Swiss pension fund PKG Pensionskasse has appointed Diego Liechti as chief investment officer, with a plan to expand its private markets exposure.
Liechti joins from Nest Sammelstiftung, the CHF4.3bn (€4.6bn) multi-employer pension fund known for its focus on responsible investment, where he recently completed a portfolio restructuring aimed at boosting efficiency and cutting costs.
During his tenure, Nest halved asset management costs over a decade, from 0.91% in 2015 to 0.39% in 2023.
At PKG, which manages CHF11bn in assets on behalf of small- and medium-sized enterprises, Liechti told IPE the fund will look to increase its allocations to illiquid asset classes, including infrastructure, private equity and real estate.
As of end-2023, alternatives excluding real estate accounted for 2% of total assets, or approximately CHF205m, with private equity comprising the bulk of that amount. Real estate investments stood at CHF2.1bn, or nearly 20% of assets.
He added that PKG’s larger asset base relative to Nest provides “more firepower” to take advantage of private market opportunities.
Liechti cautioned against reactive investment decisions based on recent performance, pointing to past examples such as the drawdowns in insurance-linked securities (ILS) and emerging market equities that were followed by rebounds.
In the current environment, and looking ahead, it’s wise to avoid mistakes like liquidating asset classes solely based on recent underperformance, he said.
At Nest, Liechti oversaw a broader reshuffle of its private market, equity, bond and real estate holdings to align with the fund’s evolving strategy. However, diverging future plans prompted his move.
“My time at Nest was over since I completed my tasks,” he said, adding that “Nest wanted to develop in a different direction.”
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