Virginia Retirement System Nabs Alts Exec

Kristina Koutrakos, Virginia Retirement SystemThe Virginia Retirement System (VRS) has hired Kristina Koutrakos—a fixed income specialist and alternatives firm founder—as its first-ever director of portfolio strategy, CIO has learned.

Koutrakos joined the 65-person investment team November 30, VRS spokesperson Jeanne Chenault confirmed.

“Kristina will develop, implement, and manage a systematic ongoing process for identifying cross-asset class investment ideas with the potential to enhance returns and/or reduce risk,” Chenault said.

The director of strategy role is her first at an institution, after more than 15 years in senior asset management positions.

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Koutrakos last year founded Kyria Capital Management, a firm dedicated to increasing “fundraising, investment, and awareness for women in alternative investing,” according to its website, which remains active. She also spent four years (2004 to 2008) as a portfolio manager for BlackRock’s credit hedge fund and head trader for its structured credit group.

At VRS, Koutrakos reports to the Managing Director Strategy, Research, and Risk Management Charles Grant.

The fund had a 14% allocation to speciality fixed income as of June 30, including emerging market debt (3.5%), rate-sensitive credit (4.7%), and rate-independent bonds (6%).

At $68 billion, VRS ranked 45th on Towers Watson’s 2015 list of the largest pension funds worldwide.

009_RobinDiamonte Art by Chris BuzelliUnited Technologies CIO Robin Diamonte has joined investment research firm Morningstar’s board of directors.

Diamonte becomes Morningstar’s 10^th board member. A four-time CIO Power 100 member, Diamonte also serves on the board of the Committee on Investment of Employee Benefit Assets, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation Advisory Committee, and is chair of the New York Federal Reserve Pension Managers Advisory Committee.

Morningstar Chairman and CEO Joe Mansueto said Diamonte’s expertise would be “a great asset to our growing retirement business.”

“She led an impressive transformation of United Technologies’ pension plan—one of the biggest pools of private retirement assets in the US—and improved retirement income security for thousands of employees,” Mansueto added.

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