Philippe Jabre: Spotlight on the Role of Chief Investment Officer (CIO)

Philippe Jabre is the Founder, Chief Investment Officer (CIO) and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Jabre Capital Partners, a multi-family office and independent wealth management firm based in Switzerland. This article will take a closer look at the role of CIO, providing an overview of their key responsibilities.

CIOs are executive level employees who manage investment strategies and portfolios for businesses and other organisations. They are responsible for sourcing, managing and monitoring investments; establishing investment policy statements; and working with external analysts, investors and portfolio managers. They serve a variety of different organisations, including universities, nonprofits, private companies, and family offices.

Globally, the number of ultra-wealthy families is increasing, triggering rising demand for family offices. Demographic trends are further accelerating the pace of intergenerational wealth transfer, placing the onus on forward-looking family offices to evolve and continually optimise their structure and capabilities to remain relevant and impactful for future generations.

By adopting a proactive, intentional approach, family offices are enhancing their ability to meet the needs of the families they serve, capitalising on new opportunities by aligning themselves with emerging trends. The role of the family office goes far beyond simply growing and protecting wealth, centring around helping the family to identify its vision and equipping future generations to be stewards of intergenerational family goals.

Whether a family is transitioning generational wealth or preparing for a significant liquidity event, having a strong CIO in place is crucial for any family office. Some family offices outsource the role, while others hire in-house executives. Some adopt a hybrid approach to leadership of investment functions irrespective of the operating model.

The main responsibilities and functions of the CIO are largely the same regardless of whether the family office maintains an in-house CIO, outsources the role, or operates a hybrid model. Nevertheless, key differences can arise depending on the complexity, tenure and size of the family office.

Within a family office, the CIO is responsible for providing flexibility and insight to serve varied and changing investment platforms as families grow their investment functions. Investments overseen by the CIO could include real estate, venture capital and pooled investments, etc. The CIO essentially serves as a custodian, ensuring the safety and security of family assets, including overseeing cybersecurity and internal controls.

CIOs manage liquidity, develop long-term investment strategies, coordinate with tax and estate advisors, and oversee due diligent efforts. The CIO is responsible for overseeing direct investments of the family office, as well as investment monitoring and performance reporting, and modifying investment strategies over time to align with changes in cashflow needs, time horizon, and risk tolerance.

About Jabre Capital Partners

Established by Philippe Jabre in Geneva, Switzerland, in 2006, Jabre Capital Partners has extensive experience of managing funds across a wide range of strategies, including long-short equity, convertible arbitrage, long convertible, high yield fixed income and emerging markets. The organisation has been the proud recipient of various industry awards, with in excess of $2 billion in assets under management at its peak.

In June 2020, Jabre Capital Partners relaunched its asset management activities focused on the firm’s core strategies. An active member of the Association Suisse des Gérants de Fortune, Jabre Capital Partners manages private mandates for investors across asset classes with a particular focus on fixed income products, global equity, and convertible bonds.

Active since 2015, Jabre Capital Partners’ Principal Investments division is responsible for part of Mr Jabre’s Family Office, investing in private and public markets, as well as long-term secular trends. In addition to investing in global funds, the division also invests directly in private equity, from seed stage valuations to equity valuations of up to $5 billion.