Chris Drew is joining Rest Super in July as head of Australian equities, the A$55 billion ($42.4 billion) superannuation fund focused on employees in Australia's retail sector said Monday.
The new role reflects Sydney-based Rest's continued expansion of the fund's internal management capabilities.
Mr. Drew will join Rest in mid-July from Australian Catholic Super Fund, where he was investment manager-public markets since July 2015, according to a Rest news release.
Michael Block, chief investment officer of the A$9 billion Australian Catholic Super, confirmed in an email that Mr. Drew is to leave the Sydney-based fund for Rest in July. Australian Catholic Super, meanwhile, remains in merger discussion with NGS Super, a Melbourne-based fund with A$12 billion in retirement assets, he added.
Rest has managed assets internally since before the global financial crisis and currently runs 11% of its portfolio in-house — mostly in fixed income, real estate and infrastructure, according to an email from a Rest spokeswoman. The fund is looking to lift the in-house portion of its portfolio to 20%, she said.
Most of that targeted growth is likely to come through "continued internalization of real assets and equities" — both listed and unlisted, the spokeswoman said.
Andrew Lill, Rest's chief investment officer, in the news release said Mr. Drew will be overseeing "one of our largest asset classes and ... a key driver in delivering strong and competitive returns for members."
Australian equities accounted for a 24% share of Rest's default option as of the end of March, with a target asset allocation of 10% to 45%, the spokeswoman noted.
