Cardano has appointed Sinead Leahy as managing director and client director.
In her new role Leahy will help drive the strategic investment advice to scheme trusts and sponsoring businesses. This will include journey planning and integrated risk management (IRM) advice.
Leahy has over 25 years working in UK financial markets, and as a fixed income derivatives specialist has been involved with some of the earliest Liability Driven Investment (LDI) transactions. Cardano says this puts her in an excellent position to help clients navigate the recent pension fund liquidity crisis.
Leahy spent most of her career at NatWest Markets where she was head of the pension solutions group and latterly head of alternative asset distribution. More recently, Leahy worked for PwC as head of pension investment consulting at PwC, and immediately prior to joining Cardano worked with Alpha Real Capital in an advisory capacity.
Cardano Advisory CEO Darren Redmayne says: “Recent events have highlighted the critical importance of the sponsor covenant standing behind the investment risk being run. Having [Leahy’s] expertise will help us provide advisory clients with additional strategic investment input working alongside pension schemes’ day-to-day investment advisor.”
Leahy adds: “I’m pleased to have joined Cardano, which has an exciting proposition and breadth of activity, especially since the acquisition of ACTIAM, the impact investor.
“There will be winners and losers in the recent crisis so there is an immediate requirement to review operational resilience and governance.
“However, these kind of market events are also an opportunity to review journey plans, investment strategies and endgame – for which some schemes might actually be closer than before the crisis. Now more than ever, it’s important for trustees, and corporates alike, to reset the dial and ensure they are better prepared for the future.”