The California Public Employees’ Retirement System announced the appointment of Mascha Canio as head of private debt. Canio is currently the head of credit and insurance-linked investments at Dutch pension manager PGGM.
Canio, whose appointment is effective in October, succeeds Jean Hsu, who served as head of private debt at CalPERS until her retirement in July 2024. Anton Orlich, CalPERS’ head of private equity, oversaw the private debt program in the interim.
CalPERS manages $556.2 billion in assets, as of June 30. On a one-quarter lag, private debt accounts for 12.8% of the fund’s assets.
In March 2024, CalPERS approved a plan that would increase its private assets target to 40% from 33%, including an increase to its private debt target to 8% from 5%.
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“Mascha will bring a wealth of talent and experience to her new role,” CalPERS CIO Stephen Gilmore said in a statement. “She’s spent a career working to improve returns for pension funds, and managed portfolios across different asset classes. These experiences and her keen understanding of credit markets will allow us to build on the success of our private debt program.”
At PGGM, Canio was head of structured credit before her current role. She also was head of Europe at Octagon Credit Investors, where she set up the firm’s European operations. She began her career at the Shell pension fund.
Canio earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Nyenrode Business University.
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Tags: California Public Employees’ Retirement System, CalPERS, Private Debt
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