Rich Nuzum
Franklin Templeton announced Thursday that it has hired Mercer’s executive director of investments and a 33-year veteran of the firm, Rich Nuzum.
Nuzum’s appointment is effective July 28, and as head of OCIO at Franklin Templeton Investment Solutions, he will be in charge of developing and expanding the firm’s investment outsourcing business. He will report to Adam Petryk, head of Franklin Templeton Investment Solutions.
FTIS provides services for institutional clients, which include the construction of asset allocation, quantitative and hedged strategy solutions. In a statement, Franklin Templeton identified outsourced CIO as a natural extension of FTIS’s capabilities. FTIS manages $93 billion in assets, as of June 30.
“We are excited to welcome Rich to Franklin Templeton. The OCIO business is a key strategic priority as asset owners seek streamlined operations, top-tier investment expertise, and cost efficiency,” Jenny Johnson, Franklin Templeton’s president and CEO, said in a statement. “Rich’s extensive global, solutions-oriented experience will be instrumental in advancing our OCIO offering. His leadership will help us deliver integrated, personalized advice that go beyond individual products.”
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Nuzum, who was named a CIO Knowledge Broker in 2016 and 2019 and named Consultant of the Year at CIO’s 2017 Industry Innovation Awards, joined Mercer in 1992, when he helped to launch Mercer’s investment consulting practice in Japan.
He later held several senior positions at Mercer, leading the firm’s retirement, consulting and investments businesses across geographies. In August 2022, Mick Dempsey was named president of investments and retirement, succeeding Nuzum.
Mercer is the largest OCIO provider in the world, with $670 billion in assets under management as of June 30, the firm announced in its earnings report today.
“I look forward to joining Franklin Templeton Investment Solutions in a capacity where I can help our clients strategically navigate their portfolios,” Nuzum said in a statement. “As alternatives continue to grow, I am proud to be part of a team that leverages best-in-class research to deliver holistic, customized solutions aligned with each client’s investment objectives and risk tolerance.”
Many asset managers are looking to get into the growing OCIO market, with several recent mergers and acquisitions.
“There have been some OCIO providers that have been acquired by larger asset management and wealth management providers as of late, so I would anticipate that trend continues,” says Michael Chase, Fiducient Advisors’ head of endowments, foundations and OCIO.
In March, Gallagher & Co. acquired consultant and OCIO provider Agilis Partners. In June, Northern Trust Asset Management named Katherine McCabe to a newly created position to lead OCIO strategy. In December 2023, Mercer acquired Vanguard’s OCIO practice.
OCIO mandates are also increasing in size—for example, in 2024, UPS appointed Goldman Sachs Asset Management as the fiduciary manager of its $43.4 billion defined benefit pension, and Shell PLC outsourced $30 billion in Dutch pension assets to BlackRock.
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2019 Knowledge Brokers – Rich Nuzum
CIO Profile: Rich Nuzum (Mercer)
Consultant of the Year – Mercer
Tags: Franklin Templeton Investment Solutions, Mercer, OCIO, Outsourced CIO, Rich Nuzum
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