Isio has been named as investment adviser to the Scottish Widows Master Trust as its investment adviser, replacing Barnett Waddingham which was its adviser last year.
Selected by the trustees through a competitive process, Isio will advise on default design, asset allocation, manager selection and risk management to support its DC members.
The trustees of the master trust said Isio was chosen for the quality of its DC offering, as well as its expertise and credentials in defined benefit (DB) and public sector investment advisory, which it says will be leveraged to enable the Scottish Widows Master Trust to benefit from innovation from across the pensions landscape. As part of its appointment Isio will advise the trustees on the evolution of their investment proposition, including expansion into newer sources of return, such as private markets.
The Isio team will be led by partner David O’Hara, who has experience of sophisticated investment solutions across the pension scheme universe.
Andrew Warwick-Thompson, chair of the Scottish Widows Master Trust says: “We were impressed by the breadth and quality of Isio’s investment advisory expertise, particularly in alternative asset classes. We are excited to be working with them alongside our partners to develop our investment proposition for the benefit of our members. It is vital that we are connected to the best ideas and latest thinking, and we are confident that this appointment puts us in an ideal position to benefit from world class institutional investment expertise.”
Sharon Bellingham, Scottish Widows Master Trust lead says: “Driving investment innovation enables us to evolve at pace to provide investment solutions that address our members’ current and future needs. Our focus is on helping them to secure the best possible retirement outcomes at the same time as we deliver on our Mansion House commitments.”
Isio Partner, David O’Hara says: “I am looking forward to working closely with the trustees on an investment strategy which will secure the position of the Scottish Widows Master Trust as one of the very best DC investment solutions in the industry. We will lean on our rich heritage in both DB and DC pensions to support a proposition that reflects and achieves the real-life objectives of the trust’s members, against a complex and evolving investment backdrop.”
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