Legal & General Investment Management has told staff chief investment officer Anton Eser is exiting the business after 13 years.
An internal memo, seen by Portfolio Adviser, said Eser was returning to South Africa for family reasons. But it also noted his desire to “return to a more hands on investing role with a particular focus on ESG and social impact investing in Africa, an area of investment and region of the world about which he is passionate”.
Sonja Laud (pictured), who joined LGIM in January as deputy CIO, will succeed Eser. LGIM poached Laud from Fidelity International, where she had been head of equity since May 2017. Previously, she had worked at Barings and Schroders.
The LGIM memo highlighted her previous work as “a senior global macro fund manager and an asset allocation specialist, developing outcome-orientated solutions”. She has 17 years’ experience in asset management.
The memo said Laud has been working with Eser in shaping the management structure of the investment team since her arrival.
