Mon | Nov 4, 2024

Jamaican-American Lyenda Simpson Delp to head worldwide division of major investment company

Published:Friday | October 11, 2024 | 12:06 AMLester Hinds/Gleaner Writer
Lyenda Simpson Delp
Lyenda Simpson Delp

Jamaica-born Lyenda Simpson Delp is to become the new head the Global Institutional Client Group of Northern Trust Asset Management, a leading global investment management firm, the first Jamaican and woman of colour to hold this position.

She will lead the strategic direction and commercial success of NTAM’s institutional businesses in the Americas, Europe, and the Middle East (EMEA), and Asia-Pacific (APAC) regions.

NTAM has more than US$1.2 trillion in assets under management (AUM) as of June 30, 2024, serving pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, insurance companies, nonprofits, family offices, corporations and consultants.

Simpson Delp will join NTAM’s leadership team and will report to NTAM President Daniel Gamba.

Previously, she served as a managing director and the head of the Americas region of BlackRock’s Global Financial Institutions Group, located in New York. The Financial Institutions Group she headed is responsible for the firm’s engagements with insurers and other financial companies in investment management as well as advisory and risk management. She headed a high performing team responsible for business development and relationship management

Simpson Delp is a graduate of Immaculate Conception High School and The University of the West Indies (UWI).

She is a member of several leadership committees and is active in employee affinity networks for women and Black professionals.

Simpson Delp was a member of the undergrad new hire programme at Workers Bank from 1993 to 1995, which she joined after graduating from The UWI Mona with her BSc. in chemistry and biochemistry.

She has also been involved with multiple boards and currently serves on the board of advisors of the Tepper School of Business at CMU and the American Foundation for the UWI (AFUWI).

Simpson Delp has also provided scholarships to student of The UWI. The scholarships are valued at US $3,500 per year each.

This is the second time that she will be funding scholarships to The UWI, having funded a four-year scholarship previously, in honour of her mother, to a student in the fields of education or medicine.

“Her track record of success in building large-scale business and delivering outstanding service and solutions uniquely positions her to help NTAM’s global clients meet and exceed their unique investment objectives,” said the company in a statement announcing her appointment.

The statement described her as an accomplished industry leader with more than 30 years of experience in asset management and the financial industry.

She spent the last 15 years at BlackRock, where she held a number of client-focused leadership roles. She was also a member of the Human Capital Committee and Firmwide Operating Risk Controls Committee. Earlier in her career, Simpson Delp was a client portfolio manager at Goldman Sachs Asset Management on the outsourced chief investment officer (OCIO) team covering portfolios of global institutions.

“Lyenda is a proven leader with a career focused on delivering exceptional client outcomes, combining expertise in investments in public and private markets, technology solutions, and distribution,” Gamba said. “Her track record of success in building large-scale business and delivering outstanding service and solutions uniquely positions her to help NTAM’s global clients meet and exceed their unique investment objectives.”

Simpson Delp earned an MBA from Carnegie Mellon University and a Bachelor of Science from The UWI.

NTAM is a global investment manager that helps investors navigate changing market environments in efforts to realise their long-term objectives.

It is composed of Northern Trust Investments, Inc, Northern Trust Global Investments Limited, Northern Trust Fund Managers (Ireland) Limited, Northern Trust Global Investments Japan, K.K., NT Global Advisors, Inc., 50 South Capital Advisors, LLC, Northern Trust Asset Management Australia Pty Ltd, and investment personnel of The Northern Trust Company of Hong Kong Limited and The Northern Trust Company.

Northern Trust Corporation (Nasdaq: NTRS) is a leading provider of wealth management, asset servicing, asset management and banking to corporations, institutions, affluent families, and individuals. Founded in Chicago in 1889, Northern Trust has a global presence with offices in 24 US states and Washington, D.C., and across 22 locations in Canada, Europe, the Middle East and the Asia-Pacific region.

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