M&G appoints Andrew Chorlton CIO of Fixed Income
8 JUL, 2024
By Jose Luis Palmer from RankiaPro Europe
M&G Investments has announced the appointment of Andrew Chorlton as the new Chief Investment Officer (CIO) of its €160 billion Fixed Income division. Andrew Chorlton will succeed Jim Leaviss, who is leaving M&G to pursue academic interests after a distinguished 27-year tenure. Chorlton, currently head of fixed income at Schroders and a member of the firm's Group Management Committee, will join M&G this year and report to Joseph Pinto, CEO of M&G Investments.
Andrew Chorlton’s Background and Experience
Andrew Chorlton brings over 25 years of experience in fixed income markets to his new role at M&G. At Schroders, Chorlton was a key member of the firm's Group Management Committee, leading a global division of investment, research, risk, and product professionals. His expertise spans global fixed income, US multi-sector, and credit strategies across both Europe and the US. Chorlton has also demonstrated a strong track record in direct portfolio management.
In his role since 2020, Chorlton has been instrumental in developing innovative strategies and client solutions across various fixed income areas. His initiatives have included sustainability, quantitative credit, semi-liquid credit, emerging market debt, and opportunistic strategies. Additionally, he played a crucial role in launching ETFs in the US market.
Jim Leaviss’s Legacy at M&G
Jim Leaviss has been a pivotal figure at M&G, leading the firm's growth in fixed income with an active management team recognized as industry leaders. Under his leadership, M&G’s fixed income platform has flourished, managing €160 billion for global investors. Leaviss spearheaded the development of one of the largest credit research teams in the industry and launched innovative investment products that evolved with the fixed income markets.
Leaviss also founded the award-winning Bond Vigilantes blog in 2006, which has become a key platform for sharing insights on inflation, interest rates, and the global economy, as well as discussing bond markets. His contributions have left a lasting impact on both M&G and the broader fixed income investment community.
It has been a great privilege to work at M&G for almost three decades and to lead the team through the growth and evolution of bond markets over those years. I am very proud of our team of fixed income professionals, the talent we have developed and what we have achieved for clients. Innovation is part of our culture - M&G launched the UK's first corporate bond and high yield bond funds - and how we have communicated with clients since the launch of the Bond Vigilantes blog in 2006. Our range of investment strategies has grown enormously. These include the launch of the M&G Optimal Income Fund, which has become one of the largest funds in Europe, and our leading European credit strategies which have an excellent reputation with our international clients. I would like to thank everyone for their support over the years and I have no doubt that this culture will continue. I wish the team all the best.
Jim Leaviss
I would like to take this opportunity to pay tribute to Jim, whose influence on the fixed income world has been remarkable - he should be very proud of his track record at M&G and the dynamism and talent of the team he has built. Jim has delivered excellent returns for our clients, who have always valued his unique way of communicating, sharing the team's insights directly from his desk. When Jim leaves the company in a few months, he will do so with our thanks for his contribution and with our best wishes for his academic interests.
With Andrew's extensive experience as a fund manager and team leader, we will have a fixed income heavyweight to lead a team as experienced as M&G's, at a time when we expect numerous opportunities in bond markets as the rate cycle begins to move. We are excited about the opportunity to capitalise on the growth of our global fixed income platform by making available to our clients internationally strategies traditionally managed only for our internal (insurance) client base, including global banks, family offices, pension funds and insurance companies in the UK, Europe and Asia-Pacific.
Joseph Pinto, M&G Investments CEO
M&G's €160 billion global listed fixed income platform has teams in the UK, Europe, the US and Asia. The team manages strategies in investment grade credit, high yield credit, government bonds, emerging market debt, absolute return, flexible credit, multi-asset credit and annuities. M&G launched the UK's first pure corporate bond fund in 1994, the UK's first high yield corporate bond fund in 1998, the M&G Optimal Income Fund strategy in 2006 and established its Asian fixed income capabilities in Singapore in 2022.
Jim Leaviss will remain in his role until the autumn to ensure a smooth and planned transition and handover of responsibilities.
