Ontario Teachers’ Looks for New PE Chief

(April 26, 2010) — Erol Uzumeri has resigned as head of private equity at the $96.36 billion Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan.

Uzumeri served in the position at the Toronto-based pension fund manager since 2003, and his final day will be May 14. According to Pensions & Investments, Chief Investment Officer Neil Petroff will assume Uzumeri’s duties until a permanent replacement is found. Uzumeri will be starting his own money management firm.

Earlier this month, Ontario Teachers’, Canada’s third- biggest retirement plan that invests in public equity, fixed income and alternative investment markets, posted a13% return on 2009 investments as a result of gains in fixed income and Canadian stocks. The plan achieved $10.9 billion in investment income in 2009, compared with a net investment loss of about $19 billion in 2008.

This year, the Canadian fund announced several new acquisitions in which it was a chief investor, including the purchase of the largest specialty aluminum manufacturer, Exal Group, and an agreement to buy the operator of the U.K. lottery in a $576 million deal. More recently, the plan announced the completion its acquisition of AIG’s Canadian mortgage insurance business for an undisclosed amount.

The plan is the largest single-profession pension plan in Canada, administering the pensions of 289,000 active and retired teachers in Ontario.