Queensland Investment Corp. hired Damien Frawley as chief executive of the $60.2 billion asset manager.
Frawley, who is in charge of BlackRock Australia, will join Brisbane-based QIC July 1 after leaving BlackRock sometime before that date. Frawley will replace Doug McTaggart who announced his intention to retire last year.
QIC says it is the third-largest asset management firm in Australia. BlackRock did not return calls seeking comment on who will be their next head of Australia.
BlackRock Australia manages about $45 billion in assets and has a “strong working relationship with BlackRock from time to time,” says QIC chairman Peter Young.
“Damien’s attributes are exactly what QIC needs,” says Young in a telephone interview. “He is demonstrably a team builder, he has leadership skills and vast domestic and international experience.”
Frawley became head of BlackRock Australia in 2010. He was head of the account management group from 2005 to 2010 and head of retail sales at Merrill Lynch Investment Management Australia from 2002 to 2005, according to a QIC statement.
Young says he expects QIC under Frawley will increase both its assets under management and the diversity of its product offering.
QIC employs about 500 people.
