Danish labour market pension fund PenSam is on the lookout for a new CIO just a year after appointing Morten Hemmingsen to the role.

Hemmingsen, who was promoted last year to CIO from his previous role as head of fixed income and equities, has decided to leave the company, a spokesman for the DKK130bn (€17.5bn) pension fund confirmed.

“The background is that Morten wants to return to the ‘hands on’ investment work and therefore he has chosen to resign from his position as CIO in PenSam,” he said.

He said the pension fund has now started a search process to find a new investment director. 

Hemmingsen took over as CIO at PenSam on 1 May last year, replacing the fund’s long-time CIO Benny Buchardt Andersen, who moved up in the company to the role of group director.

Buchardt Andersen in turn was filling Torsten Fels’ shoes, as Fels became chief executive of PenSam following Helen Kobæk’s retirement after 30 years in the top job.

“Benny Buchardt Andersen will manage the investment department in the interim period,” the spokesman said.

He said the company respected Hemmingsen’s decision to leave.

“We have been pleased with the efforts Morten has delivered within PenSam,” he said.

“Over a number of years Morten has been a key part of the management of PenSam’s investment team and he has contributed to creating great returns for PenSam’s customers through working with PenSam’s investment strategy,” he said.

In an interview this week with a Danish publication, Hemmingsen said the resignation was a personal decision and described his departure as “entirely undramatic”. He said he was not yet able to reveal his next move.

“What I would like is to come back to something that is more investment oriented and has less of an administrative role which is a significant part of the job as CIO,” he said.

Hemmingsen said he had had some very good and very informative years at PenSam.

“But I believe that I have come to a place where those things, that I believe are fun, and which give me energy and which I am good at, made up too little of the job,” he said.

Topics