Ash Williams to Chair Council of Institutional Investors Board

Art by Chris Buzelli

In addition to electing a new board of directors, the Council of Institutional Investors (CII) has named Florida State Board of Administration (SBA) Executive Director and CIO Ashbel “Ash” Williams as board chairman.

Williams, who has been with the $195.9 billion SBA since the late 2000s, was elected chair by the CII’s public fund members, as per association bylaws.

Board officers were also elected by CII, including co-chairs Mary Francis, who is corporate secretary and chief governance officer for Chevron Corp., and John Keenan, corporate governance analyst for the AFSCME Employees Pension Plan. Scott Zdrazil, senior investment officer—corporate governance, for the Los Angeles County Employees Retirement Association, is the treasurer. Cambria Allen, corporate governance director, UAW Retiree Medical Benefits Trust, was named secretary.

Francis and Zdrazil join Jerry Albright, CIO, Teacher Retirement System of Texas; Ron Baker, interim executive director, Colorado Public Employees’ Retirement Association; Renaye Manley, deputy director, strategic initiatives department, Service Employees International Union (SEIU); Thomas McIntyre, international representative, International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers; Hope Mehlman, chief governance officer and assistant corporate secretary, Regions Financial; and Jennifer Peet, corporate governance director, Office of the Oregon Treasurer and Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund, as new members of the CII board.

For more stories like this, sign up for the CIO Alert newsletter. 

Existing board members Mary Collins, trustee, District of Columbia Retirement Board; Michael Garland, assistant comptroller, corporate governance and responsible investment, New York City Pension Funds; Aeisha Mastagni, portfolio manager, California State Teachers’ Retirement System (CalSTRS); and TerriJo Saarela, corporate governance director, State of Wisconsin Investment Board, have been elected as CII directors for the 2018-19 interim.

Last December, Williams was the honoree of CIO’s Industry Innovation Awards, where he received the Lifetime Achievement Award.

“If the team, culture, processes, and resources are right, the probability of investment outcomes that earn trust, enhance reputation, and build brand value is vastly enhanced,” he told CIO in December.

Williams could not be reached for comment.

Tags: Ash Williams, Council of Institutional Investors

After meeting certain qualifying conditions, the new British Steel Pension Scheme (BSPS) will continue as planned.

The new fund, backed by Tata Steel UK, a division of India’s Tata Steel, has met the minimum size and initial funding test level, which will allow for a merger with Germany’s Thyssenkrupp.

According to Allan Johnston, the new BSPS trustee chairman, the plans will move forward on March 28, with the BSPS closing to future accrual on March 31.

“This is very good news for the 83,000 members who wanted to receive their benefits from the New Scheme and chose to switch to it,” Johnston said in a statement.

For more stories like this, sign up for the CIO Alert newsletter. 

Last year, the British pensions regulator approved a deal where a one-time £550 million ($768.6 million) payment to the BSPS would allow for Tata Steel UK to cut pension benefits and create a new BSPS.

Reportedly some 25,000 scheme members declined to opt into the new BSPS, leaving them in the care of the Pension Protection Fund, which could potentially reduce their pension transfer value.

Following the 2017 pension predicament, Thussenkrupp and Tata announced a deal to merge their European steel operations, which is expected to close later this year. Should the agreement go through, the merger will create Europe’s second-largest steelmaker.

Tags: British Steel Pension Scheme, Pension, Tata Steel UK, UK