US renowned pension fund CalPERS (California Public Employees’ Retirement System) has announced its current chief investment officer Ted Eliopoulos is set to leave “in order to relocate to the East Coast to be closer to family.”
The search for a successor has already started while Eliopoulos will remain CIO until a replacement is found. He will assist in the transition through the end of 2018.
Eliopoulos said he will be “stepping away from CalPERS by the beginning of 2019.”
As CIO, Eliopoulos managed more than $350bn in assets, including both public and private assets, and heading a team of nearly 400 investment professionals.
He joined CalPERS in 2007 as senior investment officer for the real estate division and the real assets unit before he was appointed interim CIO in June 2013 and later as permanent CIO in September 2014.
“It’s been extremely rewarding to have helped steward an investment institution that serves so many hardworking and deserving California families. I am confident the transition to a new CIO will be seamless as I leave the office in the hands of some of the most skilled investment professionals in the industry,” Eliopoulos said.
“Under Ted’s leadership, the investment office has greatly reduced the cost and complexity of the investment portfolio and increased transparency around fees,” commented Marcie Frost, CalPERS CEO. “Because every dollar we save goes back into the fund, our members will directly benefit from those cost savings for years to come. Ted has always been guided by our fiduciary obligation to our members and the fund.”
Priya Mathur, CalPERS board president, added: “Ted leaves the Investment Office in a better place. He has managed risk, negotiated lower fees with external managers, and set the Fund up for success moving forward. On behalf of all of us on the Board, we wish him much success and happiness as he starts the next chapter in his life.”
CalPERS serves more than 1.9 million members and its fund market value amounts to around $355bn currently.
