Sanlam UK
Sanlam UK, the British arm of the South Africa-based and listed Sanlam financial services group, said it has named David Mason chief operating officer, succeeding Kevin Alcock, who will remain at Sanlam, and who will work closely with Mason, according to a spokesperson.
Mason brings with him to Sanlam more than 20 years of experience in the area of digital innovation projects, many of which were spent with Barclays Wealth. Most recently he was involved with two fintech start-ups based in the Google techub campus in London, as well as having been the programme leader for the launch of a new wealth management business, Saranac Partners.
While at Barclays Wealth he had held such roles as global head of IT strategy and architecture, regional chief investment officer (Asia) and chief of staff to the company’s chief operating officer. During his time with Barclays Wealth, he oversaw teams of more than 200 IT specialists and was involved in setting up new technology centres in India and Singapore, according to a statement announcing his appointment at Sanlam UK.
There, he will “lead the development of Sanlam UK’s operational platform, with a specific focus on delivering innovative technology solutions to meet the evolving requirements of its clients,” the statement added.
He will report directly to Sanlam UK chief executive Jonathan Polin, and sit on its executive committee.
Founded in 1918 and based in Cape Town, Sanlam has a market capitalisation of around £7bn. The group provides a range of financial products and services to more than 10 million clients globally, including insurance, financial planning, investments and wealth management.
The UK operation headed up by Polin consists of a number of businesses, including Sanlam Private Wealth, a discretionary fund manager; Sanlam Investments & Pensions, a life and pensions business; Sanlam FOUR, a boutique asset management and fund business; and Sanlam Wealth Planning, a financial advisory business.
Aviva Investors
Aviva Investors, the global asset management business of London-based life insurance giant Aviva plc, has named Carmen Altenkirch sovereign analyst, a newly-created role.
Altenkirch, pictured left, comes to Aviva Investors from AXA Investment Managers, where she was an emerging market sovereign analyst, and before that, she was with Fitch Ratings. Altogether she has more than 10 years of experience analysing the economic drivers of emerging market countries, Aviva Investors said in a statement.
At Aviva Investors, she will be based in London and report to Liam Spillane, head of emerging market debt. Her focus will be primarily on frontier economies, “with a broader remit across the investable EMD [emerging market debt] universe”, the company said. She will work closely with hard-currency fund managers Aaron Grehan and Michael McGill.
Aviva Investors currently operates in 15 countries in Asia Pacific, Europe, North America and the United Kingdom, and at the end of June had assets under management of £351bn. Its London Stock Exchange-listed parent is a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index.
The International Stock Exchange
The International Stock Exchange (TISE) has named Mark Nicol managing director of its regulatory arm, known as The International Stock Exchange Authority Limited (TISEA).
Nicol, who joined TISE in December, succeeds Diana Thompson, who remains an advocate and notary public.
He comes to the role, which is based in Guernsey, where the stock exchange is located, from the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority, where he held a number of senior roles at various times, according to a TISE statement. Prior to this he spent 12 years working for several exchange businesses in London, including the London Stock Exchange, EDX London and OM London Exchange, the TISE statement said.
He is qualified with the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants and holds a bachelor of commerce degree from the University of Cape Town, South Africa.
