People Moves
Manulife Creates New HNW Private Markets Chief
The wealth and asset arm of the Canadian multinational has tapped an alternatives veteran to head up a new role expanding private market access.
In a newly-created role and at a time when private markets are flush with capital and investors are searching for diversification, Manulife Investment Management has named Alex Catterick as senior managing director of high net worth strategy, private markets.
Catterick (pictured) was most recently regional head of alternative investments for HSBC based in New York, where he led investment distribution and product management across the global lender's wealth management and private banking businesses for the Americas.
Prior to that, he spent two years working in alternative investments at Barclays Wealth and Investment Management. He also spent four years as a global investment specialist at JP Morgan Asset Management, according to his public profile.
In a newly-created mandate for Manulife, he will be in charge of defining the HNW strategy for private markets and designing and launching new products aimed at appealing to ultra-wealthy investors, the firm said. He started this week and will remain New York-based.
The group manages around $100 billion on behalf of clients in private asset investment, including private equity and credit, real estate, infrastructure, timberland, and agriculture.
“High net worth investors represent one of the fastest growing channels,” global head of private markets, Steve Blewitt, said. “Alex’s expertise will be instrumental as we enter this exciting new chapter for the business, connecting high net worth investors with strategies that were historically only available for institutional investors.”
The firm said that Catterick’s combined experience of working with high net worth clients and in private markets is intended to speed up product innovation.
“Through this development, we hope to educate and provide access for investors who may be missing out on the significant diversification and return potential of private assets,” COO Ken Pogrin said.
