Exclusive interview with Michael Vassilopoulos, Director - Investments, WTW

“As access to institutional-quality investment opportunities improves, more Not-For-Profits are exploring asset classes like private markets, alternative credit, and thematic investments. That said, many organisations are still unaware that these options are available to them.”

- Michael Vassilopoulos is a Director - Investments at WTW, based in Melbourne. He is a Strategist and WTW’s Not-For-Profit sector lead, currently working with a range of Not-For-Profit clients.

Michael has gained extensive experience advising university and foundation clients on their investment purpose and beliefs, multi-asset class investment strategies and ensuring the alignment of their investment portfolios with their organisational and philanthropic mission.

In this exclusive interview with Global Investment Institute, Michael discusses the key investment challenges facing Not-For-Profits, how their asset allocation differs from other institutions, emerging trends in NFP investment strategies, how the Total Portfolio Approach differs from Strategic Asset Allocation and how NFPs and Family Offices can adopt the Total Portfolio Approach.

Adam Murphy promoted to Senior Portfolio Manager – Head of Private Equity at ART

July 2025

Global Investment Institute congratulates Adam Murphy on his promotion to the role of Senior Portfolio Manager – Head of Private Equity at Australian Retirement Trust (ART).

ART is one of Australia’s largest super funds, formed through the merger of Sunsuper and QSuper. They have more than A$330 billion in assets under management and over 2.4 million members.

Adam joined ART in 2016 and he is currently responsible for portfolio strategy development, portfolio management, manager selection and direct / co-investment underwriting for ART’s global private equity portfolio, which exceeds A$20 billion.

We wish Adam all the best in his new role and continued success to the team at ART.

ART promotes Andrew Robinson to Senior Portfolio Manager – Head of Infrastructure

July 2025

Global Investment Institute congratulates Andrew Robinson on his promotion to the role of Senior Portfolio Manager – Head of Infrastructure at Australian Retirement Trust (ART).

ART is one of Australia’s largest super funds, formed through the merger of Sunsuper and QSuper. They have more than A$330 billion in assets under management and over 2.4 million members.

Prior to his promotion, Andrew served as Senior Portfolio Manager – Infrastructure, a role he held for over nine years. Andrew has been with ART for more than 14 years, having initially joined the fund as a Portfolio Analyst – Infrastructure, Property and Private Capital.

We wish Andrew all the best in his new role and continued success to the team at ART.

Spotlight on Marissa Salim, Senior Research Lead, APAC, World Gold Council

“As market regimes shift more frequently, from inflation spikes to rate shocks to geopolitical dislocations, gold’s ability to adapt and perform across environments remains a key advantage. It’s not about gold outperforming everything; it’s about what gold does when other assets don’t. For long-term investors, that asymmetric response is core to building durable portfolios.”

- Marissa Salim joined the World Gold Council in 2024 and works in the Research team as Senior Research Lead, APAC. Previously, she worked at Preqin where she oversaw the development and implementation of research initiatives for private market investments for the APAC region.

Marissa will be presenting at Global Investment Institute’s upcoming Family Office Investment Forum, taking place on Tuesday, 9 September 2025 at the Grand Hyatt Melbourne, Victoria. To register your interest in attending, click here or for more information email zlatan@globalii.com.au.

Private Investment Grade Credit: Why investors are scaling up their allocations to private markets

Video | Joe Moroney, Partner, Co-Head of Global Corporate Credit and Head of Sustainable Finance, Apollo

In this exclusive interview Joe explores the structural and market forces behind the rise of private investment grade credit, including why borrowers are increasingly turning to private markets over public, how regulatory change is reshaping the relationship between banks and alternative asset managers, and why asset-backed solutions are gaining traction over traditional corporate debt.

Watch the full interview which covers:

0:25 - What are some of the reasons investment grade borrowers might seek to raise private capital, when they have ample access to public investment grade markets?

2:12 - When considering adding private investment grade credit to a portfolio, where have you seen clients look to implement it within their overall asset allocation buckets?

3:19 - How durable is the spread premium available today in private investment grade credit over the long term?

5:10 - What are some of the benefits of asset backed finance versus traditional corporate debt?

6:22 - How has regulation impacted the relationship between banks and alternative asset managers?

Exclusive interview with Stewart Brentnall, Chief Investment Officer, TCorp

“We expect an increasing demand for private market investments (especially infrastructure – around digital and climate transitions), at the same time as believing the world is evolving to a new order of re-onshoring and deglobalisation.”

- Stewart Brentnall joined TCorp as the Chief Investment Officer in 2017, where he leads their investment management business and is responsible for advice and management of A$118 billion of funds across the NSW Government, including pension assets, insurance reserves and a central sovereign fund to invest long term Debt Retirement assets and to recycle infrastructure sales proceeds.

In this exclusive interview with Global Investment Institute, Stewart discusses the macroeconomic trends shaping asset allocation, the impact of TCorp’s OneFund implementation, how the portfolio is being positioned for long-term structural shifts, the evolution of TCorp’s asset mix and shares a personal story offering practical insights for investors.

Exclusive interview with Charlie Viola, Executive Chair, Adviser & Founding Partner of Viola Private Wealth

“We were an early mover in the private market space. We continue to like infrastructure and private credit in the lower risk space and we like private equity and private equity secondaries. We continue to use industrial property, where the manager can add value.”

- Charlie Viola is the Executive Chair, Adviser and Founding Partner at Viola Private Wealth. He specialises in advising high-net-worth individuals, family offices and institutional investors, as well as managing significant portfolios with a focus on delivering tailored and high-touch services. Recognised as a leader in the industry, Charlie is consistently ranked on Barron’s Top 100 Australian advisers list.

In this exclusive interview with Global Investment Institute, Charlie discusses Viola Private Wealth’s approach to asset allocation, changing market conditions, assessing and managing risks, generating reliable income and the growing role of alternative investments in portfolios.

Role of Australian multi-sector credit in portfolios to combat volatility in equity markets

Video | Phil Strano, Head of Australian Credit Research, Yarra Capital Management

With volatility in equity markets, investors are rethinking their portfolio positioning. In this exclusive interview Phil discusses the role Australian multi-sector credit can play in achieving outperformance, the key dynamics driving tailwinds in the asset class and why investors should consider it as a great diversifier to Australian private credit, which has experienced rapid growth in recent years.

Watch the full interview which covers:

0:23 - How are interest rates and the recent tariff shocks impacting the relative value of Australian credit compared to offshore markets?

1:34 - Given the exponential growth in Australian private credit, what are the key risks investors need to consider?

3:37 - With investment-grade (IG) credit yields now offering returns comparable to long-term equity returns, how should investors think about balancing credit and equity allocations in the current environment?

4:45 - Why are multi-sector credit strategies considered optimal for achieving higher risk-adjusted returns, and what advantages do Australian credit markets specifically offer?

5:33 - As global equity valuations remain elevated and government bond curves steepen, what role does Australian investment-grade credit play in building a resilient portfolio?

Alex Proimos joins Prime Super as Manager, Investment Strategy

July 2025

Global Investment Institute congratulates Alex Proimos on his appointment to the role of Manager, Investment Strategy at Prime Super.

Prime Super manages over A$7.5 billion in funds for nearly 140,000 members.

Most recently, Alex served in the role of Associate Portfolio Manager - Investment Strategy and Strategic Partnerships at Australian Retirement Trust.

We wish Alex all the best in his new role and continued success to the team at Prime Super.

Frontier Advisors - 2025 Annual Conference Recap

July 2025

Frontier’s team has prepared a comprehensive overview of their recent Annual Conference including session summaries and associated presentations. This provides detailed insights for anyone who couldn’t make it, and helpful notes for those who were in attendance and would like to revisit the conversations.

On Thursday, 19 June 2025 Frontier held their Annual Conference, which was attended by more than 200 people from across our industry. The day featured 13 individual sessions covering a range of topics with a diverse lineup of speakers from around the globe, across the industry and from within Frontier.

Session summaries and associated presentations and papers from the Frontier Conference 2025 can be accessed at the Annual Conference website.

Aware Super appoints Anna Young-Ferris to Head of Stewardship and Senior Manager, Responsible Investment role

July 2025

Global Investment Institute congratulates Anna Young-Ferris on her appointment to the role of Head of Stewardship and Senior Manager, Responsible Investment at Aware Super.

Aware Super manages a A$190 billion portfolio on behalf of the Fund’s 1.2 million members.

Anna joins the responsible investment team, reporting to Liza McDonald, Head of Responsible Investment. Most recently, she was Managing Director at Conscious Capital Co.

We wish Anna all the best in her new role and continued success to the team at Aware Super.

Evolution of private credit and key success factors to diversifying across strategies and regions

Video | Brad Bauer, Chief Executive Officer, Värde Partners

In this exclusive interview Brad discusses the evolution of private credit globally and shares his long-term outlook for the asset class. He explores how asset owners can build more diversified exposures, where the most attractive opportunities lie, across strategies and geographies, and outlines the critical factors investors should focus on to achieve success in the rapidly evolving private credit landscape.

Watch the full interview which covers:

0:24 - What is your long-term outlook for private credit? How do you see the industry evolving?

1:23 - How can LPs diversify their private credit exposure?

2:43 - Where do you see the most attractive investment opportunities in private credit across regions?

4:18 - Where do you see the opportunity in RE credit and why do you think this is attractive?

5:56 - What are the key success factors when investing in private credit strategies?

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