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UBS Vet Opens Firm

July 2, 2009 – Brian Singer has launched investment management firm Singer Partners, which will reunite him with former UBS Global Asset Management colleagues. Singer, who resigned from his post of Americas CIO and head of global investments solutions at UBS in 2007, will be partner and CIO at the new venture. Edouard Senechal who was previously a senior risk manager and executive director at UBS and Renato Staub, who has resigned from his position as senior asset allocation and risk…

Munder Creates President Role

July 1, 2009 – Munder Capital Management has selected James FitzGerald to serve as its first ever president, a newly created position in which he will report to John Adams, the firm's CEO and CIO. While retaining his responsibilities as of distribution and chief marketing officer, FitzGerald will now focus on overseeing the firm's growth plans. Prior to joining Munder in 2004, FitzGerald was a senior VP at MFS Investment Management. Earlier in his career he worked at Great West…

Hall Capital Names New President

July 1, 2009 – John Buoymaster will now serve as president of Hall Capital Partners, the firm announced in a statement. Buoymaster, who will also continue to hold the position of director of portfolio management, replaces John Boneparth who left Hall Capital to resume his consulting business. Buoymaster is also a member of the firm's executive committee and board of directors. In new role, Buoymaster will be responsible for guiding the firm's business strategy and operations. 'I'm delighted…

Madoff Receives 150-Year Sentence

June 30, 2009 – Bernie Madoff, the mastermind behind a massive multi-billion dollar billion Ponzi scheme, a fraud measured by some to have reached $65 billion, was sentenced to 150 years in prison, the maximum allowed for this white-collar crime, by Judge Denny Chin yesterday in a Manhattan courtroom. When Chin announced the sentence the reaction from the courtroom was a round of applause, according to reports. Madoff, who pleaded guilty to the fraud in March, apologized to his…

Hedge Fund Gets New CEO

June 30, 2009 – James Marrone has been named as the new CEO of Capital Z Asset Management (CZAM) effective Aug. 1. He will also retain his current responsibilities as head of business development and chief marketing officer. Marrone will replace Christianna Wood, who is resigning from the firm, effective July 31, after less than two years. Prior to joining CZAM, Marrone was a senior managing director at Bear Stearns Asset Management. Earlier in his career he held positions with…

Haldeman Steps Down From Putnam Roles

June 30, 2009 – After postponing his retirement following the sale of Putnam Investments to Power Financial two years ago, Charles 'Ed' Haldeman has stepped down from his positions as chairman of Putnam Investment Management, president of the Putnam Funds and member of Putnam Funds' board of trustees, Putnam said Tuesday. Putnam President and CEO Robert L. Reynolds will replace Haldeman as president of the Putnam Funds, but the position of chairman of Putnam Investment Management will not be replaced. 'Ed…

Derivatives Spark Lawsuit for Texas TRS

June 29, 2009 – The Teacher Retirement System of Texas has been slapped with a lawsuit regarding its investment in derivatives. Last week, a group of retirement and active teachers sued the fund over what it said was a '$400 million loss due to investments in derivatives', the Austin American-Statesman has reported. The system began investing in the asset class following approval from Legislature in 2007, the report said. The lawsuit will be discussed in a hearing scheduled for today.…

Towers Perrin, Watson Wyatt Merge

June 29, 2009 – Towers Perrin, the privately held New York-based human resources and risk assessment firm, will merge with Watson Wyatt, a Virginia-based competitor, in a $3.5 billion merger of equals that will create the biggest consultancy in the world. Watson Wyatt shares traded down more than 7% to $37.97 this morning, although analysts offered a bullish long-term view that also predicts continuing shakeups for the industry. 'Near term disruption from the merger might help competitors like [Hewitt Associates], Mercer…

Maine PERS Plans for Real Estate Changes

June 26, 2009 – The Maine Public Employees' Retirement System is expected to increase its investments in public real estate, and include opportunistic funds in its portfolio. According to IPE Real Estate, Andrew Sawyer, CIO at Maine PERS said the system would be considering a 'variety of new investment strategies for the future.' Recently hired real estate consultant ORG Real Property will assist the plan with its investments in the asset class. Reportedly, Maine PERS has a real estate portfolio valued…

Drum Capital Hires Managing Director

June 25, 2009 – Drum Capital Hires Managing Director Duran Curis has joined Drum Capital Management as a managing director responsible for diligence, oversight, manager selection and portfolio construction of the firm's Special Situation Partner Funds. Curis joins Drum from HRJ Capital, where he worked with that firm's special opportunities funds, also as a managing director. Prior to that, he served as managing director and head of LGT Capital Partners' U.S. office, and also spent time at Pacific Corporate Group (PCG).…

New Mexico Union Sues Austin Capital

June 25, 2009 – The National Education Association of New Mexico has filed a lawsuit against Austin Capital Management (ACM) on behalf of the state's Educational Retirement Board (ERB) and State Investment Council (SIC). According to Austin-American Statesmen, the lawsuit was filed in state district court in Santa Fe and alleges that ACM failed to perform due diligence on its investments with Madoff Securities. As a result, the ERB and SIC plans lost as much as $25 million. ACM has felt…

Treeline Launches Real Estate Consulting Unit

June 25, 2009 – The Treeline Companies, owner and manager of more than 2.5 million square feet of office properties throughout the New York metropolitan region, is launching Treeline Realty Advisors, a real estate consulting and asset management division focused on troubled assets. The division will provide consulting services to develop and execute management plans and disposition strategies for lenders and investors in underperforming and distressed real estate assets, with a primary focus on the New York tri-state area.…

University of Chicago Hires Boeing CIO

June 24, 2009 – Mark Schmid has been appointed VP and CIO at the University of Chicago, the school has announced. Schmid, who starts his new role July 6, will work with the university's investment committee and 14-member investment team to oversee its $6.63 billion endowment. Schmid will leave his role as VP and CIO at Boeing Co., where he oversaw $65 billion in retirement assets. Before his time at Boeing, he spent 17 years with Chrysler Corp. and DaimlerChrysler,…

Russell: Managers Bullish on Risky Assets

June 24, 2009 – Asset managers may be ready to take on more risk in their portfolios, according to the findings of Russell Investments latest quarterly 'Investment Manager Outlook'. The survey indicated that 74% of polled managers are bullish on emerging markets stocks, and 66% feel positively about high yield fixed-income. Conversely, surveyed managers are less than enthusiastic about cash and U.S. Treasuries, expressing bullish sentiment of 10% and 9%, respectively, Russell said. Also noteworthy, 67% of responding managers expect…

Coast Hires Hedge Fund Vet

June 23, 2009 – Roy Callahan has joined Coast Asset Management as a portfolio manager and member of the firm's investment committee. He served as director of research at the firm from 1994-2000. Callahan was most recently with California-based hedge fund of funds manager Stratos Advisors. He has also worked at Financial Risk Management where he served on the investment and portfolio management committees. Prior stints also include a proprietary trader for GNP Commodities and a VP at Citibank where he…