PPF, Pensions UK, Macquarie
Pension Protection Fund (PPF) – The fund has announced that Matt Gurden will join as chief actuary early in 2027.
Gueden is currently deputy government actuary at the Government Actuary’s Department (GAD). He spent 14 years in the private sector advising pension scheme trustees and sponsors before joining GAD 15 years ago, where he has supported government financial management and helped inform public policy.
During his time at GAD, Gurden has worked with the Pensions Regulator (TPR), the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) and HM Treasury, including helping to influence the latest defined benefit (DB) funding code and develop a proposed legislative framework for DB superfunds.
As a member of GAD’s board and executive committee, Gurden has also helped provide strategic direction as the department extended its support to the public sector beyond pensions and into wider financial and fiscal risks and liabilities.
Pensions UK – The association has appointed four new member non-executive directors to its board. The new appointments will strengthen the organisation’s governance and bring new expertise from across the pensions industry.
Joining the board are:
- Rachel Brothwood, executive director at West Midlands Pension Fund;
- Patrick Heath-Lay, chief executive officer of People’s Partnership;
- David Lane, CEO of TPT Retirement Solutions;
- Katharine Photiou, managing director, workplace savings, at Legal & Generl (L&G).
Brothwood has been appointed chair of Pensions UK’s influential policy board, succeeding John Chilman, who will continue to serve on the Pensions UK board until the end of his term in October 2027.
The appointments follow a recruitment process to refresh and strengthen the board as long-serving directors reach the end of their maximum terms. Carol Young, CEO of Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS), will step down in October 2026.
Adding expertise and seniority across all scheme types, including new innovations in collective defined contribution (CDC) and super funds, the additions to the board reflect Pensions UK’s commitment to ensuring its governance continues to represent the breadth of the UK pensions industry, while providing the leadership needed to deliver its 2030 Ready strategy and support better outcomes for pension savers.
Macquarie Asset Management – Linso Pals has been appointed as senior managing director and head of credit within the firm’s client solutions group.
Based in London, Pals will lead global capital raising across Macquarie’s credit and insurance platform. His role will focus on product development and distribution, spanning the firm’s private and liquid credit strategies.
Pals brings more than 25 years of experience in asset management and a strong track record of working with pension funds, insurers, sovereign wealth funds and other investors. He joins from Blackstone, where he led the European institutional sales effort for its credit and insurance business. Prior to that, he spent more than a decade at JP Morgan Asset Management, most recently serving as head of institutional sales for EMEA ex-UK.
