ESG Investor’s weekly round-up of new hires in the sustainable investing sector.
UBS Asset Management appointed Darren Rabenou as Head of Food & Agriculture and Head of ESG Investment Strategies for Real Estate & Private Markets (REPM). He will report to Joe Azelby, Head of REPM. Rabenou will cover real estate, infrastructure, private equity and agriculture, and will drive forward new initiatives to help meet growing investor interest in agriculture. In his role as Head of ESG Investment Strategies, Rabenou will oversee REPM’s sustainable private investments, expand the ESG capabilities of the business and manage the development of products with a sustainable overlay. Prior to joining UBS AM, Rabenou was a partner at US-based Fabbri Fund Management.
Allianz Global Investors has restructured its sustainable investment team and enlarged it with two new hires. Under the leadership of Matt Christensen, Global Head of Sustainability and Impact Investing, the new structure has three pillars, including a Sustainability Methodologies & Analytics team, which will innovate with technology and ESG data, including artificial intelligence. The team will also oversee AllianzGI’s ESG integration efforts, ESG scoring method and develop the firm’s data set for its climate strategy.
The firm has also set up a Sustainability Research & Stewardship team, and a Sustainable Investment Office. The latter will be responsible for shaping AllianzGI’s overall sustainable investment strategy and policies, sustainable product strategy and the cross-functional coordination. Thomas Roulland and Julien Bertrand join from Axa Investment Managers. Roulland will head the Sustainability Methodologies and Analytics team and Bertrand will work as an ESG analyst for methodologies and analytics. Steffen Hörter, formerly Head of ESG at AllianzGI, has joined Munich Re Investment Partners as its Head of ESG. He will be responsible for building the firm’s sustainable quantitative investment strategies.
US-headquartered Loomis, Sayles, an affiliate of Natixis Investment Managers, has announced the appointment of Holly Young as senior ESG analyst. In this new role, Young will work closely with investment teams on their data needs, deliver client reporting and provide overall ESG data expertise and report to Kathleen Bochman, director of ESG. The firm has also added Justine Gearin as ESG project associate who will report to Young.
BlackRock has hired Paul Bodnar to lead its sustainable investing platform and global initiative. As Global Head of BlackRock Sustainable Investing, Bodnar will be responsible for sustainable research, analytics, product development and integration of ESG considerations into the investment process. Most recently, Bodnar was Chief Strategy Officer at Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI), an independent non-profit organisation working to accelerate the clean energy transition. Before joining RMI, Bodnar served in the US government, including as Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Energy and Climate Change at the National Security Council. Bodnar worked also at the US Department of State, including as lead negotiator for climate finance and Counsellor to the Special Envoy for Climate Change.
FE fundinfo has appointed Sebastian Brinkmann as its new ESG Strategist. Brinkmann will play a key role in the deepening of FE fundinfo’s ESG capabilities, as it develops its strategy in response to increasing market requirements and client demands. Brinkmann joins FE fundinfo from US data specialist TruValue Labs, where he most recently held the position of Head of ESG Solutions for Europe.
Epworth Investment Management, a UK investment manager dedicated to serving the needs of churches and charities, has announced that Rev. Andrew Harper has joined as Head of Ethics. Harper will be responsible for all matters related to the ethical thought leadership and ethical performance of Epworth and the Central Finance Board of the Methodist Church. This outward-facing role will provide further capability to support external engagement with churches, charities and wider ethical networks. Harper was previously Director of Global and Learning Innovation at Cliff College.
