Published by Asia Asset Management – 1st Feb 2019
The Guardians of New Zealand Superannuation, which manages the assets of New Zealand Superannuation (NZ Super), has appointed Sam Porath as head of the sovereign wealth fund’s domestic equity team.
The position has been vacant since Brian Bourdôt left the fund last October for a career in commercial aviation.
Mr. Porath, who was previously NZ Super’s portfolio manager for strategic tilting, will lead the team managing the fund’s in-house active New Zealand equities mandate, NZ Super says in a statement on January 30.
He reports to Will Goodwin, head of NZ direct investment.
“The Guardians would continue to take a long-term view of its investments, with a preference for strong business fundamentals, good corporate governance and strong proactive management of environmental and social factors,” Mr. Porath says in the statement.
Mr. Porath joined the fund in 2013 from US investment advisory firm Russell Investments, where he undertook several consulting roles in New Zealand and Australia.
NZ Super has had several top level changes over the past year. Matt Whineray became chief executive officer in July 2018, succeeding Adrian Orr who was appointed governor of New Zealand’s central bank.
Mr. Whineray was previously NZ Super’s chief investment officer, and in December, the fund hired Stephen Gilmore, former chief investment strategist of Australia’s Future Fund, to fill the position.
NZ Super had approximately NZ$37.42 billion (US$25.88 billion) of total assets under management at the end of 2018.
