Chief Stepping Down at Billionaire's Fund Firm -- WSJ

By Julie Steinberg 

This article is being republished as part of our daily reproduction of WSJ.com articles that also appeared in the U.S. print edition of The Wall Street Journal (January 23, 2020).

LONDON -- Xavier Rolet, the former head of London Stock Exchange Group PLC, is stepping down after a year as chief executive of investment firm CQS.

Mr. Rolet will exit the top job at CQS to become a strategic adviser to the firm, which was founded by billionaire Michael Hintze.

The firm, which has close to $20 billion under management, said Wednesday that Mr. Rolet is taking the new role for reasons unconnected with the company and would focus on strategy and client development.

Mr. Rolet joined in January 2019 as chief executive, a role previously held by Mr. Hintze. Mr. Hintze will continue as executive chairman and senior investment officer, while Serge Harry will become deputy CEO.

The firm doesn't expect a change in strategy, said a person familiar with the matter.

With Mr. Rolet's appointment, CQS had been trying to manage larger pots of money and expand beyond its hedge fund roots, The Wall Street Journal reported at the time.

CQS grew assets under management to $19.85 billion as of the start of this year from $14.6 billion at the end of 2017.

CQS is predominantly a credit house, though it has been expanding its equities business. A multiasset strategy fund managed by Mr. Hintze was up 12% last year, said a person familiar with the matter, while an asset-backed securities fund was up 8.1%. The firm's long-only multiasset credit fund was up 6.3% in the same period.

Mr. Hintze said Wednesday that the firm's operating strength and capability had been developed under Mr. Rolet's tenure, with new credit products, the launch of a long-only equities business and a new team to expand its offering in taking bullish positions on stocks expected to do well and selling short those expected to decline.

Before joining CQS, Mr. Rolet spent close to a decade at the London Stock Exchange, helping to boost the company's market value. He left in 2017 amid a fight between an investor in the LSE and its chairman over succession planning.

Mr. Rolet and Mr. Hintze met in 1984 as bond traders at Goldman Sachs Group Inc. in New York.

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(END) Dow Jones Newswires

January 23, 2020 02:47 ET (07:47 GMT)

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