Gateway Investment Advisers [see profile] founder Walter Sall will leave the chairman's seat at the end of the year. The retirement of Sall, 65, comes nearly three years after his Cincinnati-based company was acquired by Natixis Global Asset Management [see profile].

Walter Sall Gateway Investment Advisers Chairman

Sall "will not be replaced as chairman," Natixis spokesperson Denise Robbi-Arena told The MFWire.com.

A pioneer in the use of options in investing strategies, Sall founded Gateway in 1977. In June 2007, Natixis, then called Ixis Asset Management, unveiled a deal to buy Gateway. The transaction became complete in February 2008.

Sall's departure will not have an effect on the day-to-day money management operations at the firm, according to a press release on Monday.

Gateway offers two mutual funds, including the $4.4 billion Gateway Fund. The firm's other hedged equity products include four closed-end funds and two offshore funds. Gateway also runs individual, foundation, endowment, pension and insurance accounts.

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Company Press Release

Walter G. Sall, Chairman of Gateway Investment Advisers, LLC, to Retire

Options Investment Pioneer Leaves Legacy of Commitment to Investors

CINCINNATI--Gateway Investment Advisers, LLC, a registered investment adviser since 1977 with over $7 billion in assets under management, announced today that its founder and chairman, Walter G. Sall, is retiring effective year-end 2010. Sall, a pioneer in the use of options in investment strategies, spent his career striving to make sophisticated options strategies more widely available to the investing public. His success can be measured by the impressive growth of the $4.4 billion Gateway Fund, the firm's flagship mutual fund, which has quadrupled in size over the past decade.

"Walter's foresight and invaluable guidance have contributed greatly to Gateway's position of strength today," said J. Patrick Rogers, president and chief executive officer of Gateway Investment Advisers and co-portfolio manager of the Gateway Fund. "We wish Walter all the best in his retirement years, knowing that he has left the fund in good hands with strong prospects for future growth."

Mr. Sall's departure from Gateway will have no effect on day-to-day money management operations at the firm, including management of the Gateway Fund. In February 2008, Gateway was acquired by Natixis Global Asset Management (NGAM), an international multi-boutique manager, which distributes the Gateway Fund through financial intermediaries via its proprietary distribution network. As with NGAM's other affiliates, Gateway will continue to operate autonomously.

“By agreeing to merge Gateway with Natixis Global Asset Management in 2008, Walter helped us further our efforts to provide innovative investment solutions aimed at helping individual investors build and preserve wealth," said John Hailer, president and chief executive officer of Natixis Global Asset Management, US and Asia, and head of Natixis Global Associates US and International distribution. "We wish Walter well as he prepares for a very well-deserved retirement."

About Gateway Investment Advisers

Founded in 1977, Gateway Investment Advisers, LLC has one of the industry’s longest-running option hedging programs. Noted for its accomplishment in hedging client portfolios during the market crash of October 1987, the firm extended its hedged-equity strategy to its flagship mutual fund, Gateway Fund, in January 1988. The firm’s hedged equity offerings include two open-end mutual funds, four closed-end funds and two offshore funds, as well as individual, foundation, endowment, pension and insurance accounts.

About Natixis Global Asset Management

Natixis Global Asset Management is one of the 15 largest asset managers in the world1 based on assets under management. Its affiliated asset management companies provide investment products that seek to enhance and protect the wealth and retirement assets of both institutional and individual investor clients. Its proprietary distribution network helps package and deliver its affiliates’ products around the world. Natixis Global Asset Management brings together the expertise of multiple specialized investment managers based in Europe, the United States and Asia to offer a wide spectrum of equity, fixed-income and alternative investment strategies.

Headquartered in Paris and Boston, Natixis Global Asset Management's assets under management totaled $651 billion (€532 billion) as of June 30, 2010. Natixis Global Asset Management is part of Natixis. Listed on the Paris Stock Exchange, Natixis is the subsidiary of BPCE, the second-largest banking group in France. Natixis Global Asset Management's affiliated investment management firms and distribution and service groups include: Absolute Asia Asset Management; AEW Capital Management; AlphaSimplex Group; Aurora Investment Management; Capital Growth Management; Caspian Capital Management; Gateway Investment Advisers; Hansberger Global Investors; Harris Associates; Loomis, Sayles & Company; Natixis Global Associates; Reich & Tang Asset Management; Snyder Capital Management; Vaughan Nelson Investment Management; and Westpeak Global Advisors. In addition to the U.S. firms, Natixis Global Asset Management includes three principal affiliates based in Paris: AEW Europe, Natixis Asset Management and Natixis Multimanager.

 

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