Following a global search, the Future Fund Management Agency has appointed Sue Brake to the role of Deputy Chief Investment Officer, Portfolio Strategy.
Ms Brake will fill the newly created role, reporting to Chief Investment Officer, Dr Raphael Arndt. She will lead the Future Fund’s Portfolio Strategy function which is responsible for undertaking macroeconomic and capital markets research and blending this with the bottom-up information generated by the Future Fund’s sector teams to design optimal portfolios for the organisation’s administered funds.
Dr Raphael Arndt, Chief Investment Officer, said:
‘Sue is a widely respected investment professional and will make a fantastic addition to the Future Fund team. She has extensive experience in institutional investing, where she has had an impressive career specialising in governance and investment process design, portfolio construction and managing currency and derivative programs.
‘Sue will make a strong contribution to our investment leadership group which is responsible for our collaborative and joined up approach to investment, focusing on the performance of the portfolios as a whole.’
Ms Brake will join the Future Fund in June.
ENDS
Notes to editors:
About the Future Fund
The Future Fund is Australia’s sovereign wealth fund. At 31 December 2018 it was valued at $147bn and has returned 9.7% pa over the last 10 years, against a target benchmark return of 6.6% pa. Investment returns have added over $86bn to the original contributions of $60.5bn made by government.
Established to strengthen the Australian government’s long-term financial position, the Future Fund Board of Guardians, supported by the Future Fund Management Agency, is responsible for investing the assets of the Future Fund. The Board of Guardians is also responsible for investing five other public asset funds with a combined value of $34bn.
Sue Brake, Deputy Chief Investment Officer, Portfolio Strategy
Sue Brake has worked as a senior investment consultant with Willis Towers Watson since 2016. Sue is primarily involved with advising institutional clients on a range of investment issues including governance, organisational design, strategic asset allocation, and portfolio construction.
Prior to joining Willis Towers Watson, Sue worked at NZ Super for 7 years, with responsibility for the Fund’s long-term investment strategy, and the design and build of their investment portfolio. Sue was also instrumental in the setting up of NZ Super, establishing in-house currency and derivatives capabilities. Sue has been an external expert on investment management for the International Monetary Fund, advising nations on establishing and the management of sovereign wealth funds. Previously Sue held senior financial market roles in Australia and New Zealand.
She graduated from the University of Canterbury (NZ) in 1990 with a master’s degree in psychology, and prior to that from both Auckland and Canterbury universities with bachelor degrees in Psychology, Mathematics, Computer Science and English Literature.