Former research house CEO moves to major fund manager
David Wright, former CEO and co-founder of Zenith Investment Partners, has moved in-house to take up an executive role at a listed fund manager.
Wright was formerly CEO and co-founder at Zenith, but announced in May that he would be departing in September 2025.
Having co-founded the company in 2002 alongside David Smythe, Wright has spent over two decades at Zenith as its CEO initially and then its investment director.
Having now departed, he has now taken up a new role as head of client solutions at Pinnacle Investment Management.
Pinnacle runs a number of affiliates in Australia and globally, including private credit manager Metrics Credit Partners, global and Australian equities firm Hyperion Asset Management, and property and infrastructure manager Resolution Capital.
In this newly created role, Wright will support Pinnacle’s global growth initiatives and provide strategic guidance to affiliated investment managers with a focus on further enhancing client outcomes.
There have been a number of exits from Zenith in recent month as managing director Jason Huddy departed in July and head of portfolio solutions, Steven Tang, departed in September after 17 years, although neither have announced new roles. Meanwhile, founding partner Ben Davis and business development head Berit Deagan departed to join Ascalon Capital.
Wright said: “Over the past two decades, I’ve worked closely with many Pinnacle executives and Affiliated fund managers as the group has grown into one of Australia’s strongest and most respected financial services organisations.
“The client-focused platform Ian Macoun and the team has built is globally unique, and there is no doubt there are significant opportunities to further extend its reach.”
Founder and managing director, Ian Macoun, said: “David’s contribution to the investment management industry to date has been profound. Just as Pinnacle was built from the ground up on the belief that there was a better way to deliver excellence in investment management, David founded a leading research business that set new standards of quality and integrity, to the great benefit of advisers and investors across the country.
“As we continue to expand our multi-affiliate model and broaden asset class diversification to meet evolving investor demands, David brings an extensive breadth of experience and knowledge. He will play a key role in our success well into the future.”
In its most recent financial results, Pinnacle reported a 63 per cent increase in funds under management (FUM) across the 18 Pinnacle affiliates, with total FUM reaching $179.4 billion at 30 June 2025. The $69.3 billion increase in FUM over the financial year 2025 comprised net flows of $23.1 billion, acquired FUM of $27.9 billion, and $18.3 billion from market movements and investment performance.
International and retail FUM combined has grown from $17.2 billion to $91.1 billion over a five-year period and now accounts for 51 per cent of total FUM across the 18 affiliates. This represents a substantial shift in the composition of its FUM since it first listed in 2016, when 84 per cent of Pinnacle’s $19.8 billion FUM was sourced from Australian institutions only.
AUTHOR
Laura Dew
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