Mercer topples Towers Perrin for FirstChoice
Mercer Investment Consulting has replacedTowers Perrinas asset consultant forColonial First State’s (CFS) flagship master trust, FirstChoice.
Mercer won the consulting contract ahead of a range of other bidders after it was put out to tender by CFS following a review of its investment consulting arrangements.
Mercer has been appointed for two years, and will provide consulting advice to CFS’s masterfund investments team, which is responsible for investment management decisions relating to the FirstChoice platform, including the review and selection of managers for its multi-manager portfolios.
CFS head of multi-manager investments Joe Fernandes says FirstChoice’s strong growth since its launch last May led to the review of its investment consulting arrangements.
According to Fernandes, there are no current plans to make significant changes to FirstChoice’s list of managers or portfolios, but regular reviews by Mercer may result in changes in the future.
Towers Perrin was the inaugural asset consultant for FirstChoice. Since its launch, FirstChoice has reached over $2 billion in funds under administration, and has a total of 45 investment options, including nine multi-manager options.
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