SMU names new treasurer and chief investment officer
Rakesh Dahiya, CFA, an experienced investment manager with a strong background in higher education, has been named University treasurer and chief investment officer at SMU, effective September 12, 2016.
Dahiya served since 2011 as Director of Marketable Strategies at the University of Florida Investment Corporation (UFICO), an independent investment management company with total assets over $2.7 billion. Prior to UFICO, he spent nine years at Washington University in St. Louis and six years at Ralston Purina.
“Rakesh Dahiya’s experience in higher education investment management, particularly with sophisticated institutional portfolios much like SMU’s, as well as his achievements in corporate finance, makes him an excellent fit as SMU’s chief investment officer,” said SMU President R. Gerald Turner. “As we move forward in the University’s second century, Rakesh’s leadership and understanding of changing markets will ensure that SMU invests wisely with a close eye on the goals established by our Board of Trustees.”
At SMU, Dahiya will be responsible for oversight of the $1.5 billion endowment, mineral interests and planned giving assets. He will work with the Investment Committee of the Board of Trustees, setting agendas, developing policies, formulating investment strategies, as well as recommending specific investment managers and vehicles for carrying out the investment program.
“Current markets are complex and fast-moving. It was important that we find the best individual to monitor national and global markets and identify strategic opportunities that position the University for growth,” said Fred Hegi, chair of the Investment Committee of the SMU Board of Trustees. “I am pleased to say that we found that individual in Rakesh Dahiya.”
Dahiya’s experience over the last 20 years includes working with investments of more than $3 billion in global equities and fixed-income markets. As Director of Marketable Strategies at the University of Florida, he was responsible for all hedge fund, traditional equity and fixed income strategies. At Washington University in St. Louis, a university with endowment assets over $5 billion, Dahiya oversaw the investment of $2.6 billion in global equities, fixed income and public real assets.
As a senior officer of SMU, Dahiya will serve on the President’s Executive Council and work with leadership on matters related to endowment spending and the communication of endowment strategy and performance. He will oversee investment research and analysis, implementation, risk management, accounting, performance measurement and reporting associated with the investment process, and with the management of real estate and mineral interests.
Dahiya graduated from Iowa State University (B.B.A., Finance, 1994) and the University of Illinois (M.B.A., 1996).
He succeeds Michael A. Condon, who resigned from the University in March 2016. Christine Regis, SMU’s chief financial officer, has served as interim chief investment officer. Edward Fowler from Higdon Partners assisted with the search.
###
SMU is a nationally ranked private university in Dallas founded 100 years ago. Today, SMU enrolls more than 11,000 students who benefit from the academic opportunities and international reach of seven degree-granting schools. For more information, www.smu.edu
Related Links:
- The Dallas Morning News: SMU hires Florida school official to oversee $1.5 billion endowment
- Bloomberg: Southern Methodist Hires CIO to Oversee $1.5 Billion Endowment
- Chief Investment Officer: Southern Methodist University Picks CIO
- Pensions & Investments: Southern Methodist University hires new treasurer/CIO