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The $78B Teachers’ Retirement System (TRS) of the State of Illinois has appointed Powis Forjoe as senior investment officer, diversifying strategies.
The TRS announced Forjoe’s appointment in a LinkedIn post, noting he brings more than a decade of experience managing hedge fund and liquid alternatives portfolios for large pension and retirement plans.
“[Forjoe] brings deep expertise in quantitative analysis, portfolio construction, and risk management that will be instrumental in advancing TRS’ Diversifying Strategies portfolio,” said the pension fund. “With a strong background across hedge fund strategies such as trend following, long volatility, global macro, and relative value fixed income, [Forjoe] has successfully managed multi-billion-dollar portfolios and led due diligence, sourcing, and evaluation of top-tier investment managers around the world.”
Prior to joining the TRS, Forjoe served as managing director of quantitative investment strategies at Simplify Asset Management and as portfolio manager for liquid alternatives at UPS Group Trust, where he oversaw a $3B portfolio designed to deliver uncorrelated returns and support long-term plan stability.
“[Forjoe’s] leadership and collaborative approach will be central to strengthening TRS’ Diversifying Strategies portfolio — helping ensure the system remains well-positioned to meet its obligations and navigate market changes.”
Forjoe is the latest addition among a host of appointments the fund has made over the past few weeks. Earlier this month, the TRS also named Diana Ortiz Ochoa as a senior investment officer, a newly created position within the private equity team. Last month, the pension fund also appointed Janice Llereza senior investment officer, diverse and emerging managers.
