Simon Doyle

Schroders Australia (SIMAL) has appointed Simon Doyle as chief executive officer, alongside his ongoing role of chief investment officer, a position he has held since February 2022.

This is part of an important and future-focused evolution of the Australian business, reinforcing Schroders’ commitment to being investment-first and insight-led. Schroders recognises the critical importance and value of our investment proposition to clients and the need to tailor our capabilities to help solve their specific needs.

Simon succeeds Sam Hallinan who has led the Australian business since April 2021 through a period of significant industry change and societal disruption. We are grateful for the contribution Sam made to Schroders during this period and he leaves with our best wishes.

Simon is a deeply experienced investor with over 20 years of experience at Schroders alone, having joined the business in 2003. During his tenure Simon has successfully developed and managed our Fixed Income, Multi-Asset, and Private Debt teams. Simon will continue in his investment role as CIO alongside a deeply experienced team of investment professionals who lead our locally-manufactured capabilities, including Australian equities under Martin Conlon and Andrew Fleming, fixed income under Stuart Dear and Kellie Wood and private debt under Nicole Kidd.

In addition, we are announcing the promotion of Sebastian Mullins to the role of head of multi-asset. Sebastian has served as deputy head of multi-asset since February 2022, having joined Schroders in 2019. He has 12 years of multi-asset investing and will lead a team of deeply experienced investment professionals. Over time we expect to recruit additional talent into the multi-asset team.

Commenting on Simon’s appointment, Chris Durack, head of Schroders Asia Pacific, said, “Simon’s new dual CEO and CIO role reflects our ongoing commitment to helping solve for our clients by being an investment-first and insight-led business in Australia, and allows for further direct engagement on investment solutions with our clients, the needs of whom are becoming increasingly complex. Simon is highly regarded internally both locally and globally across the Schroders business and is well-known within the market and amongst our clients.”

Peter Harrison, global chief executive officer for Schroders, said: “These leadership changes signify our unwavering commitment to providing exceptional investment solutions tailored to our clients’ specific needs. Under Simon’s leadership, and with an investment-led approach supported by our locally-based investment teams, we are confident in our ability to continue delivering outstanding results for our clients.”

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Lucy Briggs

Schroders Australia has appointed Lucy Briggs as its new Head of Marketing, Australia. Ms Briggs will be based in Sydney and report to Schroders Australia CEO, Sam Hallinan. She will commence the new role on 6 February 2023.

Ms Briggs joins Schroders following eight years at Magellan Asset Management, as the Head of Marketing from 2018 onwards, and prior to that as the Senior Marketing Manager. Before moving to Magellan, Ms Briggs was a Senior Marketing Manager at Fidelity International’s Australian business, having joined in 2009. 

Mr Hallinan says Ms Briggs brings over 20 years’ experience to the role and is a seasoned marketing and communications leader, having worked in financial services in both Sydney and London.

“Lucy has strong industry and product knowledge across multiple asset classes, listed and unlisted funds, with an established track record of growing brands and leading high-performing marketing teams across the full marketing and communications spectrum,” Mr Hallinan says.

“We look forward to working with Lucy as she delivers best-in-class, innovative and solutions-based marketing outcomes for Schroders and our clients.”

Ms Briggs’ appointment follows the promotion of Amanda Irving, Schroders Head of Marketing for Australia, to Head of Marketing, APAC, with effect from 1 November 2022. Ms Irving relocated to Singapore in January 2023 to take up this role. She replaces Michelle Han who has moved to London to take up the role of Global Head of Growth and Digital Marketing. Ms Irving has 20 years of financial services marketing experience and was Marketing Director at BT Financial Group prior to joining Schroders.

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Sam Hallinan

“Expert” investors are more likely to believe that investing sustainably is key to driving long-term returns compared with people who rate themselves as less knowledgeable, the Schroders Global Investor Study 2022 has found.

The sustainability-focused findings of Schroders’ flagship study, which has surveyed more than 23,000 people who invest from 300 locations globally, found that close to three-quarters (73 per cent) of investors who classify themselves as having expert investment knowledge believe that investing sustainably is the only way to ensure profitability in the long term of investors, compared to 50 per cent of investors with intermediate knowledge, 35 per cent of beginners and 63 per cent of investors overall. 

Sustainability drivers and education

Of all the drivers that would encourage investors to increase their sustainable investments, the most common was the ability to choose investments that aligned to their personal sustainability preferences (54 per cent). Of those preferences, environmental impact was the main reason why investors are attracted to sustainable funds, at 51 per cent. This has increased slightly from 48 per cent in 2021 and 50 per cent in 2020 and remains more important than financial gains, which ranked third at 43 per cent on the list of priorities. 

However, choosing a fund that focuses primarily on delivering financial returns while integrating sustainability factors remains important for more than half (57 per cent) of investors.

The study also found that while the concept of sustainable investing isn’t new, there are still barriers to investment. Greater transparency may be the solution, with more investors concerned about the lack of transparency and reported data (49 per cent) and by a lack of clear, agreed definitions (45 per cent) than concerns over performance (31 per cent of investors). 

Investors in Australia acknowledge that sustainability is important but overwhelming. In all, 62 per cent feel there is too much information and education, and this is a barrier to investing. This demonstrates the important role companies and financial advisers play in articulating the benefits of for investors. Meanwhile, 66 per cent of investors think that providers and financial institutions are greenwashing through marketing material and 41 per cent rely on their financial adviser to outline sustainable investment options.

Attitudes towards sustainability

Australian investors are allocating a third of their investment portfolios to sustainable funds, which is in line with global results (30 per cent), with the goal of making a difference to diverse range of areas, including improving the quality of education (48 per cent), clean water and sanitation (45 per cent), health and wellbeing (44 per cent) and reduced inequalities (38 per cent). 

Schroders’ sustainability investment director Stephanie Hukins said: “It is encouraging that 91 per cent of investors recognise the attractiveness of sustainable investments, and they want their investments to positively affect society and the environment. With some investors saying there is too much information circulating about sustainable investing, the onus is on investment providers and financial advisers to highlight the most important information to help investors make the right decisions for them.” 

According to Sam Hallinan, Schroders Australia CEO: “Unsurprisingly, sustainable investing continues to gather momentum. The majority of Australian investors would most like to invest in funds that integrate sustainability factors whilst also focusing on returns.

“Sustainability factors are integrated into all of Schroders’ investment strategies globally and we remain committed to delivering outcomes for our clients.”

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Theone Star

Schroders Australia has appointed Theone Star as head of private wealth. Ms Star will be based in Sydney and report to Schroders Australia CEO, Sam Hallinan.

She joins Schroders from Centennial Property Group, where she was the director of private wealth, a position she held since 2019. Prior to this she spent 14 years at Australian Unity Wealth – most recently as national head of private markets.

At Centennial, Ms Star focused on high-net worth (HNW) and family office clients across product offerings, marketing, investor relations and registry. She was also responsible for distribution and capital raising across HNWs and small institutions.

At Australian Unity Wealth, she was responsible for creating and developing new distribution channels into the market of single-family offices, multi-family offices, ultra-high net worth individuals, private banks, non-institutionally owned AFSLs and institutions and Significant Investor Visa opportunities.

Mr Hallinan says the appointment of Ms Star brings further depth to Schroders’ well-established distribution capabilities and additional focus on the private wealth segment.

“Theone brings over 20 years’ experience working in asset management for high-net worth individuals, family offices and institutional clients, both domestically and internationally, to the team,” Mr Hallinan says.

“In her wide-ranging career she has demonstrated a proven track record in understanding the product needs of private wealth clients and working with them to devise optimal outcomes.

“In this role, Theone will be responsible for building Schroders’ relationships in the private wealth segment and identifying opportunities to connect clients with Schroders’ offerings.

“The appointment comes at a time of significant opportunity for Schroders, given our expanding suite of public and private markets investment strategies and focus on sustainable strategies that are well suited to the needs of high-net worth and family office clients.”

Ms Star commences the new role on 5 September 2022.

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In this role Mr Kraemer will also work with two related businesses of Schroders RF – Schroders Capital and RF CorVal – to provide strategic input into developing product and sales strategies. He will directly assist the CEO of Schroders Australia, Sam Hallinan and the CEO of RF CorVal, Rob Rayner in this additional capacity.

Sam Hallinan said the appointment comes as Schroders continues to expand its private credit business in Australia. “Having acquired a 50.1 per cent stake of Schroders RF in July 2021 and now with almost $500 million AUM, Schroders RF is a core element of Schroders Australia’s Private Credit strategy. Hiring Yossi brings dedicated experience to the group to create new funds and drive the growth of our private debt businesses”.

Andrew Roberts, Founder of RF Capital, said: “We welcome Yossi to the team as we continue to see strong growth in real estate debt and increasing investor interest in this asset class. Yossi’s experience will equip us to deliver the right products and service to our clients”.

Rob Rayner, CEO of RF CorVal said: “Having recently added key institutional and private client sales individuals to our group, Yossi joins our broader distribution management team to further develop our sales strategy and strengthen relationships with both institutional and wholesale clients in Australia and globally”.

Mr Kraemer has over 25 years’ experience in global real estate finance and capital markets with extensive experience in real estate structured products and capital raising. He most recently worked at Qualitas where he led the group’s Institutional Capital strategy and fund creation role for almost a decade. He previously worked for the Royal Bank of Scotland in London as Head of Real Estate Capital Markets and Syndications in Europe and prior to that, he held senior roles at Credit Suisse and BNP Paribas.

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Sam Hallinan

Schroders has launched the Schroder Global Active Allocation Fund for institutional investors in Australia, securing a foundation investment mandate from a large super fund.

Sam Hallinan, Schroders Australia CEO, said: “The Schroder Global Active Allocation Fund demonstrates our ability to design solutions that meet clients’ needs. In response to a large Government super fund’s need for a strategy that managed directly to the YFYS alternative asset benchmark, we created a multi-asset fund that aims to outperform within a tracking error limit. We bring our considerable experience to bear in partnering with the fund on this investment opportunity”.

The fund is a multi-asset portfolio with the investment objective of outperforming the Federal Government’s Your Future, Your Super (YFYS) benchmark applying to alternative investments and strategies by 1-2 per cent a year, before fees, over rolling three-year periods with strict tracking error limits.

The composite benchmark is an equally weighted blend of MSCI All Country World, Ex-Australia, Equities Index and the Bloomberg Fixed Income Indices, to match the risk profile of the YFYS benchmark for alternative investments and strategies.

The actively managed fund will be run by Schroders’ Australian Multi-Asset team, with Angus Sippe as lead fund manager. The fund leverages Schroders’ global investment platform with targeted allocations to a broad array of active and passive strategies using Schroders’ global specialist teams across equities, fixed income and alternatives.

Mr Sippe said that the fund is well suited to APRA-regulated funds that invest in strategies subject to the YFYS benchmark for alternative investments, and it aims to provide a core solution for funds in the liquid alternatives space as it is risk managed to the YFYS alternatives benchmark.

“The fund takes a forward-looking approach to asset allocation and risk management, allowing for tactical positioning around the YFYS alternatives benchmark (50% global equities/50% global bonds).

“However, the fund’s investment universe is broader and is not constrained by the constituents of the YFYS alternatives benchmark. It has a broad universe of investments including traditional assets as well as exposure to alternatives, active currency, and derivative strategies,” Mr Sippe said.

The launch of the Schroder Global Active Allocation Fund follows the recent promotion of Simon Doyle to the newly created role of chief investment officer, Australia in addition to his role as head of multi-asset, Australia, and Natalie Morcos to the newly created role of head of product and solutions.

In their new roles, Mr Doyle and Ms Morcos are focused on the opportunities to leverage Schroders’ broad manufacturing capability to create and deliver investment solutions for existing and prospective clients in the Australian market.

“The launch of this fund is an example of Schroders’ commitment to meeting our clients’ needs, to access a strategy designed for a specific purpose, and offering an all-in-one solution,” Mr Doyle said.

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Stuart joined Schroders in October 2012 as fund manager, Australian fixed income, and was subsequently promoted to deputy head of fixed income (Australia) in April 2016. He has 20 years’ fixed income investment experience.

Simon Doyle said: “As deputy head of fixed income, Stuart has successfully led the rates and credit teams, adapting the investment process to a challenging interest rate and credit environment. Appointing Stuart as head of Australian fixed income is recognition of his skills as a fixed income investor, his commitment and of the team’s achievements in delivering strong results for clients.”

Schroders Australia CEO Sam Hallinan said: “Fixed income continues to play an important role in client portfolios, and it is pleasing to be able to promote internally from what is already a very well-respected team in the market. Talent development and promotion from within is a great sign of success.

“It’s clear that our industry is at a pivotal juncture. It is facing some tough and unique challenges with multi decade low rates, asset-owner consolidation, regulatory reform and net zero sustainability trends. While it is a given that a business as strong and successful as Schroders invests in its teams and capabilities to help our clients respond to these challenges, this is a people game, and I am really happy to see Stuart take the reins of such an important investment capability.”

The Schroder Fixed Income Fund has delivered strong performance over the past year, while also outperforming its benchmark over three and five years^[1], achieving top quartile performance over all these periods.

This aggregate performance experience has resulted in research rating upgrades in 2021 from both Zenith, which upgraded the Fund to ‘Recommended’, and the Morningstar Analyst Rating, which upgraded the Fund’s Wholesale Class to ‘Silver’ as of 18 February 2021^[2]. The Fund is already ‘Recommended’ by Lonsec.

Schroders’ Fixed Income team currently manages $6bn of AUM.

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[1] Performance relates to the Schroder Fixed Income Fund (Wholesale class) as at 30/6/2021 after fees.
[2] The Morningstar Analyst Rating for Schroder Fixed Income Fund – Wholesale is ‘Silver’ as of 18 February 2021.

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Sam Hallinan

Schroders has announced that Sam Hallinan will join as CEO, Australia in April. He will report to Chris Durack, co-CEO APAC, who will continue to have oversight of the Australian business as part of his regional responsibilities and remain a director of Schroders Australia.

Sam joins from Nikko Asset Management where, since 2015, he was managing director of the Australian business. Sam brings over 25 years’ experience in financial services with significant leadership roles in the Australian asset management industry.

Sam’s appointment provides a dedicated, focussed oversight of the Australian business as it invests in strengthening existing capabilities in Australian equities, multi-asset, fixed income and global equities, while extending its capabilities including the local build-out of its private debt team and tailored client solutions.

Lieven Debruyne, global head of distribution, said: “With the appointment of Sam, we continue to demonstrate our investment in the quality of our management team. At the same time, through Chris’ leadership we are continuing to drive our priorities in the region supporting the development of our investment capabilities for our clients.”

Chris Durack, co-CEO Asia Pacific said: “We are thrilled to welcome Sam to our team and his appointment highlights our focus and commitment to the ongoing investment in the Australian business. Sam’s experience and proven leadership will add further depth to our management capability as we remain focused on delivering great investment outcomes for our Australian clients.”

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His appointment follows the resignation of Eddy Schipper, who is leaving the Firm in early August to pursue other interests.

Mr Hallinan, said it is always pleasing to appoint from within the business, and that Mr Bluzmanis’ promotion is well deserved.

“Rob has been with Nikko AM since January 2015 and has over 20 years’ experience in asset management sales and distribution. During his time with Nikko AM he has been instrumental in building up and maintaining the success of the wholesale sales strategy and he has ably managed Nikko AM’s Retail Sales & Research team.

“Rob’s appointment comes at a time of strong growth in the Nikko AM business and his proven success in leveraging his relationships to grow the business will stand him in good stead in this new role.

“Rob’s experience and expertise mean he is ideally placed to continue to build on the already strong efforts of the Australian distribution team, and to capitalise on business growth and momentum we are seeing in the market.”

Prior to joining Nikko AM, Mr Bluzmanis spent eight years at Blackrock Australia in a number of sales and account management roles, most recently as Director and Head of National Key Accounts & Research. Before this he was Senior Business Development Manager – Investments with Colonial First State.

Mr Bluzmanis holds a Bachelor of Commerce from Macquarie University. He has a Graduate Diploma of Applied Finance and Investment from The Financial Securities Institute of Australia and has undertaken the Certified Investment Management Analyst Program from the Investment Management Consultants Association.

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This follows the recent appointment of current Non-Executive Director, John Gee as Independent Chair of the Nikko AM Australia Boards. John was appointed as Independent Director in March 2011.

Naomi’s appointment reflects Nikko AM’s continued focus on enhancing and strengthening governance across the firm globally. An actuary by training, Naomi has extensive executive experience in the financial services industry, including being a former partner of Deloitte and Director of Trowbridge Consulting, and currently serves as Independent Chair of Tasplan Super. Naomi has a strong reputation in responsible investing, having sat on the boards of two ASX listed fund managers – Australian Ethical Investments and Hunter Hall Limited. Naomi is also a member of the Tasmanian Economic Development Board and a NonExecutive Director of the Australian Institute of Superannuation Trustees.

Naomi holds a first class honours degree in mathematics from the University of Canterbury and is a Fellow of the Institute of Actuaries (London) as well as a Fellow of the Australian and New Zealand Institutes of Actuaries.

Sam Hallinan, Managing Director, Nikko Asset Management Australia said,“Harnessing the experience and insight from a Non-Executive Director like Naomi will contribute to Nikko AM in Australia growing, evolving and improving. Her views as an “asset owner” Chair, as well as previous experience with ESG in funds management, are highly valued.”

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