NISA Aims for DC Retirement Income Market with Major Hire

NISA Investment Advisors—a top name in liability-driven investing—has made a rare senior hire, CIO has learned.

Mark Fortier, AllianceBernstein’s former head of defined contribution (DC) research and product development, has joined NISA as co-head of its DC Solutions business.

The addition revealed the next business frontier for NISA: retirement income products for US defined contribution plans, a sector still in its infancy.

“We are intellectually curious people,” firm CEO Jess Yawitz told CIO. “But while we have often explored different product ideas, NISA has rarely acted upon any of those musings. It goes without saying that the recent investments we have made in people and resources in the custom target-date fund space signifies our commitment to delivering the innovative, yet practical solutions for clients.”

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Fortier is one of few US investment professionals with extensive practical experience wrapping annuity products into DC plans. With AllianceBernstein, he was directly involved in creating a custom retirement income product for United Technologies’ lauded DC program.

In 2010, the US Treasury and Department of Labor requested Fortier’s testimony during a major hearing on lifetime income options for retirement plans. Fortier spoke of the promising potential for creating secure income in target-date portfolios—an idea he’s now charged with implementing at NISA.

“Mark is one of the most senior investment hires we’ve ever made,” NISA Managing Director David Eichhorn said.

The firm has spent the last two years working through options for delivering annuity-style lifetime benefits to the ever-growing population of DC plan members. “While it’s still in early stages of product adoption,” Eichhorn continued, “all stakeholders including the participants themselves agree that ‘income is the outcome.'”

BP investment chief Greg Williamson has stepped down to take over the American Red Cross’ $5 billion fund, CIO has learned.

Williamson’s resignation ends a long and noted career managing the oil giant’s retirement assets.

“I am very excited for this next chapter of my career,” Williamson said when reached by CIO. “I strongly support the mission of the American Red Cross, and look forward to making a positive contribution to the organization as its next chief investment officer.”

As CIO of the Washington, DC-based American Red Cross, he will be managing roughly $5 billion in foundation and pension assets.

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Current CIO Christina Samson has spent 19 years at the international aid organization. She earned a salary of $348,834 in addition to $62,733 of other compensation in 2013, according to the nonprofit’s most recent tax filings.

In December, BP won the CIO Industry Innovation Award for corporate pension plans with $10 billion or more under management. Williamson’s novel “liability-driven investing-plus” approach, in addition to many other industry contributions, earned BP the prize after nominations in previous years.

Williamson ranked 27th on the 2014 Power 100 list of the world’s most influential asset owners.