DTE Energy Investment Chief Leaves for OCIO

Paul Cavazos1 Paul Cavazos, CIO, American Beacon FundsDTE Energy CIO Paul Cavazos is exiting after nearly nine years at the utility firm.

The outgoing investment chief is joining American Beacon, an outsourced-CIO and mutual funds-of-funds based in Irving, Texas, the firm announced Wednesday. Cavazos will relocate and begin his new post as CIO on June 20.

He will be responsible for corporate pension plan investments as well as overseeing American Beacon’s funds. The firm, a spin-out of American Airlines’ treasury office, managed $51.4 billion as of March 31.

“Paul’s comprehensive background leading defined benefit plans of varying sizes, conducting investment manager searches, due diligence, and risk control oversight make him an excellent fit to the evolving business needs of American Beacon,” the firm’s President and CEO Gene Needles Jr. said.

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At DTE, Cavazos managed six distinct portfolios—including defined benefit and defined contribution plans, a foundation, and a nuclear decommissioning trust—totaling $10 billion.

A move to American Beacon ends Cavazos’ 20-plus year career as an asset owner, including jobs with Navistar, Boeing, and Chrysler. He also belongs as a working group member to corporate pension industry group CIEBA (Committee on Investment of Employee Benefit Assets).

“To be able to join one of the leading sub-advised mutual fund firms and be an integral part of achieving the firm’s growth objectives were very appealing to me,” Cavazos said about joining American Beacon.

DTE lost Cavazos’ deputy Kevin Kenneally last July to the Fisher Group, a family office for the Max M. and Marjorie S. Fisher family.

According to his LinkedIn, however, Kenneally left his new position as director of investments just five months later.

DougPearce Doug Pearce (Art by Chris Buzelli)The New Zealand Superannuation Fund has appointed veteran Canadian asset owner Doug Pearce to its board of guardians, the fund announced Wednesday.

Pearce led the British Columbia Investment Management Corporation (BCIMC) as founding CEO and CIO for 25 years. He retired in 2014, succeeded by Quebec pension chief Gordon Fyfe. BCIMC grew from a small portfolio of Canadian government bonds in 1988 to a diversified $114 billion during Pearce’s tenure.

He takes this experience to NZ Super—another early-stage sovereign fund—noted board Chair Catherine Savage in the announcement.

The NZ$30 billion (US$20 billion) fund praised Pearce as a “proponent of good governance and responsible investment,” sustainability being a key priority of both NZ Super and BCIMC.

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Pearce joins the board along with another retired executive: John Williamson, an ex-managing director of Australian portfolio company Hellaby Holdings.

“We look forward to working with them,” Savage said.

NZ Super has brought overseas investment expertise to its board while dropping it from the portfolio. In May, the fund revealed it had cut ties with nearly all mainstream foreign private equity and real estate firms.

“The move to sell them is consistent with our strategy to have fewer, deeper relationships with our investment managers,” said Fiona Mackenzie, head of investments, at the time.