Mercer brings in alternatives director

Mercer Australia has appointed Marcus De Kock as its alternatives investment director.

De Kock comes from Mercer UK where he's spent the last three years as a delegated investment specialist. He previously spent more than a dozen years with Lane Clark & Peacock as an investment and actuarial consultant.

In his new role, De Kock will help institutional investors build allocations in private market and other alternative investments. "We know that alternative investments have the potential to offer enhanced return opportunities, diversification and protection against inflation," he said. "In the current environment of near-zero cash rates and low bond yields, we're encouraging our clients to explore the opportunities that alternative asset classes can provide to reach their investment goals, by increasing their exposure to private and unlisted assets."

Mercer's Pacific investments leader Simon Eagleton said clients would benefit significantly from alternatives investment programs across private markets. "Our substantial global alternatives capabilities have to date flown largely under the reader in the Pacific. But, the role that private markets can play in investors' portfolios is more important than ever. With Marcus on the ground, we're in a better position to ensure our clients can take advantage of our specialist private markets credentials to enhance their portfolios.

"Bringing together manager research, advisory services, portfolio management and investment operations expertise, we are well-placed to offer market-leading alternative investment solutions to our clients in Australia and New Zealand," said Eagleton.

Mercer launched an Australian-domiciled version of its Global Private Debt Fund in late 2020. It currently has $563 AUD total committed capital from superannuation funds, insurers, and university endowments.