Legal & General Investment Management has wasted little time in replacing Tony Filbin, who quit the asset manager’s mastertrust and independent governance committee (IGC) in August.
Daniel Godfrey, a former chief executive of the Investment Association, takes Filbin’s seat on the investor’s independent governance committee.
Meanwhile, Moira Beckwith replaces him on the board of trustees of Legal & General Mastertrust, which has £3.9bn under management for more than 660,000 members.
Godfrey led the Investment Association for three years until 2015 and has recently launched an investment trust, The People’s Trust. He will now also help oversee the almost £19bn of pension scheme assets that Legal & General manages.
Beckwith quit GlaxoSmithKline to join the mastertrust’s board of trustees, ending a 22-year relationship with the drug developer and consumer goods vendor where she was in charge of its benefit programs.
Dermot Courtier chairs the governance committee and the mastertrust board of trustees. He said that Godfrey joins at a time of increased focus by the committee on governance and providing value for members.
“The number of Legal & General’s schemes and members is increasing daily as a result of auto-enrolment and organic growth, and the IGC needs robust processes in place to ensure we not only meet but exceed our statutory obligations and so achieve the best-value outcomes for contract-based scheme members,” he added.
Legal & General Investment Management’s head of defined contribution (DC), Emma Douglas, added that good governance is crucial for the committee and that Godfrey’s knowledge and experience brings “new strengths and fresh perspectives” to the team.
Courtier said Beckwith brings a “wealth” of knowledge and experience to the board.
“The number of new members in the mastertrust schemes is increasing, having grown by over 20% in the past year alone,” he added. “Against this backdrop we are focused on maintaining the strength of the board.”
