CPP Investments, the world’s second-largest investor in private equity, has promoted three staff to senior positions across its direct and regional private equity businesses as its global directs head leaves the pension.
Sam Blaichman has become head of direct private equity globally, according to details seen by Private Equity International. Toronto-based Blaichman, who has until now been head of direct PE North America, replaces Hafiz Lalani, who is leaving the Toronto-headquartered investor.
Lalani, a London-based managing director who has been with CPP Investments for almost 19 years, will be helping with the transition into the new year, it is understood.
Pascal Keutgens, who has been with CPPIB since 2019, becomes head of direct private equity, Europe. Keutgens has worked across healthcare and consumer sectors.
Prakul Kaushiva has been appointed head of private equity Asia, in the wake of former Asia PE head Frank Su’s departure. Kaushiva, who has been with the pension for 12 years, will relocate to Hong Kong next year from Mumbai, where he currently leads that office’s private equity team.
All appointments are effective immediately, PEI understands. A spokesperson for CPP Investments declined to comment on the promotions.
CPP Investments’ private equity business is led globally by Caitlin Gubbels, who assumed her current role in October after former head Suyi Kim left the pension.
The pension disclosed at least $325 million-worth of commitments made to private equity funds in the three months to 30 September, it said last month. This includes $50 million to Kohlberg Investors X and $200 million to CVC Growth Partners III and its co-investment vehicles.
The pension has also been active on the secondaries front, with affiliate title Secondaries Investor reporting last month that CPPIB was the sole backer of a multi-fund tender GP-led secondaries process by software-focused growth equity investor PSG. It also backed software-focused investor Accel-KKR’s debut single-asset fundraise.
CPPIB had C$675.1 billion ($474 billion; €451 billion) in assets as of 30 September, with net assets increasing by C$28.3 billion from the prior quarter. It had $141.89 billion allocated to private equity as of end-December, or 32 percent of its assets, per the GI 150 ranking of the world’s largest private equity investors.
