Shawn Johnston

AMP Capital has taken a significant further step towards the demerger from AMP Limited with the announcement of a new brand name for the separated business that reflects its rich heritage and new direction.

The new business will be called Collimate Capital when it lists on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) in the second half of this year. Collimate is a scientific term that means to make rays of light perfectly parallel. It is a metaphor for alignment, clarity and precision, which speaks to our vision and expertise in long-term value creation for our clients.

AMP Capital Chief Executive Officer Mr Shawn Johnson commented: “This is an exciting step along our journey to establish a new brand as we continue to drive the business forward. Today’s announcement is a strong symbol of our ongoing progress towards demerger.

“The new brand matches our determination to work in parallel alignment with our clients, partners and communities to develop and deliver long-term, sustainable assets and returns.

“As a demerged entity, Collimate Capital will provide a greater level of independence, stability and accountability to further enable the delivery of superior results for all of our investors and act on growth opportunities to raise equity and deploy new capital.”

The new brand is a further demonstration of AMP Capital’s deep conviction in the future of its private markets business under a new banner.

The business is already well progressed in operating separately from AMP Limited, with its own executive leadership team, board and strategy. Respected board director and executive Patrick Snowball was announced as Chairman Designate and Andrew Fay as Deputy Chairman Designate of the demerged business in October last year.

In June 2021, internationally respected asset-management executive, Shawn Johnson joined as AMP Capital CEO to set its growth strategy and lead the demerger of the business. In January this year, Nadine Lennie was announced as Chief Financial Officer, and will be joining the business in April 2022.

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Nadine Lennie

AMP Capital has announced the appointment of Nadine Lennie as Chief Financial Officer for PrivateMarketsCo, reporting to CEO, Shawn Johnson.

Ms Lennie is a highly accomplished finance and governance executive with strong leadership and extensive experience and expertise in the development, implementation and communication of commercial and financial strategy. She joins PrivateMarketsCo from Atlas Arteria, a global owner, operator and developer of toll roads, where she has been CFO and CFO Elect since 2018. In this role, Ms Lennie was a key part of the team to transition from Macquarie Bank’s external management to the internal management model. Prior to that she held CFO roles at Afterpay Touch Group and Touchcorp Ltd, overseeing the successful merger with Afterpay Holdings Ltd, as well as at Australian Pacific Airports Corporation. Ms Lennie is also currently Chair of the Victorian Government Purchasing Board.

Ms Lennie has strong financial acumen, strategic focus, and experience in both Australian and international environments across organisations with a breadth of scale and complexity as well as regulatory environments.  She has significant experience in the infrastructure market through a range of roles including Director of Private Markets with the Future Fund, as well as with Hastings Funds Management and earlier in her career with PricewaterhouseCoopers.

Shawn Johnson PrivateMarketsCo Chief Executive commented: “Nadine is incredibly well-regarded in the industry and I’m very pleased she is joining PrivateMarketsCo. Her recruitment further strengthens the leadership team, especially as Nadine brings valuable listed ASX experience ahead of the planned demerger in 1H 2022. I look forward to working with Nadine and the new board, led by Chairman designate Patrick Snowball.

“We have made significant progress on separating the business from AMP Limited, to establish an independent, stand-alone global manager of infrastructure and real estate investments.  Nadine, alongside me, will be responsible in delivering our strategy to separate, simplify and broaden our client base and diversify our investment capabilities.”

Ms Lennie will commence her role in April 2022 and will be based in Australia.

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Alexis George

AMP has provided an update on its planned demerger and the strategic growth plans for the two post-demerger businesses – AMP Limited and AMP Capital’s Private Markets business (PrivateMarketsCo).

AMP continues to make strong progress on the operational separation of PrivateMarketsCo, in preparation for demerger in 1H 22. A clear perimeter has been set with the agreed sale of the Global Equities and Fixed Income (GEFI) business and transfer of the Multi-Asset Group (MAG) to AMP Limited.

The rationale for the demerger is to enable the two businesses to increase focus on their respective markets and growth opportunities – AMP Limited as a retail wealth manager in Australia and New Zealand, and PrivateMarketsCo as a global manager of infrastructure and real estate investments with a growing focus on international institutional clients.

In AMP Limited, the strategy sets a clear path to create a new AMP by:

• renewing purpose and values to put the customer at the centre, and continue to drive culture transformation
• repositioning core capabilities to drive growth in banking and wealth platforms
• delivering stable earnings in the Master Trust and New Zealand wealth management businesses, and accelerating the transformation of advice
• simplifying the business to drive efficiency and agility, including delivering on the FY 19 to FY 22 A$300 million cost reduction program and committing to a further A$115 million of cost reduction initiatives from FY 22 through to FY 24, and
• exploring new opportunities, including in retirement and in direct-to-consumer solutions, as well as in new business adjacencies.

In PrivateMarketsCo, the strategy will focus on leveraging the significant opportunity to become a global leader in the fast-growing private markets industry through:

• delivering autonomy through an effective separation and demerger from AMP
• simplifying the business and organisation structure and achieving a run-rate cost base of A$300 million by FY 23
• growing its client base, led by a newly established global client solutions team and scaling its existing infrastructure and real estate investment strategies, and
• diversifying its product offering to clients, including potential new investment strategies structured to meet client specific interests globally.

AMP Chief Executive, Alexis George commented: “In AMP Limited and PrivateMarketsCo we have two businesses with considerable growth opportunities, but which operate in very different markets, with different customers, and geographic focus. Separation and demerger will enable both businesses to accelerate their growth strategies, as well as simplify and improve efficiency.

“The two largest assets held by Australians and New Zealanders are their home and super – those are the needs that AMP serves.

“AMP has been rapidly transformed over the past three years. We are no longer a life insurer. In wealth management we have shifted from a vertically integrated proposition to a contemporary, customer-led service provider. We have invested in our bank to be able to grow in a deep and competitive market.

“We see a significant gap in the market in retirement and have strong capability within our business to better serve this market. We also believe we can further scale our business by taking our products direct to clients.

“Immediate priorities are to get the demerger done, meet our commitments on costs, drive forward on growth opportunities in Bank and platforms, and set up AMP for a strong future.”

PrivateMarketsCo Chief Executive, Shawn Johnson commented: “PrivateMarketsCo is a business that will thrive with greater focus and independence. Our team has built a strong track record in infrastructure and real estate – and has the capability to expand into new adjacencies and pursue further global growth opportunities, supported by increasing demand for private markets assets from investors around the world.

“We have a clear strategy to separate, simplify and broaden our client base and diversify our investment capabilities. We will continue to play a leading role in infrastructure and real estate investments around the world as an independent company.

“We have made strong progress on key separation milestones, with the PrivateMarketsCo leadership team in place and the appointment of a respected Chairman designate in Patrick Snowball, who has strong leadership experience in listed businesses in Australia and internationally.”

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Mr Johnson served as Senior Managing Director and Chairman of the Investment Committee of State Street Global Advisors (SSGA) for almost a decade. In this role, he had global oversight and responsibility for over 450 investment strategies and US$2.1 trillion in client assets, including management of all SSGA’s private equity businesses.

While at SSGA, Mr Johnson also served as the volunteer Chairman of the Financial Services Sector Coordinating Council (FSSCC) from 2008-10. FSSCC is a non-profit organisation that coordinates critical infrastructure and US homeland security activities within the financial services industry and works collaboratively with key government agencies.

More recently, Mr Johnson led his own alternative investments businesses, including management of a global macro hedge fund and various private investment strategies.

As AMP Capital CEO, Mr Johnson will lead its international growth strategy and the proposed demerger of the private markets businesses (“Private Markets”) which is expected to complete in 1H 22.

Mr Johnson will begin his role on 28 June 2021. Mr Johnson will be based initially in Sydney, Australia but will work on a global basis across the key international offices of the Private Markets business.

David Atkin, AMP Capital Deputy CEO, will continue in his role until 31 July 2021 to facilitate a smooth handover to Mr Johnson, before leaving the organisation as planned.

AMP Chair Debra Hazelton commented: “We are delighted to announce the appointment of Shawn as AMP Capital Chief Executive. Shawn’s extensive experience and knowledge of global investment management, particularly private markets, makes him an exceptional leader for AMP Capital.

“His experience as a leader in one of the world’s largest asset management firms, State Street Global Advisors, where he played a key role in markedly growing the business and navigating the global financial crisis, will be invaluable.

“Shawn has managed a joint venture holding of boutique asset management firms across North America, the UK, Europe and Asia, while also having experience in retirement planning in the US and Australia. Moreover, Shawn’s more recent experience with his own alternative asset businesses is a practical demonstration of his entrepreneurial capabilities.

“As AMP Capital separates from AMP and establishes a new culture and brand, Shawn has clearly demonstrated his capability to lead and inspire teams of highly capable investment professionals.

“We would like to thank both Francesco De Ferrari and David Atkin for their leadership of AMP Capital and are delighted that David has agreed to extend his period as Deputy CEO to ensure a smooth handover to Shawn throughout July.”

Shawn Johnson commented: “AMP Capital is a globally-respected investment manager, and I’m excited by the significant potential for international growth but also in Australia. I’m confident of its underlying strength and the depth of its investment, distribution, and operational talent. Our focus will be to harness these strengths as we set up as a new, independent organisation following separation from AMP.

“It’s an exciting challenge to which I believe I can bring my experience, passion and energy for growing businesses and leading a highly skilled organisation. I look forward to working alongside our talented teams, meeting our key clients, and moving our business forward.”

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