Danny Truell to become Emeritus Partner of Wellcome Investments
Danny Truell has led the Wellcome Trust’s Investment division with great distinction as Chief Investment Officer and more recently as Managing Partner, overseeing transformative growth of our endowment that has allowed us to more than double our charitable spending since his arrival in 2005.
For health reasons, Mr Truell is to step aside as Managing Partner and take a new non-executive role as Emeritus Partner from 1 October 2017.
Nick Moakes and Peter Pereira Gray, who have led Wellcome’s Investment division alongside Mr Truell as Managing Partners, will continue to lead our world-class team in newly defined roles.
Mr Moakes has been appointed Managing Partner and Chief Investment Officer, while Mr Pereira Gray has been appointed Managing Partner and Chief Executive Officer, Investments.
These appointments follow an external review by global investment management search firm David Barrett Partners which concluded that they are the outstanding candidates to lead the team for the future.
Jeremy Farrar, Wellcome’s Director, said: "Danny Truell is one of the most remarkable people to have served the Wellcome Trust. His contributions have been pivotal to making Wellcome what it is today.
"Since Danny joined as Chief Investment Officer in 2005, the endowment has grown from £12.3 billion to £20.9 billion, and our investment returns in pounds sterling have exceeded 200 per cent, averaging more than 10 per cent a year. His exceptional leadership and judgement, and the world-class team he has built around him, have transformed Wellcome’s ability to deliver our mission of improving health through science, innovation and engagement with society.
"This year, Wellcome will spend more than £1 billion on our work, more than twice what we spent in the year Danny arrived. That would not be possible without the outstanding achievements of Danny and his team. I want to thank Danny on behalf of all those who benefit from Wellcome’s support. I will miss his day-to-day leadership greatly, and I am glad that we will continue to benefit from his wisdom and advice as Emeritus Partner.
"I am also delighted to be appointing Peter Pereira Gray and Nick Moakes to newly defined investment leadership roles at Wellcome, on the recommendation of an external review. Nick and Peter have both played essential and integral roles in the achievements of our investments team, and the Board of Governors and I are confident that Wellcome’s endowment is in the best possible hands."
Danny Truell is one of the most remarkable people to have served the Wellcome Trust. His contributions have been pivotal to making Wellcome what it is today.
Mr Truell said: "It has been a privilege to lead Wellcome’s investment division over a period of extraordinary change and opportunity in investment markets, and to have delivered returns that have allowed Wellcome to more than double our charitable spending.
"I am proud to be appointed Emeritus Partner of a world-class investment team that supports an organisation that does so much good for health and science. I am delighted that Peter and Nick will continue to lead the team; nobody is better placed to preserve the unique culture that we have created together over the past decade."