CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--William Blair & Company, a global investment firm, announced today that Singer Partners, a global macro asset management firm founded by Brian Singer, will join William Blair Investment Management. Singer and seven of his colleagues bring tremendous active asset allocation, currency, and risk management expertise in both traditional and alternative applications.
“We continue to focus on maximizing the value we provide to clients through active management,” said Michelle R. Seitz, CFA, head of William Blair Investment Management and member of the firm’s executive committee. “We are excited about the additional capabilities we can now bring to bear in solving problems for our sophisticated and diverse client base,” she added.
Brian Singer, CFA, is a trusted industry veteran, well known for pioneering advances in the active management of multi-asset and currency portfolios. He is the lead author of the book “Investment Leadership and Portfolio Management.” Mr. Singer has served as a board member and chair of the CFA Institute Board of Governors. He and his colleagues have authored numerous articles about macro finance and capital market theory.
Singer Partners specializes in macro investing, following a defined and time-tested top-down strategy. It currently manages global macro hedge funds and subadvises traditional active asset allocation and currency strategies. Singer Partners has a subadvisory and ongoing product development effort with Envestnet|PMC™ that will transition with the Singer global macro strategies team and be fully supported by William Blair.
Prior to founding Singer Partners, Mr. Singer was the head of Global Investment Solutions (GIS) for UBS Global Asset Management (previously Brinson Partners). Joining Mr. Singer at William Blair are Singer Partners investment team members Edwin M. Denson, Ph.D., a market strategy specialist; Thomas Clarke, a currency strategy specialist; Edouard Senechal, CFA, and Renato Staub, Ph.D., both macro investment and risk specialists; and Guy Bloomfield, a macro investment analytics specialist. The investment team members have worked together for more than 10 years at Singer Partners and its predecessors. While at UBS, the GIS investment team managed more than $200 billion in actively managed multi-asset and currency portfolios.
“In William Blair we find the primacy of investment excellence, the entrepreneurial spirit of a 100% employee-owned firm, and a commitment to integrity and client success,” Mr. Singer said. “William Blair is similar to the environment and culture we developed at Singer Partners, and the partnership provides the platform and resources to advance and leverage a world-class global macro capability,” he said.
Ms. Seitz added: “We look forward to joining forces with such a talented group of investment professionals. Their thought leadership and insight will be great assets to our partnership—and most importantly, to our clients.”
About William Blair Investment Management
William Blair Investment Management is the asset management operation of William Blair & Company, L.L.C., consisting of the institutional, mutual fund, and wealth management businesses. With approximately $46 billion in assets (as of March 31, 2011), William Blair Investment Management provides portfolio management for international, domestic, and global equities, domestic fixed income, and funds of hedge funds. The group also acts as the investment advisor to a family of 19 open-end mutual funds, as well as five SICAVs for non-U.S. citizens or residents.
About William Blair & Company
William Blair & Company, L.L.C. is a global investment firm offering investment banking, asset management, equity research, and institutional and private brokerage to individual, institutional, and issuing clients. As an independent, employee-owned firm, our philosophy is to serve our clients' interests first and foremost. We place a high value on the enduring nature of our client relationships, the quality of our products and services, and the continuity and integrity of our people. William Blair & Company is based in Chicago, with office locations including Boston; London; New York; San Francisco; Shanghai; Wilmington, Delaware; and Zurich. For more information, please visit williamblair.com.
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