US pension giant CalSTRS, which manages $332.5bn in retirement savings for around 1 million Californian teachers, has promoted Scott Chan as its new Chief Investment Officer (CIO). Chan, who has served as the fund’s deputy CIO since 2018, will step into Christopher Ailman’s role in early July.
Ailman led CalSTRS’ investment team for over 24 years, developing investing in the energy transition as one of the fund’s key priorities—a strategy Chan intends to continue, according to the fund’s CEO, Cassandra Lichnock.
"As deputy CIO, Scott has already brought so much value to CalSTRS. He is helping lead the alignment of our organisational sustainability goals with our sustainable investing and net zero goals. I look forward to his partnership as we continue to fulfil our promise to California's teachers," she explained.
In his new role, Chan will be responsible for developing and implementing CalSTRS investment policies, strategies, and initiatives; managing the fund’s complex budget; fostering a collaborative culture of excellence and diversity, equity, and inclusion; and overseeing all CalSTRS investment portfolios.
Before joining CalSTRS, Chan was a senior managing director at the University of California, Office of the CIO of the Regents, where he oversaw the $55bn global equities portfolio.
CalSTRS has a net zero by 2050 target, with the Sustainable Investment and Stewardship Strategies unit (SISS) as a cornerstone of this effort. The Sacramento-headquartered fund confirmed earlier this year that it intends to triple this strategy from $1bn to $3bn to be invested in private markets, as Kirstie Jenkinson, investment director for SISS, explained in an interview with NZI.
CalSTRS' Jenkinson on political headwinds and investing in hybrid climate solutions
