John W. Akkerman Appointed Global Head of Distribution at MacKay Shields LLC

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- MacKay Shields LLC today announced the hiring of John W. Akkerman who will join the organization as senior managing director & global head of distribution upon the completion of his contractual responsibilities with his prior firm. In this newly created role, Akkerman will be responsible for creating and implementing strategies for the organization’s distribution, marketing, consultant relations, and client service. He will report directly to the firm’s recently appointed chairman and chief executive officer, Jeffrey Phlegar.

“We have set an organizational vision of being a leading fixed income advisory firm focused on credit centric investing with a global reach across opportunities, solutions, and client demand. John’s deep understanding of the global asset management business, client needs, and strategic business skills will help us succeed. I am very pleased to have the opportunity to once again work with John as we continue to establish MacKay Shields as a global leader in fixed income asset management,” said Phlegar.

A 16-year veteran of AllianceBernstein, Akkerman most recently served as senior managing director, Global Institutions where he was significantly involved in building out a best-in-class global sales and marketing effort to further build upon the firm’s $200 billion fixed income and alternatives business.

From 2004 through 2011, Akkerman served as head of institutional sales, client service and also oversaw the consultant relations effort in North America for most of that period. Prior to that role, he served as senior vice president leading institutional sales efforts in Canada from 1996 until 2004, growing AUM from $2 billion to approximately $45 billion in that time period.

Prior to joining AllianceBernstein, Akkerman served for three years with TAL Investment Counsel as vice president of marketing and portfolio manager. Previously he held roles of increasing responsibility with both Sun Life Assurance Company of Canada and the Bank of Montreal.

Akkerman received his Bachelor’s of Commerce in Finance & Marketing from Saint Mary’s University and his MBA from the University of Western Ontario. He is a holder of the right to use the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation and the Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst (CAIA) designation, respectively.

About MacKay Shields LLC

MacKay Shields LLC is a global, multi-product fixed income investment advisory firm managing more than $64 billion in assets as of March 31, 2012. Its clients include pension funds and other institutional investors in the US and overseas. MacKay Shields is a wholly-owned subsidiary of New York Life Investment Management Holdings LLC, which in turn is wholly-owned by New York Life Insurance Company.

New York Life InvestmentsJohn Puccio, 212-576-8172
[email protected]

Source: MacKay Shields LLC