ESG Investor’s weekly round-up of appointments in the sustainable investing sector, including Man Group, CalPERS, Triodos IM, Low Carbon and Bridges Fund Management.
Imane Kabbaj has been appointed as Responsible Investment (RI) Director, Portfolio Oversight, at active investment manager Man Group. Kabbaj joins from London’s Pinebridge Investments where she was the Sustainable Investing Specialist, responsible for developing ESG frameworks across asset classes, as well as the firm’s overall net zero strategy. Prior to Pinebridge, she held a number of ESG-related roles at HSBC, LSEG and the World Gold Council. In her new role, she will be driving progress incorporating ESG concepts into Man Group’s responsible investment strategies, developing and monitoring its ESG reporting framework, and maintaining and improving RI processes. Robert Furdak, CIO of Responsible Investing at Man Group, said: “We’re excited to welcome Imane to Man Group’s growing RI team. Imane’s background developing and integrating ESG methodologies and risk/reporting frameworks across diverse asset classes will further evolve our RI process and strong portfolio oversight.”
Peter Cashion has joined California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS) as the Managing Investment Director for Sustainable Investments. With nearly three decades of investment experience, Cashion will set the vision, strategy and governance for CalPERS’ sustainability work going forward, including developing and implementing an economics-based ESG research and data framework to inform the pension fund’s investment decision-making process. He joins from the World Bank’s International Finance Corporation (IFC), where he held the role of Global Head of Climate Finance and CIO of the Financial Institutions Group. Nicole Musicco, CalPERS’ CIO, said: “Peter’s long record of impact investing across global markets elevated him in our search and makes him a great fit with the fund’s mission. His experience as a hands-on investor in multiple asset classes, standing up complex sustainable investing strategies and leading diverse global teams, makes him the right person to take the reins of CalPERS’ sustainability efforts.”
Rosl Veltmeijer is now Fund Manager of the Triodos Sterling Bond Impact Fund. Veltmeijer has worked for Triodos Investment Management since 2001, rising to the role of Head of Research – in which she was responsible for developing and applying sustainable investment criteria and Triodos IM’s engagement activities – before joining the firm’s portfolio management team in 2017. On her appointment, Veltmeijer said: “I have been involved in Triodos Sterling Bond Fund since its inception and as such I’m very happy to take on the daily management of the fund. I am passionate about impact investing, and I look forward to applying this passion and my expertise to maximize the positive impact for Triodos Sterling Bond Impact Fund.”
UK-based investment and asset management firm Low Carbon has hired Steven Hughes as Managing Director of Portfolio Management. He joins from infrastructure and equity investment manager Foresight LLP, where he was responsible for over £9 billion of infrastructure assets in construction and operation across Europe and Australia. In his new, role Hughes will be responsible for the construction and operation of Low Carbon’s expanding renewable energy portfolio. The appointment follows Low Carbon’s recent announcement of the construction of three new large-scale solar farms in the UK. Roy Bedlow, CEO and Founder of Low Carbon, said: “With the target of creating 20 gigawatts (GW) of new renewable energy capacity by the end of the decade, we need a world class team with the experience to manage the construction and operation Low Carbon’s assets. With his broad knowledge of the sector, Steven will be an invaluable addition to our team, helping to grow the company’s already expanding global portfolio”.
Fenglin Zhao has joined London-based private markets investor Bridges Fund Management as Client and Strategy Development Team Director. Zhao will be responsible for developing and overseeing the firm’s relationships with its institutional investor clients, as well as developing new and existing strategies. She previously headed up VCP Apex’s European distribution as Managing Director, advancing its private equity primary fund placement, as well as secondary and direct investment fundraising activities. Bridges exclusively invests in the transition to a sustainable and inclusive economy, targeting investable models where there is a strong positive correlation between commercial and impact performance across four key themes. Maggie Loo, Partner and Head of Client and Strategy Development at Bridges Fund Management, said: “We’re delighted to welcome Feng to the team. Her talent and broad, cross-border experience will be hugely valuable to us as we look to diversify and expand the firm’s assets under management and deliver further powerful positive impact alongside attractive financial returns to our investors.”
