Alberta Investment Management Corp. is closing its offices in New York and Singapore little more than a year after it opened them, cutting costs and unwinding an expansion plan that its previous leadership launched before they were dismissed last year.
Two senior executives left AIMCo on Wednesday as part of the changes: David Scudellari, who led the New York office as global head of private assets and strategic partnerships, and head of Singapore Kevin Bong, who was also AIMCo’s chief investment strategist.
AIMCo is Canada’s sixth-largest pension fund manager, and officially opened its Singapore office in September of 2023, after hiring Mr. Bong. A ribbon-cutting ceremony for the New York office followed in February, 2024.
The organization’s “investment strategy has not changed,” and the decision to shutter the offices was made after weighing the value they added against “operational costs,” said AIMCo spokesperson Sabrina Bhangoo.
“The executive committee made the decision that they’re able to pursue any global investment opportunities from our London office,” Ms. Bhangoo said. “They’re still very, very committed to continuing to invest in the [Asia-Pacific] region and globally, and they will leverage our extensive network of partners and the other existing offices that we have.”
AIMCo still has offices in Edmonton, Calgary, Toronto, London and Luxembourg. “We’ll continue to add value for our clients from those locations,” she said.
The pension fund manager’s about-face reverses a key part of a strategy that former AIMCo chief executive officer Evan Siddall put in motion, which included revamping AIMCo’s technology and the way it manages risk. In November, Alberta’s government dismissed Mr. Siddall, three other senior leaders and AIMCo’s entire board of directors, citing rising costs at AIMCo and promising “a major reset.”
That purge was the culmination of a clash of visions between Alberta’s government and the leadership of AIMCo, an investment manager with a mandate to operate at arm’s length from the province. The decision to open new international offices was one flashpoint in a broader disagreement over the way AIMCo, which manages $169-billion for about 500,000 beneficiaries and their families, was being run.
Alberta’s Minister of Finance, Nate Horner, temporarily took control of AIMCo’s board and installed former civil servant Ray Gilmour as the pension fund manager’s interim CEO. The province then chose former prime minister Stephen Harper as the new board chair.
Ms. Bhangoo said Alberta’s government was not involved in AIMCo’s decision to close the two offices. “It was solely made by AIMCo’s executive committee.”
Bloomberg News first reported AIMCo’s decision to close the offices and the executive departures.
When AIMCo’s Singapore office opened in 2023, Mr. Siddall told The Globe and Mail that AIMCo was “very under-represented in Asia,” and that “we’ve missed opportunities for sure.”
Four days ago, Mr. Scudellari posted a celebratory note on social media, marking the first anniversary of the New York office’s opening event, which he said “included a Who’s Who in New York financial circles.”
Mr. Scudellari wrote that the New York office “was able to source approximately $2-billion of co-investment opportunities for five asset classes,” and that its private debt and loan unit’s “gross deployment” nearly tripled compared with the prior year. He also said AIMCo held more than 200 meetings at the office.
“After a great firm-wide effort, we have become a top-of-mind partner by working closely with each of the asset classes and expanding existing relationships through our local presence and active engagement,” he wrote.
Mr. Scudellari and Mr. Bong did not respond to messages requesting comment.
AIMCo’s global head of private equity, Peter Teti, has been named interim head of private assets, filling Mr. Scudellari’s former role while the pension fund manager reviews its senior-executive structure. Justin Lord remains in place as global head of public assets.