AustralianSuper has appointed Damian Moloney as the fund’s deputy chief investment officer.
Moloney, based in AustralianSuper’s London office, has for the past five years had direct responsibility for the build-out of the European and US offices, a key part of its global growth strategy. He will continue to have responsibility for the fund’s international offices as part of his new role.
He was previously CEO of Frontier Advisers and IFM Investors.
AustralianSuper CIO Mark Delaney said the appointment will ensure a focus on delivering the best possible returns for members in retirement by building a simpler and more agile investment team.
“As we seek to drive long-term performance for members, the Fund is increasingly focussed on building its global operations and in-house investment capability, with around 75% of member’s money expected to be managed by internal teams within a decade,” he said.
The fund is forecast to grow from its current almost $300 billion to over $500 billion in member assets under management over the next four to five years.
Around half of the $300 billion is invested outside Australia, with around $85 billion invested in the United States and almost $40 billion invested in the United Kingdom and Europe. Last year it took a 50% share of the Canada Water Masterplan in central London from British Land in £290 million deal. Planning permissions allow for between 2,000 and 4,000 new homes.
AustralianSuper expects its global team to grow from the current 100 staff to around 300 over the next three years, with around 130 in New York and 160 in London and a small team in Beijing.
“With more and more of AustralianSuper’s assets managed internally and invested overseas, I am looking forward to working with our team across the globe in this new role to efficiently grow our investment footprint and operations,” Moloney said.
