Major shake-up at Partners Group

Swiss-based asset manager Partners Group has reorganised its private equity business and has made two senior management promotions.

Roland Käslin, head of finance, and Denis O’Malley, head of Guernsey, have been promoted from senior vice president to managing director.

Partners Group has also created a new private equity real estate department that will report directly to the executive board. The new private real estate department, formerly included in the private capital department headed by Dr. Stephan Schäli, will be headed by Pam Alsterlind and Claude Angéloz.

Based in San Francisco, Alsterlind will join the executive board of the firm. Schäli will remain head of the private equity department and a member of the executive board.

In a bid to build up its profile in Asia, the firm has created a product operations department in Singapore which will be headed by former chief financial officer, Kurt Birchler. He will be responsible for developing this division in its two main locations Zug and Singapore and will remain a member of the executive board.

Dr. Cyrill Wipfli will replace Birchler on the executive board as chief financial officer.

In further organizational changes, the alternative beta strategies business, including insurance-linked securities, will be spun out. Partners Group will retain a majority shareholding in the business but will allow the spin-out a greater degree of independence. As part of the move, the current alternative beta strategies team, led by Dr. Lars Jaeger, will become holders of a significant equity stake.