Head of PE at Verizon’s pension fund steps down

Michael O’Connor, the private equity chief for Verizon’s corporate pension fund, retired in June, the company confirmed for Buyouts.

Verizon named Stephen Blundin to replace him to lead private equity at Verizon Investment Management Corp, a Verizon spokeswoman confirmed. Blundin has worked at Verizon since at least 2005, according to his LinkedIn profile. He’s focused on U.S. equities, hedge funds and rose to director of liquid alternatives in 2013, his profile said. In January, he listed his title as vice president of equities and alternatives, his profile said.

Verizon’s pension plan had $17.76 billion in defined benefit assets as of Dec. 31, 2018, according to Pensions & Investments. In 2017, 17.4 percent of pension assets were allocated to private equity, P&I reported.