HSBC AM, BNP Paribas, Aptia, Fulcrum, BLVK, IOR
HSBC Asset Management (HSBC AM) – The firm has named Thorsten Michalik as chief executive officer of its alternatives business, effective 1 April.
Michalik will succeed Joanna Munro, who is retiring from the investment industry after more than 40 years in asset management – 20 of those with HSBC.
Munro has been CEO for alternatives since 2021. Under her leadership, the business has delivered strong growth – expanding its capabilities, growing assets under management and strengthening its presence with investors as an alternative solutions provider.
Michalik has been at HSBC AM since 2020, most recently serving as CEO for Europe, UK, and Americas, with responsibility for both sales and entity management, and accountability for the country CEOs in those regions.
He joined HSBC AM as global head of wholesale amd partnerships and was later appointed head of sales Europe, Middle East, Americas, and wholesale in 2022. He will continue to be based in London and report to Nicolas Moreau, CEO HSBC AM.
Matteo Pardi, currently CEO AM Continental Europe, will assume the role of CEO for Europe, UK, and Americas on an interim basis, effective 1 April. He will retain his existing responsibilities and report to Moreau.
Pardi joined HSBC in 2001 to establish HSBC AM’s presence in Italy and has since held a range of senior roles covering markets across Continental Europe and the Middle East.
BNP Paribas Asset Management (BNPP AM) – Isabelle Scemama has been appointed as deputy CEO alongside her role as global head of BNPP Asset Management Alts, the European leader in alternative asset management.
Scemama will continue to report to Sandro Pierri, CEO of BNPP AM.
In her expanded role, Scemama will reinforce the development of the alternatives’ platform. She will be instrumental in the execution of BNPP AM’s new strategic plan and its 2030 growth trajectory.
Alternative assets occupy a strategic position in BNPP AM’s roadmap and represent a key driver of growth and differentiation. With this appointment, BNPP AM is placing alternatives at the heart of its governance. Scemama’s expertise in this field will further strengthen the role of the asset manager and the BNP Paribas Group in financing the real economy, particularly through investments in infrastructure, real estate, the energy transition, and other key sectors supporting long-term development.
Istituto per le Opere di Religione (IOR) – The Vatican Bank has appointed François Pauly as the new chair of its board of superintendence.
Pauly, currently chair of La Luxembourgeoise Group, succeeds Jean-Baptiste Douville de Franssu, who will remain in office until IOR’s board meeting, scheduled for 28 April, to approve last year’s financial statements.
Pauly has served as a member of the board of superintendence, IOR’s strategic and political steering body, since 2024. Prior to that, he served as CEO and chair of Banque Internationale à Luxembourg, and as a member of the board of directors of the Vatican Pension Fund.
Fulcrum Asset Management – Karl Sternberg has been appointed as a senior independent adviser to Fulcrum’s alternative solutions business, where he will provide strategic guidance to the team as it takes on additional clients for its open architecture strategies.
Sternberg has extensive experience in the institutional market, having founded Oxford Investment Partners in 2004 , which the University of Oxford subsequently established a centrally-run endowment office; the business was sold to WTW in 2013. He has served on several corporate boards and investment trusts, three of which he chaired. For six years he helped professionalise the investment teams of Railways Pension Scheme.
Last year Sternberg stepped down from Christ Church’s iinvestment committee and St Catherine’s college endowment, and became Emeritus Fellow of both colleges.
Aptia – The provider of pension administration, consultancy and actuarial services has appointed Jaysukh Shah to head its newly established risk transfer proposition.
With more than 20 years of experience in the pensions industry, Shah has spent the past decade advising trustees and corporate sponsors on risk transfer strategies across schemes ranging from £1m to £1bn. He brings extensive expertise in helping trustees manage defined benefit scheme risk and successfully deliver buy‑ins and buyouts.
Prior to joining Aptia, Shah held senior roles at PwC, Mercer and JLT.
Bernische Lehrerversicherungskasse (BLVK) – The CHF9.3bn (€10.2bn) pubic pension fund for teachers in the Swiss capital of Bern has appointed Petrit Krasniqi as the new chief investment officer and member of its executive board, effective 1 June.
Krasniqi has served at the fund as a portfolio manager since August 2023 and has played a key role in shaping the investment department in recent years. He succeeds Theodor Tillmann, who is retiring after more than 27 years at BLVK.
