News Round Up

BT Funds Management is expected to start using its parent company's name, Principal, in the next couple of months.

It is planning to use the Principal Global Investors name for its asset management arm, but keep using BT Funds Management for distribution, the Australian media report.

The, not unexpected, move fits with Principal's aim of building a global business.

As part of this process BT recently appoint Jim McCaughan to the newly created position of global head of asset management. He is based in New York.

Principal is expected to relocate a number of its international equity analysts, including a number of Australian analysts, to both London and New York in the next six months.

The group has also announced Rollie Woltjen is head of global equities. Woltjen was previously the chief executive US fund manager, Invista. He will be responsible for creating unified global research for the integrated international equities team.

The current head of global equities, Paul Durham, will become the director of non-US equities and report to Woltjen. Paul Dow, also from Invista, will become director of US equities.

The committee will be chaired by former chairman of the Wellington Regional Council Stuart Macaskill.

The industry will be represented by Giselle McLachlan of NRMA Insurance and Sidney Narraway of Royal & Sun Alliance Life. Consumers and the Ministry of Consumer Affairs are represented by Mary-Jane Rivers, an organisational development facilitator; Helen Walch, a consumer and community group coordinator and Cindy O’Brien a ministry policy advisor.

ISOC Chair Beverley Wakem says submissions are welcome particularly from people who have used the scheme.