(Bloomberg) — PGIM named Morgan Stanley's Jacques Chappuis as chief executive officer to succeed David Hunt, who is stepping down after 13 years in the role.
Chappuis will lead Prudential Financial Inc.'s asset management unit. as of May 1, 2025, the firm said in a statement. He will report to Andrew Sullivan, executive vice president and head of Prudential's international businesses and global investment management.
Chappuis will take over the business, which manages $1.4 trillion in public and private markets, at a time when asset management has become a key differentiator for US life insurers.
Traditional players like Prudential and MetLife Inc. are looking to increase returns in their investment arms to remain competitive with their retirement and savings products. This has become critical in recent years amid a growing rivalry with their privately-owned counterparts, who have benefited from the proven capabilities and investment returns of their owners.
The strategy translates into a race for scale in alternative investments, partly through mergers and acquisitions. PGIM, which originates an average of about $30 billion a year in the private market, is looking deal to grow such assets by more than 50% to $500 billion in the next five years.
The majority of PGIM's assets remain invested in the public markets. During the month of September, 62% of its assets were invested in public fixed income strategies, while only 18% in private credit, alternatives and real estate strategies.
Chappuis spent the last eight years at Morgan Stanley, where he was most recently co-head of the investment management business. He also worked for Carlyle Group Inc. and Citigroup Inc.
Hunt, who took on the role in 2011, drove the more than doubling of PGIM's assets under management. He initiated the firm's current push into alternative strategies, overseeing the acquisition of Montana Capital Partners in 2021, and consolidated the firm's private market efforts last year with a new division.
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