ESI Super has appointed National Custodian Services (NCS) as its first custodian and hopes to transition its $2.4 billion portfolio to the custodian over the next three months.

NCS was chosen over BNP Paribas and JP Morgan. Previously the Brisbane-based electricity supply workers superannuation fund produced crediting rates internally. “We expect to go live with unit pricing from July 1, 2007,” Errol Hay, ESI Super fund secretary said. NCS is the custodian of ESI Super’s main investment manager, Queensland Investment Corporation (QIC). “There were a number of reasons why we chose NCS. One of the factors was NCS is custodian for QIC,” Hay said. NCS said it was pleased to be continuing the relationship with QIC and ESI Super. “;ESI Super are a great fund to deal with,”; Patrick Liddy, NCS head of marketing, said. ESI Super has also just appointed Barclays Global Investors to a $20 million mandate for its Multi-Strategy Global Alpha Fund. The mandate is part of the fund’s strategy to increase alternative asset allocation from 5 per cent to 12 per cent. Hay said no other mandates were cancelled to accommodate the new allocation.