RI People & Appointments, Jan. 4: Ex-SEC chair joins Morgan Stanley Institute for Sustainable Investing

Mary Schapiro, former chair of the Securities & Exchange Commission has joined the Advisory Board of Morgan Stanley’s Institute for Sustainable Investing, which the bank set up in 2013 with the aim of attracting $10bn in total client assets through Morgan Stanley’s Investing with Impact Platform. Also joining the panel are Dominic Barton, Global Managing Director of advisory firm McKinsey & Co., and former Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd.

Former U.S. Representative Mike Oxley, the Republican congressman from Ohio who co-sponsored the landmark Sarbanes-Oxley Act, died on Friday at the age of 71, according to a Reuters report citing officials. The Sarbanes-Oxley act of 2002 aimed to prevent corporate fraud.

Amy Stillman, formerly Director of Communications at UK-based ‘venture philanthropy’ pioneer Impetus – The Private Equity Foundation, has joined impact investment advocacy group the Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN) in the same role. Reporting to CEO Amit Bouri, Stillman will lead on the development and execution of the GIIN’s communications strategy. Stillman also previously worked at wealth management giant Merrill Lynch.

Karin Lepasoon, Director of Communications, Sustainability and Human Resources at private equity firm Nordic Capital has been named as the new Head of Group Communications at Vattenfall – the Swedish power company with a strong renewables presence. Lepasoon, who replaces Ivo Banek, will report to CEO Magnus Hall.

Ross Etherington has been named Chief Investment Officer at Australia’s A$4.5bn (€2.9bn) Energy Industries Super Scheme (EISS). He takes over at EISS, which is a signatory to the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI), from Matt Olsen who left in August 2015. Etherington joins from bank Suncorp Group, where he was Executive Manager of Investments.

Nick O’Donohoe, former chief executive of UK social investment wholesaler Big Society Capital, is to chair a new government-backed Dormant Assets Commission tasked with unlocking billions of pounds worth of untouched assets, such as stocks and shares, for good causes. Big Society Capital was partly set up by dormant accounts in 2012. This month O’Donohoe also starts a new role at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation advising on blended finance.

Former UK Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change Ed Davey has been knighted for political and public service in the annual New Year’s Honours List. Harvey McGrath, chair of UK social investment wholesaler Big Society Capital also received a knighthood. Former Pensions Regulator David Norgrove, currently Chair of the Low Pay Commission, was knighted for services to the low paid and the family justice system. Also recognized by the system were Vivienne Cox, the former BP executive who was non-executive chairman at Climate Change Capital from 2009-2012, and former National Employment Savings Trust (NEST) CEO Tim Jones. Also receiving various awards were Tracy Long, founder of director evaluation firm Boardroom Review and Nina Skorupska, CEO at the Renewable Energy Association. Link*Dr. Hans Vontobel, Honorary Chairman* of Vontobel Holding AG, the Swiss asset manager with CHF181bn (€166.6bn) in client assets and a strong sustainability profile, died on January 3 at the age of 100. He joined the then J. Vontobel & Co. in 1943, becoming Chairman of the Board of Directors in 1981; he had been Honorary Chairman since 1991. For many years, he was the Chairman of the Zurich Stock Exchange, a member of the Board of Directors of the Swiss Bankers Association and the Neue Zürcher Zeitung newspaper, and Chairman of the German-Swiss Chamber of Commerce. As a philanthropist, he set up the Vontobel Foundation. Link

Former Swedish Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt has been nominated to chair the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI), the coalition of stakeholders from government, civil society, oil, gas and mining companies and investors that promotes open and accountable management of natural resources. He will succeed Clare Short, the former UK Secretary of State for International Development.

Sandra Blomgren, previously with Nordic insurance group If P&C Insurance, has been announced as the new Head of Risk Control at Sweden’s €33bn pension ‘buffer fund’ AP3. Replacing Marcus Nilsson, Blomgren will lead a team of four and report to CFO Mattias Bylund.

Tim Christen, chairman and CEO of Baker Tilly Virchow Krause (Baker Tilly), the accounting and advisory firm, has been appointed to the International Integrated Reporting Council (IIRC), representing the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA). The IIRC oversees the Integrated Reporting (IR) process.

Former Securities and Exchange Commissioner (SEC) Daniel Gallagher, a long-time critic of proxy advisory firms, is now president of a Washington-based consulting firm set up after the financial crisis to help companies understand the regulatory environment. Patomak Global Partners is headed up by CEO Paul Atkins, former SEC Commissioner.

Heikki Ilkka has been appointed Group CFO at Nordea, the Sweden-based financial services group. Ilkka, previously Head of Group Finance & Business Control at Nordea and who also becomes a member of Nordea’s Group Executive Management team, will report to Group CEO Casper von Koskull.

Addenda Capital, the Canada-based investment management firm, is recruiting for an Analyst to join its Toronto office. The successful candidate will be responsible for helping to implement, in collaboration with other investment professionals across the firm in several asset classes, Addenda Capital’s sustainable investing program.

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) watchdog is recruiting for a Head of Investors & Issuers Department. The successful candidate, reporting to the Executive Director, will be responsible for providing expertise in a wide range of securities markets and investor topics – including Investment Management, Investors Protection, Intermediaries, and Financial Reporting. The role will be based in Paris.

The Climate Bonds Initiative is looking to hire a Data and Research Analyst to join its Green Bond Markets Team, located in London, to assist manage its climate bonds database and associated work streams.