Aberdeen to search for variety of managers
ABERDEEN, Scotland — The Aberdeen City Council Superannuation Fund will search for global equity, bond and real estate managers — all new mandates — and will look for a private equity manager for its existing portfolio, said Joanne Hope, pensions manager, investments.
Plan officials hope to complete the hirings within the next nine to 12 months, she said.
The £1.1 billion ($2.02 billion) scheme is now looking for consultants to assist with the manager searches; the deadline for proposals is July 13, and interested consultants should contact the fund directly. Ms. Hope said consultants will be hired in the next three months.
The fund is restructuring following an asset-liability study, she said. The global equities portfolio will be £200 million; bonds will be £150 million; and real estate, £100 million.
The private equity portfolio, currently £25 million, will be boosted to £50 million.
Aberdeen Asset Management has run the private equity portfolio for 12 years, and Ms. Hope said it was time to look it over. The firm can rebid. Plan officials terminated two managers because of the restructuring: Deutsche Asset Management, which ran £300 million, and Schroder Investment Management, which handled £250 million, both in balanced portfolios. Both companies can bid for the new portfolios, she said.
The fund added £70 million to a passive global equity fund run by State Street Global Advisors, increasing it to £300 million. It also retained Merrill Lynch Investment Managers, which runs £110 million in active U.K. equities for the scheme, and Capital International, which runs a £50 million active global equity ex-U.K. portfolio.