ASSET Super has terminated a $45 million Australian equities mandate with GMO, and made an appointment aimed at allowing it to insource its passive rebalancing of portfolios.
The money that ASSET previously allocated to GMO’s core momentum Australian equities fund has been parceled out among Australian equities vehicles run by the following managers: Schroder Investment Management ($20 million), Quest Asset Partners ($15 million) and Challenger Financial Services ($10 million). “It’s a continuation of our strategy to get as much value as we can for members…We decided [GMO] weren’t delivering what we required,” John Paul, ASSET chief executive officer, said. The $1.6 billion industry fund, which uses Intech as its asset consultant, also took a $100 million cash mandate away from Macquarie Bank in May, directing $55 million of the money to ING Investment Management and $45 million to Perpetual Investments. Meanwhile, the fund last month hired Vijay Vittal, an accountant who previously worked at Citistreet, to monitor ASSET’s weekly unit prices and, in time, take passive rebalancing duties from National Custodian Services, the fund’s custodian.
AustralianSuper’s appointment of a general manager, retirement to replace Shawn Blackmore, which follows ART's redeployment of Kathy Vincent to chief operating officer, shows that mega funds are back-pedalling on the strategy of having dedicated retirement C-suite executives. The role had been touted as the next big thing in super funds' organisational structures, but experts say what matters is there is senior accountability for decumulation.
Darcy SongDecember 4, 2024
