Former NZAM chief investment officer, Greg Peacock, has returned to a new role at his old haunt taking up the CEO position for a just-formed Spencer family office company.
It is understood Peacock would run an Australasian equities book under the banner Windhaven Securities – a new entity registered last week ultimately owned by the of the Spencer family investment vehicle, Clime Group.
He left NZAM in September following a seven-year stint with the Auckland-based boutique alternative asset manager.
Prior to joining NZAM in 2010, Peacock served 18 years with Clime Asset Management as an investment manager. With historical roots in the NZ pulp and paper industry, the Spencers are one of the country’s wealthiest families with a wide range of business and investment interests.
Windhaven is a favoured name for a bevy of Clime subsidiaries, pre-fixing Taxi Holdings, Care Holdings, Ventures and Investments.
Peacock officially started at Windhaven Securities a fortnight ago.
Meanwhile, another firm with NZAM links, Castle Point Funds Management, has hired former Suncorp NZ corporate legal manager, Jenine Briggs, as head of operations to boost its in-house capability.
NZAM currently provides Castle Point operational support including “compliance, anti money laundering, settlements, accounting and reporting”, the Australasian equity manager’s website says.
In a release, Castle Point says would hire more staff over the next few months as it “in-houses support functions previously outsourced”.
Castle Point founding manager, Richard Stubbs, said the firm, which recently surpassed $250 million in funds under management had also “recently refreshed the board and increased our investments in distribution and client servicing”.
In August NZAM principal, Alan McChesney, and Guernsey-based investor, Robert Banfield, left the Castle Point board in favour of NZAM non-executive director, Richard Riddell, and Richard Avery-Wright, head of Guernsey investment firm (and Castle Point shareholder) Raw Capital Partners.
Stubbs said with a three-year track record and solid performance behind it, Castle Point was now on the radar of wholesale investment consultant.
“We’re under consideration for a couple of wholesale mandates at the moment,” he said. “And our retail funds [Ranger and 5 Oceans] have passed $50 million with good inflows.”
According to Stubbs, the appointment of Briggs would ensure Castle Point had “the appropriate resources to continue on this growth path”.