The head of the parent company of Pimco [profile] and Allianz Global Investors [profile] just hired a new asset management chief.

Jacqueline Hunt Allianz SE Asset Management Chief

Allianz SE CEO Oliver Baete confirms that on July 1 Jackie Hunt, 47, will join the German multinational's board of management to oversee the U.S. life insurance business and all of asset management, which includes both Pimco and AGI. Hunt succeeds Jay Ralph, 57, "who is leaving Allianz at his own request to devote more time to his family."

Bloomberg and the Financial Times both reported on Hunt's appointment.

Hunt most recently spent two years as CEO of Prudential plc (the British insurer, not the American one based in Newark) for Africa, Europe, and the United Kingdom. A native South African, Hunt is an alumnus of the University of the Witwatersrand, she started out at Deloitte & Touche and held chief financial officer posts at Aviva, Norwich Union, and Standard Life.

Both Bloomberg and FT offer analyst reactions to the shakeup.

"I am surprised she has managed to get this role," UBS analyst James Shuck tells the FT. "To oversee Allianz's asset management business is a step up for her."

"It's definitely a rejuvenation of the board, and any resulting boost in management's energy is something to welcome," Landesbank Baden-Wuerttemberg analyst Werner Schirmer tells Bloomberg. "Still, it's not as if younger executives will find it any easier to navigate this environment. The asset-management industry faces difficulty in generating returns."

Hunt's appointment and Ralph's departure come shortly after a new CEO, former Asia Pacific chief Doug Eu, took over the asset manager in the U.S. An AGI spokeswoman confirms that Eu continues to report to Andreas Utermann, chief investment officer and now CEO of all of AGI. Utermann's predecessor as AGI CEO, Elizabeth Corley, just became non-executive vice chair of AGI.

Allianz's other asset management arm, Newport Beach, California-based fixed income titan Pimco, has been led by CEO Doug Hodge for the past two years. Reuters reports that, in a letter to Allianz shareholders, Baete says that "Pimco will again be an area of focus for Allianz in 2016."

Baete also revealed that on January 1 Gunther Thallinger will join the Allianz board of management, succeeding Max Zimmer to oversee investment management as well as global life and health. 

Edited by: Neil Anderson, Managing Editor


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