners managing director Damien Rylett;
- Eldon Financial Planning director Gemma Siddle;
- First Wealth managing partner Anthony Villis;
- Fortitude Financial Planning director Neil Bailey;
- HarperLees director Adrian Quick;
- HK Wealth managing director Garry Hale;
- Magenta Financial Planning chief executive Julie Lord;
- Phoenix Wealth Management managing director Brendan O’Ciobhain;
- Tenet Group Limited head of policy, regulatory and compliance Simon Thomas; and
- Xentum director Adam Carolan.
