The start of 2025 was filled with exciting developments at WTW Investments, with several of our colleagues stepping into new leadership roles. Craig Baker, who has served as our Global Chief Investment Officer (CIO) for 10 years will become our Global Investment Strategist whilst Jon Pliner, currently Deputy CIO, will succeed Craig as Global CIO. Additionally, David Cienfuegos, who has been our Head of Western Europe since 2021, will extend his responsibilities to include our International markets. A massive congratulations to Craig, Jon and David on their new roles!
Beyond these internal updates, our team was proud to share breakthroughs that matter externally. We attended the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association’s Investment Conference, where our colleagues hosted a session and spoke on panels to share our insight. Our teams were delighted to connect with many of you in Edinburgh. We also launched our 2025 Managers Ideas Exchange (MiX) conference series with our event in Melbourne at the end of March; we will host two MiX conferences in Europe in 2025 – one in London in May and the other in Madrid in November.
I hope you enjoy this quarter’s collection of articles below. The political and economic backdrop is volatile, and this creates headwinds and opportunities for investors. We hope our insights provoke some ideas and help with your portfolio positioning. If you have any questions or reactions to our articles below, please contact our team.
01
New leadership appointments within our Investments business.
02
Explore how private equity could unlock new growth potential and broaden your exposure to a changing economic spectrum.
03
Some areas within consumer-linked debt are under pressure, but certain pockets of the market remain attractive.
04
A five-point explainer on the defined benefit pension landscape and the UK government’s proposal for more flexible surplus access.
05
Our report identifies investment themes and opportunities, explores the economic outlook for major countries, and outlines a long-term portfolio strategy.
06
Explore the latest Global Pension Assets Study from our Thinking Ahead Institute.
