Russell Appoints UK Fiduciary Head as Market Builds

A major provider of OCIO has appointed a chief to spearhead its business in the UK and Ireland.

Sarah Leslie has been appointed to lead Russell Investments’ UK and Ireland fiduciary management offering as the market rapidly increases.

Last year, KPMG reported a 44% increase in the take up of fiduciary management—or outsourced-CIO—in the UK. This increase has been reflected in other European nations.

“Across Europe, demand for our fiduciary management services is growing, particularly in the UK, the Netherlands, and Germany,” said Pascal Duval, CEO EMEA at Russell.

Last year, KPMG reported that assets managed on a fiduciary or OCIO basis in the British Isles alone stood at £72 billion ($109 billion)—an increase of 22% over 2013. The consulting firm expects to see a similar uptick in the 2015 report.

On a company basis, latest figures show Russell manages around $70 billion on an OCIO or fiduciary basis. Mercer, Towers Watson, and Aon Hewitt have comparable assets.

Leslie joined Russell in 2010 from Aon where she developed its fiduciary management product range. At the firm, she has been an associate director in the practice since joining and will continue to report to Rob Bishop, head of implementation services in EMEA and interim head of UK institutional.

Related: The OCIO Power Base & The 2015 OCIO Survey

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