Two high-profile investment consultants, Ron Liling of Intech and Peter Gunning of Russell, are moving on.
Liling, the founder of Intech Investment Consulting, last week left the firm, of which he was most recently chief investment officer, after 18 years. Old Mutual, which owns Australian Skandia, purchased Intech from Liling and other private shareholders in 2006. Liling’s role will be partly filled by the new general manager, John Gethin-Jones, who joined this year after 18 years with Queensland Investment Corporation. Gethin-Jones indicated in an interview last week that while Intech would continue to provide asset consulting services, the firm would be more focused on funds management through its multi-manager products in future. Meanwhile Liling said he would be looking for other opportunities, most likely in the funds management industry. At Russell Investment Group, Peter Gunning, the regional CIO, has been promoted to CIO for the whole group, to be based in the Tacoma, Washington, head office. Gunning, who will report directly to Craig Ueland, the president and chief executive, succeeds Tom Hanly, who is moving to the role of chief operating officer. Gunning will be responsible for Russell’s global investment management and research activities. This encompasses a team of about 300 investment professionals on four continents. He will be moving to the US this month. A local replacement is expected to be announced shortly.
There is one investment area where Insignia’s $180 billion super arm has not lost money for the past 17 years, which is what it calls the insurance-related investments. The alternatives strategy is gaining popularity among asset owners due to its diversification benefit, but Insignia’s super and asset management investment chief Dan Farmer warns it is a space where investors can suffer if they “stumble in without doing the homework”.
Darcy SongJanuary 23, 2025
