CC&L Fixed Income Team Update
Plan sponsors may wish to consider whether this investment news has any implications for the investment options available within their plans. Sun Life Assurance Company of Canada purchases units of the funds listed below. They are established as segregated funds under the Insurance Companies Act (Canada).
Earlier this year, CC&L has announced changes to the senior leadership within the Fixed Income Team. Brian Eby, Portfolio Manager (PM) retired on June 30, 2024, after 25 years at CC&L. Additionally, TJ Sutter, PM, was promoted to Co-Head of Fixed Income in Q1 2024, joining current Head of Fixed Income David George. George is expected to retire in 2026.
Eby was a co-Lead PM on CC&L Group Bond along side David George. CC&L Group Bond is an underlying fund within CC&L Group Balanced Plus. Eby was also a co-PM on CC&L Income & Growth and part of the asset allocation committee that manages the asset mix for CC&L Group Balanced Plus. He had 38-years of industry experience and led CC&L’s fixed income macro research. He was a co-Head of Fixed Income up until 2022.
Over the past two years, Eby completed a succession plan by working with TJ Sutter in a mentorship role, overseeing macro analysis, forecasting, and portfolio decisions. Sutter joined CC&L in February 2021, following a decade at RBC Capital Markets, where he served as Director and Regional Head of the Fixed Income, Currencies, and Commodities Group. At RBC, Sutter directed investment risk strategies and led a team of nine traders and salespeople, managing relationships with major clients. During his tenure at CC&L, Sutter had been a macro strategist for the Fixed Income Team. He will collaborate with David George over the next two years as George transitions toward retirement. Sutter has also replaced Eby on the Asset Allocation committee.
David George has been with CC&L since 2006 and in addition to leading the Fixed Income team, he is the Lead PM on CC&L Group Bond and PM on the fixed income strategies underlying CC&L Group Balanced Plus and CC&L Group Income & Growth. George has strong experience in corporate and high yield bond research and was Head of Credit Research. George has been mentoring the credit team in anticipation of his eventual departure. George was promoted to Co-Head of Fixed Income along side Brian Eby in June 2020. He became sole Head of Fixed Income in March 2022 when Brian Eby began transitioning some of his responsibilities.
Sun Life GRS Investment Solutions team’ view
Brian Eby’s retirement has been long expected and his tremendous experience will definitely be missed. Eby had been looking to retire but ended up staying on beyond his initial plans, which coincided with the unforeseen departure of Chris Kalbfleisch in 2019. CC&L hired TJ Sutter with the expectation that he would assume Eby’s macro responsibilities. David George’s retirement is more of a surprise to our team, as he is younger and he had only become sole Head of Fixed Income in 2022. George expressed a desire to focus on family and other personal interests. George’s leadership and strong background in credit will not be easy to replace.
While Sutter has a strong macro background, he does not appear to have the same level of experience as Eby or George. When George retires, he will have both macro research and team management responsibilities. We have some concerns that Sutter’s capacity may be stretched. However, CC&L has a deep 20-person Fixed Income team, which should be able to support Sutter.
The Sun Life GRS Investment Solutions team has placed the funds on our Watch List under Additional Monitoring (least severe category). We will continue monitoring the fixed income team and provide updates as needed.
Questions?
Please contact your Sun Life Group Retirement Services representative