Smartshares chief, Hugh Stevens, has quit the business with an expected departure date set for June.
Stevens, a former head of BNP Paribas Securities Services NZ, joined the NZX-owned business five years ago, adding to its range of exchange-traded funds and overseeing two major acquisitions during the last couple of years – the ASB superannuation master trust and QuayStreet.
The SuperLife KiwiSaver scheme also won default scheme status for the first time in 2021, adding some $340 million to the group’s funds under management.
During his tenure, the combined Smartshares and SuperLife assets under management grew from about $2 billion to more than $8 billion at the latest count.
Smartshares also picked up several Pacific nation superannuation mandates over the previous few years including, most recently, the $200 million Cook Islands pension scheme.
In a statement this morning, NZX chief, Mark Peterson, said he remained “confident Smartshares will go from strength to strength in the future”.
The NZX has a mid-term target of growing Smartshares to at least $20 billion under management.
“We thank Hugh for his contribution and wish him all the best for the future,” Peterson said.
The group will start recruiting for a new funds boss shortly, he said.