Australian Head of Credit announced for Willis Towers Watson

Willis Towers Watson has announced the appointment of Simon James as the firm's Australian head of credit.

James' most recent role was at Funds SA, where he managed the $11billion fund's fixed income and liquid alternatives portfolios, before leaving in March 2018 after 11 years' service.

Martin Goss, director of investments at Willis Towers Watson said James' experience in managing multi-billion dollar fixed income and liquid alternatives portfolios was a valuable addition to the manager research team.

"We're excited to have someone of Simon's calibre join our team. We worked closely with Simon while he was with Funds SA and were always impressed with his knowledge of the credit manager universe, his ability to think strategically and how he brought ideas together in portfolio construction. He demonstrated a high level of collaboration, which is central to our culture, and this gives me confidence he will seamlessly fit straight into our team and our client partnerships," Goss said.

James added: "Having worked closely with Willis Towers Watson for many years I'm looking forward to being part of the team and bringing my expertise to our clients' credit portfolios and their broader asset allocation strategies."

James will be based in Melbourne and commence his role on July 16.

A spokesperson for Willis Towers Watson has confirmed that James takes over the responsibilities of Tony Arnold, who left the firm in April 2018. Arnold has since been appointed as the head of investment strategy at VicSuper.