RQI Investors confirm dual research hires
RQI Investors, an active quantitative equities manager within First Sentier Investors Group, has bolstered its research team with two appointments.
The firm, which was formerly called Realindex Investments, rebranded to RQI Investors in February 2024.
It announced the appointments of Tom Marty and Alex Kiechle-Cornish as quantitative researchers to enhance the team’s expertise in research and insights, reporting to Ron Guido, senior quantitative portfolio manager and head of alpha research.
Both Marty and Kiechle-Cornish will be based in Sydney and oversee the delivery of research and insights that support RQI Investors’ value and diversified alpha strategies.
“We’re very pleased to welcome back Tom and bring Alex on board, who both bring extensive experience and technical expertise to the team and join us at an exciting time to support our research and the ongoing improvement of our investment processes,” commented Andrew Francis, RQI Investors’ chief executive.
“The expansion of our research team reflects our continued commitment to delivering alpha through research and innovation – by developing new alpha ideas, enhancing existing ideas and deepening our understanding of model attribution.”
Marty previously worked at RQI Investors from September 2022 to October 2024 as a quantitative researcher. He also held quantitative research roles at AMP and Exponential Trading most recently.
Meanwhile, Kiechle-Cornish served in several quantitative research and analysis positions at Optiver and the New Zealand Superannuation Fund.
Francis continued: “The team continues to play a significant role in the development of innovative strategies for new and existing clients, with RQI Investors’ funds under management now at $24.9 billion as at 31 December 2024.”
Last October, the active quantitative equities manager made a series of promotions within its investment teams.
It confirmed that Joanna Nash and Ron Guido had been promoted to head of portfolio management and head of alpha research, respectively.
In her expanded role of head of portfolio management, Nash now has oversight of the final portfolio outcomes in terms of performance, client expectations and attribution. Meanwhile, Guido leads the research of new alpha ideas, improves existing ideas, and deepens the team’s understanding of model attribution.
Both Nash and Guido previously worked at BlackRock prior to joining RQI, where Nash was the head of sustainable investment in Australia and Guido was the portfolio manager for systematic active equities.
Scott Hamilton was also promoted to head of portfolio construction and engineering in addition to his role as senior quantitative researcher.
Commenting at the time, the CEO said: “These promotions reflect the growth we have experienced as a business and team over the last five years.”
AUTHOR
Jasmine Siljic
Recommended for you
Clime Investment Management has welcomed an independent director to its board, which follows a series of recent appointments at the company.
Ethical investment manager Australian Ethical has cited the ongoing challenging market environment for its modest decrease in assets over the latest quarter.
Commentators have said Australian fund managers are less knowledgeable compared with overseas peers when it comes to expanding their range with ETFs and underestimating the competition from passive strategies.
VanEck is to list two ETFs on the ASX next week, one investing in residential mortgage-backed securities and the other in Indian companies.
