Ecclesiastical Investment Management (EIM), part of the Ecclesiastical Insurance Group, has signalled its intention to develop its institutional investment business with the appointment of Mark O’Connor as head of institutional business development.
EIM has developed strongly in recent years, seeing substantial growth in retail sales following excellent long term investment performance, which has attracted numerous industry awards. EIM now plans to develop bespoke products for the institutional market.
Whilst EIM will look to develop relationships across the market, there will be a specific focus on investors in the charity and church sectors, where Ecclesiastical already has strong relationships through its general insurance operation.
Mark joins EIM with 20 years’ financial services industry experience and has strong international industry contacts. Most recently he spent nine years leading a successful business development team at asset management specialist Hermes. Prior to that, Mark worked at Aviva plc as part of the investor relations team that was ranked first in the UK financial services sector in 2000.
Sue Round, Head of Investments at Ecclesiastical Investment Management said: “Mark’s experience made him an obvious choice for us to lead the development of our institutional business. His contacts and ability to develop relationships within the industry will be key in helping us achieve our aim of creating a strong presence within the institutional market.”
Mark O’Connor added: “I am very excited about joining Ecclesiastical Investment Management. We have an experienced team and a track record of excellent long term investment performance which should be attractive to institutional investors. I am looking forward to building on the strong growth the business has enjoyed over the last few years.”
Source : Ecclesiastical Press Release
