BT Financial Group has realigned its internal investment management teams within a single business unit and has moved Advance Asset Management head Patrick Farrell into the role of chief investment officer for the group.
The realignment will result in the investment operations of Advance Asset Management, Westpac Online Investing and BTFG's in-house advice model portfolio construction team – eQR, all coming under the oversight of BTFG General Manager Investments and Insurance David Lees.
The new business unit – BT Investment Solutions (BTIS) – will not take over the investment work of BTFG's boutique investment business Ascalon nor will it replace the existing partnership with BT Investment Management.
However Farrell said BTIS would draw expertise from and create product solutions for BTFG's platform, advice and private bank businesses but was not looking at building internal investment product manufacturing capability and would rely on BTIM and other providers for core investment products.
BTIS will be headed by Lees while Farrell will continue to head up Advance and oversee all of BTFG's investment funds.
BTFG head of retirement Rodney Greenhalgh will take on the role of acting head of investment product solutions while the current head of corporate super distribution Michaela McGlinn will take on the role of head of investment distribution. Former global operating officer for Mercer's investment business, Anthony Lane, will join BTFG as BTIS chief operating officer.
The use of the BTIS name is a revival of the name and was first used by BTFG after a review of internal operations in 2009 resulted in St George Investment Solutions being rolled into BT's investment operations after the merger between Westpac and St George Bank. At that time the combined multi-manager investment businesses were also dubbed BT Investment Solutions.
Farrell said the development of BTIS in 2014 was an expanded version of the previous model and would continue to use multi-manager strategies with Advance, superannuation investments, model portfolios and equity portfolios but offer tailored solutions through the various BT channels.
