Leading SRI player Aviva Investors names Standard Life’s Munro as CEO

Euan Munro has been named as the new chief executive of Aviva Investors, the UK-based fund firm with £274bn (€318.6bn) that is a leading voice in socially responsible investment (SRI).
Munro, who takes up the job in January, firm, joins from rival Standard Life, where he was Global Head of Multi-Asset Investing and Fixed Income. He takes over the role vacated by Alain Dromer last year and will report to Mark Wilson, CEO of parent company Aviva, the insurance giant.
Munro is known for his role in establishing Standard Life’s Global Absolute Return Strategy (GARS).
Wilson said: “There is significant scope to improve the profitability of Aviva Investors, a core part of the group.” Munro would help the firm manage Aviva’s own funds, become a stronger third party manager and increase its contribution to the wider group.

Munro said he was joining Aviva as he saw a “clear opportunity to unlock the potential” of the fund manager.He will take over from interim CEO John Misselbrook, who took over from previous interim CEO Paul Abberley just last month.
Aviva Investors has been at the forefront of investor work on issues such as sustainable stock exchanges. Abberley, now Head of Investments at the firm, chairs the committee at the Principles for Responsible Investment which is seeking a replacement for outgoing PRI Chair Wolfgang Engshuber.
In May the firm appointed Adeline Diab from Dutch pension management giant APG as Head of Integration for its Global Responsible Investment Team.
She will lead Aviva’s ‘Responsible Investment Officer’ network of analysts. The appointment comes after Aviva’s landmark decision last year to sell its seven-fund, £1.2bn specialist Sustainable and Responsible Investment team to Alliance Trust and instead focus on integrating ESG across all of its assets.
Standard Life named Guy Stern to its board as Head of Multi-Asset & Macro Investing, reporting to Rod Paris, Chief Investment Officer. Aviva announcement