Florida Chief Investment Officer Ash Williams to retire at end of September

FRS Executive Director and Chief Investment Officer Ash Williams speaks during the House Oversight, Transparency & Administration Subcommittee meeting Wednesday, Oct. 11, 2017 at the Capitol in Tallahassee, Fla. (Photo by Phil Sears)

Florida State Board of Administration (SBA) leader Ash Williams will retire at the end of the month after more than a decade of service.

Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Cabinet will likely tap an interim replacement next week at the upcoming Cabinet meeting. The meeting is scheduled for 9 a.m. Tuesday.

Williams oversaw billions worth of state assets including the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund and the Florida Retirement System during his tenure as the state’s Chief Investment Officer. With more than 900,000 enrollees, the Florida Retirement System is the fifth largest public pension fund in the nation.

William’s final day is Sept. 30. Pensions and Investments, an online publication, reports his retirement was prompted by requirements within the state’s deferred retirement program.

“Ash Williams has earned a reputation for being able to head into the stormiest of investment markets and still show positive returns that outperform benchmarks and impress colleagues,” says a bio of Williams posted by Florida State University’s College of Business.

A Florida State University graduate, Williams holds a bachelor’s degree in management and a master’s of business administration. He also attended post-graduate programs at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School and Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government.

Before leading SBA, Williams led two New York based investment firms as a managing director at Fir Tree Partners and as president and CEO of Schroder.

In 2017, Williams was awarded Florida State University’s Chief Investment Officer’s Lifetime Achievement Award and the FSU Faculty Senate Mores Torch Award, which recognizes “respect for FSU’s customs, character and tradition.”

Williams is also a member of numerous committees. He chairs the Managed Funds Association’s Institutional Investor Advisory Council, the Alternative Investor Forum’s Investor Board and the Council of Institutional Investors’ Board of Directors, according to Florida State University.

He also serves on investment committees for the Episcopal Diocese of Florida, the Community Foundation of North Florida and the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers, the university adds.