GLOBAL - Allianz Global Investors, Redington, Forca, BlackRock, AllenbridgeEpic Investment Advisers, Kempen Capital Management UK, Aquila Capital, GES, Catella, Threadneedle, Atkin & Co

Allianz Global Investors - Andy Wiggins has been appointed head of UK institutional business in a newly created role. He will also be a member of the AllianzGI European business development team. He joins from Threadneedle Investments, where he was head of UK institutional client relationships. Before then, he was director of client relations at AllianceBernstein and spent eight years as a principal at Mercer.

Redington - John Towner, a former director at Barclay Capital, will join the investment consulting team as a director at the end of this month. He started his career at Bankers Trust in 1996, then worked within the asset management arm of Deutsche Bank as a director and, later, within the Deutsche Bank Insurance and Pensions Solutions Group, servicing UK Life insurance and pension clients on ALM transactions.

Forca - Jes Damsted stepped down from his role as managing director of the Danish pensions administration company on 9 October. The decision had been made by mutual agreement, the firm said. It added that Damsted had built the company up to its current state as a “competent, modern business”. Steen Gram-Hansen, Forca’s chief financial officer, has now replaced Damsted as managing director.

BlackRock - James Wilkinson and Christoph Wagner join the company as European chief investment officer for BlackRock’s global real estate securities platform and director of the European real estate debt group, respectively. Wilkinson will join the company in January, reporting to global head of real estate securities Mark Howard-Johnson. Wagner, who has previously worked at Barclays Capital and Morgan Stanley, will oversee the origination of senior and mezzanine debt transactions in the EMEA region from BlackRock’s London office.

AllenbridgeEpic Investment Advisers - The investment adviser for UK pension funds has appointed Malcolm Green as a senior adviser. Green is currently a non-executive director and member of the audit committee at the DWP’s shared services board. Until 2011, he was chairman of the Royal Ordnance Pension Scheme and Royal Ordnance Senior Staff Pensions, having served as a trustee since 1999.

Kempen Capital Management UK - Kathleen Dewandeleer has been appointed an investment manager, starting in her new position in mid-November. Her research responsibilities will include the Benelux countries and Italy, and she will also co-manage an ESG portfolio. Dewandeleer previously worked for Scottish Widows Investment Partnership as an investment director in charge of all European small-cap portfolios.

Aquila Capital - Stuart MacDonald has been appointed managing director to help develop the alternative investment manager’s institutional business. He joins from Gems Advisors, having previously held senior positions at Henderson Global Investors, West Merchant Bank and Buchanan Partners.

GES - Eric Gelfgren has been appointed business development director. His previous positions include director for the Nordic region at Bank Sarasin, European head of responsible investing at Mercer, global head of marketing and sales at SAM Sustainable Asset Management and head of institutional sales at SEB Asset Management.            

Catella - David Rückel joins as head of institutional business for the European company’s German KAG, based in Munich. He will advise the company’s institutional clients and assume Alexandra Boos’ responsibilities for the length of her maternity leave. Rückel has previously worked as managing director of Wells Real Asset Management and spent time at OneBridgehouse and Oppenheimer.

Threadneedle - John Peta has been appointed to lead the company’s emerging market debt team along with Henry Stipp. He joins from Boston-based Acadian Asset Management, where he was head of emerging market debt, having joined the firm in 2007.

Atkin & Co - The pension scheme administrator and actuarial consultant has appointed John Bacon as operations manager. He joins from Mercer, where he worked for eight years in administration.

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