Emirates fund poaches infra expert

Investment professional Lidia Slaven is the latest to depart Australia and take up a job with an offshore sovereign wealth fund.

Slaven has accepted a role as investment manager of infrastructure portfolio strategy and research at the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority.

After seven years at Willis Towers Watson in several roles, including as an investment analyst, consultant, and research director focused on private markets, she moved to QBE Insurance as a portfolio manager for real assets.

There, she was responsible for helping oversee the insurer's property, infrastructure and emerging real assets investments.

This was a return to insurance for Slaven, who started her career as an underwriter with AIG.

Slaven is the fifth local investment specialist to move to an offshore sovereign wealth fund.

After spending over four years at AustralianSuper, Daniel Pool in May took up a role in the fast-growing Abu Dhabi Pension fund. He joined Philip Cheong, who moved from Russell Investments.

Former LGIASuper investment chief Troy Rieck joined Emirates Investment Authority as chief investment officer.

And longstanding AMP Capital executive Nader Naeimi was appointed a managing director at Singapore's sovereign wealth fund last year.