Nomura Securities International has announced the hiring of Paul Sheard as Managing Director in the newly-created position of Global Chief Economist and Head of Economic Research. Sheard reports globally to Hideyuki Takahashi, Head of Global Research, and in New York, where he is based, to Koji Wada and Craig Phares, the Co-Heads of Equity at NSI. His responsibilities include directing Nomura’s team of country and regional economists and coordinating the formulation of a consistent set of economic forecasts and outlooks. Prior to joining NSI, Sheard served as Managing Director, Economic Research at Barclays Capital. Before that, he worked at Lehman Brothers for more than eight years, most recently as Managing Director and Global Chief Economist and earlier as the firm’s Chief Economist Asia. Commenting on the hiring of Sheard, Shigesuke Kashiwagi, Chairman, President and Chief Executive of NSI stated, “We are extremely pleased that Paul has joined NSI. His experience of more than twenty-seven years as an academic and markets economist will greatly enhance our research efforts globally, and will allow us to continue to add value for our clients.”
UBS Global Asset Management has announced the appointment of John Dugenske as Head of Fixed Income for US and Canada. From January 2009, Dugenske will be responsible for fixed income management activities in the US and Canada and for achieving the investment performance objectives for all relevant fixed income portfolios. He will be located in Chicago. Dugenske joins UBS Global Asset Management from Neuberger Berman, the former asset management business of Lehman Brothers, which he joined in 2004. At Neuberger Berman, Dugenske held the position of Head of European and Middle East Fixed Income and was based in London. Prior to this role, he ran their New York and Boston Fixed Income efforts. Between 1998 and 2003, he spent five years with Deutsche Asset Management (formerly Zurich Scudder Investments), most latterly as Director of Fixed Income Trading and Research.
Vision Capital Advisors has announced that Andrew Lutz, a thirteen year veteran in institutional fixed income trading and investing, has joined the firm as Managing Director. Lutz will head all fixed income initiatives at Vision, a new position, and report to Adam Benowitz and Randy Cohen, Co-Founders of Vision Capital. Lutz joins Vision Capital after nearly seventeen years at Susquehanna International Group, a privately-held securities trading and investment firm. From 2004, he headed Susquehanna’s fixed income and structured products businesses. “I have known Andy for many years and am thrilled to welcome him to our team,” said Benowitz. “He brings with him an impressive and defined skill set across all fixed income asset classes and we are looking forward to applying his expertise to our business as we build out new products for our clients.”
Ten Asset Management has hired Dr Ali Erdem as Senior Vice President, Investment Management. Erdem comes to Ten Asset Management from Algert Coldiron Investors, where he was a portfolio manager for the European Long/Short Portfolio. He has over seventeen years of experience researching investment factors, as well as implementing and managing investment portfolios in both US and global markets. Previously, he was a Senior Vice President with ABP in the Netherlands, and a Vice President and Senior Analyst with Freeman Associates in San Diego, CA. Erdem is a graduate of the University of Southern California in Los Angeles where he earned a PhD, MBA and a Masters in Computer Science. He also earned a BS in Electrical Engineering from Bogazici University in Istanbul, Turkey and holds the CFA designation.
Razvan Petica has joined Olympia Capital Management as Senior Vice President. Petica started his career in 2000, working in the credit derivatives department of Barclays Capital in London and in Paris. In July 2004, he joined IXIS CIB in Paris as Head of Asset Sales for Central Banks, Supranationals and Public Institutions. In that role, he focused on the growing regions of Asia, South America and the Middle East. Petica will be reporting to Laurent Dupeyron, Managing Director of Olympia Capital Management.
CME Group has hired Mark Thompson Jr as Director, Hedge Funds. Thompson, 37, will be responsible for serving as the company’s primary liaison to the East Coast hedge fund community and developing hedge fund business within the region across all CME Group product lines. He will be based in New York and will report to Tina Lemieux, Managing Director, Hedge Funds and Broker Services. Thompson joins CME Group from UBS Securities where he most recently served as a member of the macro/cross asset sales team. In this role, he was responsible for serving as the single point of contact for macro, long/short, transition and asset managers for all derivatives and cash products and performing cross-asset idea generation and research for clients. He also served as a member of the bank’s global futures and options sales team. His background also includes operations and analyst roles with Moore Capital Management and Banque Paribas.
Matrix Group has built their in-house funds of hedge fund team to six people. The team is headed by Stuart Ratcliff as Chief Investment Officer. Ratcliff has joined Matrix from Collingham Capital Management where he was a partner and senior portfolio manager. The team of six all have the same vision and considerable industry experience. There are three senior analytic and investment staff: Bechara Madi, Head of Macro and Chief Economist, who in his twenty years experience spent twelve years as a senior EMEA and European economist at Morgan Stanley before moving to North Asset management as partner and Head of Macro and Quantitative Research; Justine Lee, Head of Operational Due Diligence, has over twelve years experience in financial services and has spent the last six years as Head of Operational Due Diligence, Fund of Hedge Funds, for First State Investments and a Head of Credit Strategies to be announced shortly. Furthermore there are two research and investment analysts: Christopher Clarke and Angela Brown will be in support of the team as well as a marketing and sales department of fifteen professionals.
Laven Partners has appointed Kevin Quinlan as Director, who joins from IMS Consulting and previously worked for the FSA Enforcement Division. He has over fourteen years of experience in compliance. At Laven Partners, Quinlan will focus on FSA authorisations, fund set-ups and compliance controls. Jerome Lussan, Managing Director of Laven Partners, says: “Kevin’s experience covers law, tax and consulting which, combined with his FSA background, matches the broad range of services we offer. Kevin’s credentials mean he has a deep understanding of the regulatory framework which affects fund management companies. He will be a valuable addition to our team and his expertise will help us strengthen and develop our client services.”
Collette Wisener-Keating is to join Collins Stewart Fund Management to head up Product Development. Wisener-Keating will be responsible for fund development, fund registration in new markets and fund operations. She previously worked in senior roles in Product Development for JPMorgan Asset Management and the European Islamic Investment Bank. Wisener-Keating will be based in the London office, but will spend time working with the investment management and sales teams in both Jersey and Guernsey. Neil Darke, Head of Collins Stewart Fund Management, said: “Collette is a highly talented individual with significant specialist funds experience. Alongside the recent appointment of Mike Brown as Head of Fund Sales, this is another significant appointment by Collins Stewart demonstrating our ambition to building a first class fund management business.”
Christian Deseglise has joined BTG as partner in charge of Business Development. Deseglise will be responsible for product development, investor relations and marketing activities, based in BTG’s New York offices. Deseglise joins from HSBC Global Asset Management, where he was Global Head of Emerging Markets. Previously, Deseglise was Head of Emerging Markets for HSBC Securities in New York and, before that, for Credit Commercial de France in London. Deseglise brings to BTG twenty years of experience in asset management, and a track-record of innovation, having spearheaded the launch of a series of products which opened new investment classes, notably in BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India and China) and in the broader emerging and frontiers markets arena. Deseglise has taught international finance and emerging markets at Sciences-Po in Paris and has recently been appointed as Adjunct-Professor at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs.
The Board of Alternative Investment Strategies has appointed Richard Hotchkis as a non-executive director with immediate effect. Hotchkis has had significant experience in the investment management industry gained through over thirty years at the Co-operative Insurance Society, where he gained a deep knowledge of investment trusts and funds of hedge funds. Since becoming resident in Guernsey in 2007, he has gained considerable Board experience within the listed fund of hedge fund industry. He is currently on the Boards of FRM Credit Alpha Limited and Gottex Market Neutral Trust Limited as well as a number of other Guernsey registered companies. Nicholas Wilson, Chairman of the Board of Alternative Investment Strategies Limited, commented on the appointment: “The directors consider that it is now an appropriate time to strengthen the Board by increasing the number of non-executives. It is good market practice when maintaining an independent Board to introduce new blood and Richard’s extensive experience both in the industry and as a Board member makes him the perfect candidate for the position.”
Tri-Artisan Partners has appointed Suzanne Murphy as Managing Director, Fund Services. In this newly created position, Murphy will support Tri-Artisan’s growth by working closely with the firm’s leadership to build a consulting practice that caters to hedge and private equity funds. Murphy joins Tri-Artisan from Delphi Capital Management, the holding company for Acorn Advisory Capital and Pergamon Partners, where she was a member of Acorn’s Investment Committee and was responsible for building a $1 billion hedge fund in the equity market neutral space. In addition to her new role at Tri-Artisan, Murphy will continue to serve as a member of Acorn’s Investment Committee. “Suzanne brings a wealth of alternative investment experience to the Tri-Artisan team, and her extensive consulting background advising these businesses is a natural fit for her role heading up this new Tri-Artisan practice,” said Rohit Manocha, Co-Founder and Managing Director at Tri-Artisan.
Silar Advisors has announced the appointment of Suzanne J Currie as Managing Director to manage the firm’s business development and client communication efforts. Currie joins Silar from Dominick & Dominick, where she was Managing Director heading up the Alternative Strategies group. Her responsibilities focused on sourcing, due diligence and capital raising objectives for pan-Asian and private equity managers. Previously, she served for three years as Chief Relationship Officer at Shelterwood Financial Services, where she was a founding member of management for this multi-client family office for high-net-worth families.
The Bank of New York Mellon has appointed Andrew Dollery as Vice President, Alternative Investment Services Sales, and Roman Seydoux as Vice President, AIS Relationship Management. They will be based in London and report to David Aldrich, Managing Director, Alternative Investment and Broker-Dealer Services for the Europe, Middle East and Africa region. Dollery and Seydoux join The Bank of New York Mellon from Merrill Lynch and Morgan Stanley, respectively. “The appointment of both Andrew Dollery and Roman Seydoux deepens our management team and enhances our ability to deliver solutions for alternative fund manager clients of The Bank of New York Mellon,” said Aldrich. “We are expanding our footprint with both private equity and hedge fund managers, who are looking for innovation and creativity in these challenging market conditions.”
Navigant Consulting has appointed Robert Picard as Senior Advisor. He will provide services for the firm’s Financial Institutions Restructuring Solutions Team, part of Navigant Capital Advisers. Picard most recently served as CIO at Optima Fund Management, overseeing US$6.5bn in hedge fund of fund investments. Prior to joining Optima, Picard was a managing director at The Carlyle Group, where he built and managed the process and portfolio of an innovative hedge fund business that provided an institutional platform for institutions investing in alternative investments. Previously, Picard also served as managing director at RBC Capital Risk Advisors. “Robert Picard has over twenty years of proven track record building successful businesses in alternative investments with competitive returns,” stated Edward Casas, Senior Managing Director and Head of Navigant Capital Advisors Restructuring and Investment Banking. “Given the volume of hedge fund closures and parties impacted by this trend, Picard’s unique background will be invaluable to clients in providing real life hedge fund solutions to deal with the major challenges facing hedge fund and financial institutions during this economic crisis.”
AIMA has announced the appointment of Todd Groome, currently of the International Monetary Fund, as its non-Executive Chairman together with the restructuring of its Executive team. Groome has been responsible for multi-lateral surveillance activities and review of capital markets issues, focusing on structural issues, with a leading role on financial stability analysis and considerations for the IMF, including production of the Fund’s Global Financial Stability Report. Prior to this role, he has held senior positions at institutions in London, New York and Washington, DC including Deutsche Bank, Merrill Lynch and law firm Hogan & Hartson. In addition, Andrew Baker has been appointed Chief Executive Officer of AIMA while Florence Lombard has been appointed Executive Director to take on a new, international advocacy role for the industry. Baker will take over the running of the Association, will continue to hold responsibility for the Americas and EMEA activities of AIMA, and will complement Lombard’s policy activities, particularly in the UK. He also retains his ownership of all of the Association’s ongoing sound practices initiatives. Groome commented: “I am very honoured to have been invited to assume this role and contribute to the important work at AIMA. It is an important period for the hedge fund industry regarding the regulatory and policy framework, and the industry’s role as a mature and significant market participant. I very much look forward to working with Andrew, Florence and the other AIMA professionals, as well as the Council members and our counterparts at the Managed Funds Association and the Hedge Fund Standards Board.”
Gottex has announced the following changes to its senior management organisation: Richard Leibovitch has been named CIO. In this newly-created position, Leibovitch will have responsibility for all Gottex investment products and will retain responsibility as co-Portfolio Manager of the Market Neutral Funds. Leibovitch continues as a member of the firm’s Executive Management Committee and Head of the firm’s North American business; James Singh has been named a member of the firm’s Executive Management Committee, responsible for its Asian business and Head of the Hong Kong office. He will also assume responsibility as Portfolio Manager of the Gottex Tiger Fund Limited. Singh joined Gottex from Lehman Brothers earlier this year; and Andre Keijsers has been named a member of the firm’s Executive Management Committee. Keijsers has primary responsibility for Corporate Strategy and Corporate Communications.
