New York Life CIO Appointed President | Chief Investment Officer

The CIO of the US’ biggest life insurer has been appointed president of the company in a senior management reshuffle.

New York Life’s Vice Chairman and CIO John Kim has been elected president with immediate effect, the company said yesterday. He replaces Ted Mathas, chairman and CEO, who was elected president in 2007.

Kim retains his CIO role and duties within New York Life’s investment division, while taking on responsibility for the Insurance & Agency Group. Kim joined in 2008 to lead the insurer’s investment capability and assets under management have doubled under his leadership, Mathas said.

“With his broad and deep experience and judgment, the board and I know John will continue making high-impact contributions overseeing all of our business operations in his new role as president of the company,” Mathas added.

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Prior to joining New York Life, Kim was president of Prudential Retirement. He was also president of CIGNA Retirement and Investment Services, and held CEO and CIO positions within the investment and insurance divisions of Aetna Life & Casualty.

As part of the reshuffle, Chris Blunt has been appointed president of the company’s investment division. He joined the insurer in 2004 as head of retail investments before taking charge of the Insurance & Agency Group. Agency operations are currently led by Mark Pfaff, who plans to retire at the end of this year.

Brad Johnson1 Brad Johnson, University of Oklahoma FoundationThe University of Oklahoma (OU) Foundation has appointed a veteran consultant to head up its $1.4 billion endowment.

Brad Johnson, currently director of quantitative research and the derivatives implementation group at Cambridge Associates, will join the foundation this summer. The OU Foundation aims to manage and support charitable gifts made to the university.

Leading a staff of two investment professionals, Johnson will report to the foundation’s President Guy Patton, a spokesperson confirmed. He will also be responsible for the OU Foundation’s entire investment process.

“We believe Brad will provide a wealth of knowledge and skill in investing to the foundation and the university,” Patton said in a statement. “His combination of skills and experiences will bring terrific value to the foundation’s investment process.”

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According to the foundation’s documents, the endowment beat its benchmarks for both trailing three-year and five-year periods, with 12.7% and 10% returns respectively.

The diversified portfolio—with more than 42% in global equity and 28% in hedge funds, among other allocations—also gained 19.5% in fiscal year 2014 and 14.3% in 2013.

“The growth and stability of the foundation’s financial assets will have a lasting impact on the university’s teaching, research, and mission for public service,” Johnson said regarding his move to Norman, Oklahoma.

Prior to his seven-year tenure at Cambridge Associates—where he began as investment director—he worked as a portfolio manager for WR Ericksen & Associates in Portland, Oregon.

Johnson holds an MBA from Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Puget Sound in Seattle. He is also a chartered financial analyst.

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