Mr Burke was previously the Global Head of Fidante Partners. He is a proven growth leader, with broad global experience through his time at Mercer, AllianceBernstein, Deutsche Bank, and more recently in establishing Challenger Investment Solutions before being appointed to his role at Fidante.

“We are delighted to welcome John as our new CEO,” said Bennelong’s chairman, Michael Dwyer. “He brings leadership strength in his track record as well as extensive knowledge of the funds management sector and will be a pivotal part of the next stage of our growth ambitions.”

Mr Burke said he was attracted to the role given Bennelong’s excellent reputation for bringing quality investment products to its customers.

“Bennelong is a high-calibre organisation, and I’m looking forward to sharing my experiences and perspectives with the board and the Bennelong team,” he said. “It will be a privilege to lead a company that is already known for the quality of its people and products, and I can’t wait to get started to help bring the best possible outcomes to Bennelong’s clients.”

Mr Burke will join Bennelong in the first half of 2023, allowing for a comprehensive handover and a smooth transition period as the business continues to work towards its 2025 strategic objectives.

Mr Bingham and the Bennelong board have spent the last two years actively planning his succession.

“I feel it’s time to pass the reins to the next leader,” said Mr Bingham. “I’ve enjoyed my time at Bennelong immensely and am very proud of everything we’ve achieved as a team.”

Mr Dwyer said, “On behalf of the board and the broader business, I’d like to thank Craig for his important contribution to Bennelong over the years. Since joining in 2014, he has facilitated significant growth of the business, establishing Bennelong’s offshore arm BennBridge in the UK and US, partnering with a number of boutique funds management teams across the globe, and growing assets under management and advice from around $5 billion in 2014 to more than $15 billion at 31 December 2022. We wish him every success in the next chapter of his career.

“Bennelong has a strong culture centred around its people, which will continue to be a cornerstone of our future growth and success. Our focus remains unwavering: to grow our boutique businesses and deliver the best possible outcomes for our clients,” Mr Dwyer said.

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Robert McKillop

BennBridge has appointed Robert McKillop as chief executive officer for UK and Europe, starting 4 May.

Mr McKillop has almost 30 years of experience in asset management leadership across investment, distribution and product functions, spanning geographic regions and client channels. He has a diverse skillset and a proven history of building high performance teams, driving business growth and client-focused innovation. Based in London, Mr McKillop will report to the global CEO of the BFM Group, Craig Bingham. The BFM Group operates as BennBridge in the UK and US, and Bennelong Funds Management in Australia.

Prior to joining BennBridge, Mr McKillop spent over a decade as global head of product and client solutions at Aberdeen Standard Investments (formerly Standard Life Investments and recently rebranded Abrdn). He joined Standard Life in 1997 working in a range of senior roles including head of Europe, Australasia and the Far East (EAFE) Funds in the global equities team, and head of Japanese equities.

Mr Bingham said Mr McKillop’s wealth of global experience makes him a perfect fit to serve as BennBridge UK’s CEO.

“Robert is a highly experienced and knowledgable leader in the funds management industry with exceptional global credentials.

“His expertise will be an invaluable asset as we focus on further expansion in the UK and European markets,” said Mr Bingham.

Mr McKillop said he is looking forward to joining the experienced leadership team at BennBridge and the broader BFM Group, and working with the business’s boutique partners.

“I’m very excited to be joining a high-quality team during a time of accelerated business growth. The business’s clear strategic plan allows us to remain focused yet nimble and open to new opportunities,” Mr McKillop said.

Mr McKillop holds a Masters of Science in Investment Analysis at the University of Stirling and is a CFA Charterholder.

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Amara Haqqani

Bennelong Funds Management (Bennelong) has become Climate Positive, offsetting 200% of its operational emissions and eclipsing the net-zero commitments of many of its financial institution counterparts.

As part of a broader strategy to make the organisation more sustainable, Bennelong has measured the carbon footprint of its energy use, waste, travel and suppliers, and purchased carbon credits through Australian, female-founded, climate-tech startup trace, to not just become ‘carbon neutral’, but go beyond this commitment to become ‘Climate Positive’.

For trace and Bennelong, Climate Positive means more than just offsetting more emissions than are produced; it signifies an approach to climate-conscious business that’s transparent, engaging and accessible, allowing staff, customers and stakeholders to be active participants in making change.

Bennelong’s Chief Client Strategy Officer Amara Haqqani cites these qualities as one of the core reasons why the organisation selected trace as its partner of choice to take this step. “At Bennelong, the principles of sustainable development are integrated across our entire way of working. It was important that our approach to net-zero incorporated staff engagement and tangible impact – rather than being treated as a box to be ticked – and trace was the ideal partner to achieve that,” she said.

To demonstrate its commitment to enhancing the organisation’s sustainability beyond public statements and strategies, Bennelong has also engaged trace to run an employee carbon footprint engagement campaign to bring staff ‘along the Climate Positive journey’ with them. This includes delivering educational content and tips, powered by an online platform for the team that encourages them to pledge to reduce their personal emissions through actions such as eating more plant-based food or switching to low-emissions transport options.

Co-founder of trace, Joanna Auburn, noted that Bennelong is the first of its business members to not just offset 100% of its footprint (or slightly more), but to offset 200% of its footprint and use the initiative as a foundation for amplifying impact across the business. “Most organisations that make net-zero pledges and offset their emissions do so in a siloed fashion – usually led by management and operationalised by a sustainability or marketing team, without engaging the broader team on the decision-making process, or educating them on how they as individuals can contribute to making a positive impact. An organisation of Bennelong’s size has the potential to significantly amplify its impact simply by looping in its employees, and giving them the knowledge and tools they need to contribute”, she said.

Bennelong’s CEO, Craig Bingham, said trace and Bennelong are looking forward to exploring other opportunities through their partnership, including expanding the Climate Positive initiative to Bennelong’s portfolio of boutique asset management partners, and potentially its overseas operations in the UK and US (operating as BennBridge).

“In an era when social justice, climate change and heightened regulations are front of mind for investors across the globe, it’s important for fund managers to look beyond purely commercial objectives to ways in which they can influence societal change for the better. We’re continuing to explore this space with our partners across the globe, and are committed to supporting smart, sustainable and inclusive growth,” said Craig.

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[1] http://www.our-trace.com/

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BAEP won in the Australian Equities – Large Cap category and Quay won the Global Real Estate Investment Trust category.

The Awards, hosted by Zenith Investment Partners, recognise and encourage excellence in funds management across all asset classes.

Bennelong Funds Management’s CEO, Craig Bingham, said the awards are a welcome recognition of the expertise and skill of the portfolio managers.

“With significant and ongoing events impacting markets across the world over the past 12 months, the teams at BAEP and Quay are to be commended for delivering such strong returns to their investors during this challenging period.

“It’s particularly pleasing to see their achievements recognised by Zenith,” he said.

Zenith bases its awards selection on long-term criteria derived from its extensive research and due diligence, including fees, portfolio construction, investment team strength, security valuation and selection, risk management and investment philosophy.

The Bennelong Australian Equities Fund, one of the five funds managed by BAEP, is a high conviction ‘core’ fund and aims to grow investment value over the long term via a combination of capital growth and income, through a diversified portfolio of Australian shares.

The Quay Global Real Estate Fund invests in a portfolio of real estate securities listed on stock exchanges around the world, and is relatively concentrated and currency unhedged, with a conviction-based approach.

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The fund aims to generate absolute long-term returns by investing responsibly in emerging markets. This focus has meant, for example, that the strategy has never invested in Chinese education, media or internet businesses because of the governance compromises this requires. It is managed by Skerryvore Asset Management, which is a boutique of Bennelong’s UK arm, BennBridge.

Glen Finegan, lead portfolio manager at Skerryvore, said alignment of interests is critical to successful investment in emerging markets.

“Investing alongside managers and owners who control their own destinies and share our belief in a long-term approach is a fundamental tenet of our investment philosophy.

“As fair-minded and far-sighted emerging market investors, we look at companies first and foremost from the perspective of quality and alignment.”

Chief executive officer of Bennelong Funds Management, Craig Bingham, said Skerryvore is a world-class team with a deep understanding of emerging markets and a proven track record.

“The team’s insights into emerging markets companies, coupled with a commitment to sustainable, high-quality investing, will provide Australian investors unique access to companies with dynamic growth potential from some of the world’s advancing economies.

“Skerryvore has seen strong growth in assets thanks to support from institutional clients across Australia, Europe and North America. This fund launch enables the Australian financial adviser market to gain access to this high-quality boutique investment team.”

The fund typically holds between 40 and 80 stocks. Its benchmark is the MSCI Emerging Market Index, and the minimum suggested investment timeframe is five to eight years.

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Ms Haqqani will focus on identifying the needs of Bennelong’s clients, both domestically and offshore, and ensuring investment products and solutions are developed to meet those needs. Marta Galli, senior product manager, will report to Ms Haqqani.

Mr Bingham said Ms Haqqani’s in-depth knowledge of funds management and financial policy and strategy will play a pivotal role as Bennelong continues to grow in Australia and beyond.

“The traditional client profile is changing, and we’re working in a more nuanced and complex environment. It’s critical that we adapt and build solutions to meet those changing clients’ needs to ensure we remain relevant to our clients into the future.

“Amara’s extensive experience and passion for customer-centricity is the perfect fit for Bennelong in our ongoing commitment to put our clients at the heart of everything we do.”

Ms Haqqani was most recently a director for actuarial consulting firm Milliman. Prior to this, she held senior policy and compliance roles at the Financial Services Council, Challenger Limited and RBC Global Asset Management, as well as product roles at Equity Trustees, Orchard and Aviva.

“Following a number of years focusing on superannuation members and their retirement income needs, I am now broadening my scope to all types of financial services clients,” said Ms Haqqani.

“I’m looking forward to using my experience across product, policy and risk management to further develop Bennelong’s offering.”

The appointment follows a trio of recent hires at Bennelong’s UK arm, BennBridge, bolstering its senior leadership team. Naureen Khan has been appointed managing director, Client Group UK and Europe; Dicken Watson has been appointed chief business officer and general counsel; and Charles Oldmeadow has been appointed director, client group UK and Europe.

“Our global offering spans various audiences, but what remains consistent is our focus on delivering the best outcomes for our clients,” said Mr Bingham.

“These appointments further strengthen our client capability as we position the business for the next phase in its growth – both here in Australia and overseas.”

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Michael Dwyer

Industry veteran Michael Dwyer AM has been appointed as a non-executive director to the boards of Bennelong Funds Management Ltd and its parent company Bennelong Funds Management Group Pty Ltd, effective from 1 December.

Mr Dwyer has more than 30 years of experience in the financial services industry, including as chief executive officer of First State Super between 2004 and 2018. He was made a member of the Order of Australia in 2011 for service to the superannuation industry through leadership and executive roles, and to the community as a director of Australia for UNHCR (the private sector partner of the UN Refugee Agency). Two industry scholarships have been established in his name – the Aware Super Michael Dwyer Scholarship for Emerging Leaders and the FEAL Michael Dwyer Leadership Scholarship.

Craig Bingham, chief executive officer of Bennelong Funds Management, said Mr Dwyer’s extensive industry experience and understanding are highly valued by the boards.

“Michael brings a broad skillset to Bennelong, built over three decades in the superannuation industry across a variety of senior roles and responsibilities.

“His proven success in driving growth will augment the existing experience and knowledge of our board as we position the business for the next phase in its growth – both here in Australia and overseas through our UK and US-based arm, BennBridge.

“Michael is well-known and respected in the industry for the value he places on people, and his work in mentoring and supporting others. This aligns perfectly with our own values and culture, and I am delighted he will be joining us,” Mr Bingham said.

Mr Dwyer holds a number of other directorships, including Chair of NSW TCorp, Director of ASX-listed Iress, and Chair of Australia for UNHCR. He is a member of the ASIC Consultative Panel and a member of the Global Advisory Council Tobacco Free Portfolios, as well as a fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD) and a fellow of the Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia (ASFA).

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Mr Finnell was previously at Fisher Investments, most recently as co-head of institutional business development and client services for Australia, New Zealand and Southeast Asia. Before this, he was a financial adviser with Ameriprise Financial.

Craig Bingham, CEO of Bennelong, said Mr Finnell’s appointment represents Bennelong’s commitment to broadening its institutional footprint in Australia and overseas.

“We’ve seen increased interest in our products here in Australia, but also in our UK-based boutiques and their offerings,” he said.

“As always, we’re focused on delivering the best outcomes for our clients across the globe, and that includes providing access to a suite of diverse and innovative investment strategies.

“Eric’s appointment will ensure our important institutional clients continue to receive the high level of service our investors expect of us.”

Mr Finnell will be based in Sydney and report to Jonas Daly, Head of Distribution.

“Eric’s experience on both the funds management and advisory side of financial services gives him a unique insight into the intermediary market, which will be instrumental in supporting our institutional clients as well as the expansion of our global product base,” said Mr Daly.

Mr Finnell has a Bachelor of Business Administration (Finance) from the University of North Carolina.

Bennelong is part of the BFM Group, an investment company that partners with boutiques asset managers across the globe to deliver actively managed equity funds. Outside Australia the Group operates as BennBridge, with a presence in the UK and US.

In 2019 BennBridge announced its partnership with two new UK-based boutiques – BambuBlack Asset Management, investing in Asian equities, and Skerryvore Asset Management, investing in global emerging market equities. The Group’s growing reach also gives its investors access to Australian, UK and global equities; and listed global infrastructure and real estate.

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Under its independent ownership structure, Wheelhouse will continue to focus on delivering purpose-built investment solutions that target income and protection for Australian retail and wholesale investors, including its flagship Global Equity Income Fund.

The fund’s net positive returns year-to-date are attributed to its rules-based systematic approach to preserving capital, particularly in market crises, while continuing to generate consistent income.

Alastair MacLeod, Managing Director of Wheelhouse, said, “We are excited to take full ownership of our business and extremely grateful to Bennelong for its support in establishing and positioning Wheelhouse for future success.

“We remain fully committed to delivering defensive income for Australian investors challenged by today’s ‘lower for longer’ equity growth environment and historically low interest rates. We look forward to leveraging our track record and momentum to pursue new opportunities.”

Bennelong CEO, Craig Bingham, said “We are proud to have partnered with Wheelhouse, and look forward to seeing them continue to flourish.

“Over the past three years, Wheelhouse has focused on its objectives of generating income, protecting capital and lowering volatility – timely offers for today’s market. We wish them well as they enter their next phase of growth and development.”

“Across the industry, this is a time of change and undeniable challenges, but we’re also seeing the arrival of new opportunities,” said Craig. “At Bennelong, we continue to refine and strengthen our global capabilities, managing the business to deliver the best possible outcomes for our clients.”

Wheelhouse has agreed terms with new distribution partners and has appointed a new responsible entity for its offerings, which will be announced later this month. The team also plans to launch an Australian equities focused fund, which will apply the same rules-based and disciplined derivatives strategy used for the global fund.

The buyout and transition arrangements will be finalised by 31 July 2020.

-oOo-

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In the UK, BennBridge has appointed Doug Stewart as chief executive officer. The newly-created CEO role replaces the previous chief operating officer role which was held by Greg Thomas, who helped launch BennBridge UK in late 2016. Mr Thomas has taken up a new role as chief business officer at Bennelong, based in Sydney.

Mr Stewart and Mr Thomas will report to Craig Bingham, CEO of Bennelong Funds Management.

Both Bennelong and BennBridge are part of the BFM Group, an investment company that currently partners with 12 boutiques across the globe. The Group’s gives its investors access to Australian, UK, Asian and global equities; listed global infrastructure and real estate; and global emerging markets.

Mr Bingham said the appointments are an important step for both the Australian and UK businesses as part of their long-term growth strategies.

“Since launching BennBridge almost four years ago, the business has gone from strength to strength.

“In Doug we have appointed a high calibre executive to lead BennBridge’s future growth. He has a proven track record in building asset management businesses, understands the long-term characteristics and requirements of the multi-boutique model and is the perfect leader for BennBridge as it embarks on its next period of development, including expansion into Europe,” Mr Bingham said.

Mr Stewart joins BennBridge from OppenheimerFunds, where he was CEO and Head of EMEA for OppenheimerFunds’ European business from 2016. During his three-year tenure, he was responsible for the group’s international expansion into EMEA, including setting up a London office and building the team and operating model.

Prior to this, Mr Stewart was Managing Director, EMEA Client Group, at AllianceBernstein. He spent 15 years at the group, building its business and offering globally.

Mr Thomas has over 20 years’ industry experience. Before joining BennBridge he was managing director with Visium Asset UK and also spent six years with Gruss Capital Management as COO and two years with Copenhagen Capital.

“Greg’s achievements in helping establish BennBridge in London, and introducing our boutique partnership model to a new market, have been tremendous – particularly at a time of significant business and economic uncertainty in the UK,” Mr Bingham said.

“In his new role in Australia, he will work closely with me to help Bennelong achieve its strategic and financial goals as we move into the next phase of our growth.”

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