Deutsche enhances local team.
Deutsche Asset Management (DAM) has appointed Andrew Fay as chief investment officer (CIO) following the decision of former CIO, Karl Sternberg, to focus solely on his UK role.
Sternberg was dividing his time between the UK and Australia but due to the rapid growth of the business here Fay says an enhancement of the Australian team was necessary.
"There will be no big changes, we will be maintaining and strengthening the consistency of our investment process," Fay says.
In his new position Fay will be responsible for the investment process across all DAM's major asset classes.
Peter Greentree will take up Fay's former role, as DAM head of Australian equities.
Greentree was previously head of the DAM top 100 industrials team and will now lead a team of 18 investment professionals managing $11.1 billion of institutional and retail money.
He will also continue to run the DAM Australian Equities Alpha Fund - rated the top performing Australian share fund in the year to 30 June 2000.
"We'll be looking at introducing a range of more innovative products like the Alpha fund," Greentree says.
"There's been a lot of demand from financial planners to get the Alpha fund onto master trust lists."
He says many DAM products are already proving very popular with master trust providers.
Fay says the company will also be expanding its education and training capabilities as the introduction of member investment choice looms closer.
"Our client services role will grow with member investment choice as the need to educate super fund trustees and members increases," Fay says.
DAM is now Australia's fifth largest fund manager with over $33 billion under management.
Following the recent merger with Deutsche Bank's private banking division DAM now manages a range of wholesale, retail and private clients.
"We have an incredible array of products and we'll be continuing to focus on finding the best products," Fay says.
"I'll be working to make sure the entire team is pulling together in the same direction to strengthen our investment process."
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