The biggest CEO moves in 2024
There have been numerous CEO moves in the Australian fund management space this year to date, both exits and appointments from major players.
Money Management rounds up the biggest leadership moves since the start of the year.
January 2024
Platinum Asset Management appointed Jeff Peters as its new chief executive, replacing Andrew Clifford. Since joining the firm, the firm has announced a two-part growth and reset turnaround program to improve flows and revenue.
February 2024
Magellan announced that it had appointed Sophia Rahmani, chief executive of Maple-Brown Abbott, as its new managing director. The intention is that Rahmani will transition to the CEO role within 12 months of joining the firm.
March 2024
Former Schroders Australia chief executive Sam Hallinan joined Spire Capital as a partner. Hallinan departed Schroders in June 2023, having held the CEO role since February 2021. At Spire, which is a private markets firm, he will sit on the firm’s leadership team and investment committee.
April 2024
Bell Asset Management appointed Michael Lovett as its new chief executive, replacing Nick Fels. Lovett was formerly the CEO of Vanguard Super. His focus at Bell will be on enhancing and growing its business capabilities while delivering superior investment performance, market insights and client reporting.
Maple-Brown Abbott announced Melanie McQuire as its new chief executive, having held the position in an acting capacity after the earlier departure of Rahmani. The firm has since been acquired by Antipodes Partners, an affiliate of Pinnacle Investment Management.
May 2024
Global investment giant Vanguard appointed Salim Ramji from iShares as its next chief executive to replace Tim Buckley who stepped down after six years. Ramji was previously the global head of iShares and Index Investing, and formerly worked at consultancy McKinsey & Company.
June 2024
US fund manager Nuveen, which has US$1 trillion in assets under management, appointed William Huffman as its chief executive. He previously served as president of Nuveen Asset Management and head of equities and fixed income.
July 2024
Clime Investment Management announced group chief executive Annick Donat would depart at the end of July after three years in the role. The firm has since announced it will be led by Michael Baragwanath as acting managing director effective immediately, having been appointed as a director on 1 July.
Pacific Current Group appointed Michael Clarke as its executive director and acting chief executive from 1 July. This followed the departure of Paul Greenwood to join GQG Partners after it acquired minority stakes in three Pacific Current affiliates to create a new private capital solutions division. Greenwood joined the new PCS division as its new managing director and co-head of private capital solutions.
August 2024
Global X Australia chief executive Evan Metcalf announced he will be departing the ETF provider in October following a decade at the firm. He was appointed to the CEO role in September 2022 after the firm was acquired by Mirae Asset.
Perpetual announced it had appointed Bernard Reilly as chief executive and managing director to replace Rob Adams. Reilly was formerly the chief executive of Australian Retirement Trust (ART) and was a key player in the merger between QSuper and Sunsuper to form ART.
AUTHOR
Laura Dew
Recommended for you
Clime Investment Management has faced shareholder backlash around “unsatisfactory” financial results and is enacting cost reductions to return the business to profitability by Q1 2025.
Amid a growing appetite for alternatives, investment executives have shared questions advisers should consider when selecting a private markets product compared to their listed counterparts.
Chief executive Maria Lykouras is set to exit JBWere as the bank confirms it is “evolving” its operations for high-net-worth clients.
Bennelong Funds Management chief executive John Burke has told Money Management that the firm is seeking to invest in boutiques in two specific asset classes as it identifies gaps in its product range.
