Putnam Fixed Income Chief to Retire
Michael Salm has been named co-chief investment officer and will succeed Bill Kohli in mid-2021.
Putnam Investments said Thursday that Fixed Income Chief Investment Officer Bill Kohli plans to step down next year after 26 years at the Boston-based investment firm.
Michael Salm, a portfolio manager specializing in fixed income who’s been with Putnam for more than 20 years, has been named co-CIO and will succeed Kohli when he retires in about nine months.
“While excited for my next chapter, I am proud and honored to have represented Putnam for the past 25-plus years … ,” Kohli said in a statement. “I have total confidence in Mike’s ability to lead fixed income and look forward to our continuing partnership in the coming months.”
Putnam manages some $180 billion in assets overall, $75 billion of which are in fixed income.
The firm says its team-based approach, including multiple portfolio managers, will enable a “smooth transition of Kohli’s portfolio management responsibilities next year,” according to an announcement.
Kohli has worked in the investment industry for almost 30 years and has been Putnam’s fixed income CIO since 2016. Before joining Putnam in 1994, Kohli held senior portfolio management roles at Franklin Advisors/ Templeton Investment Counsel.
Salm, a 30-year industry veteran, joined Putnam in 1997 and has served as co-head of the Fixed Income Group since 2011. His current responsibilities include managing several institutional offerings, as well as alternatives strategies under the firm’s 37 Capital brand.
Prior to Putnam, Salm held various investment, trading and research positions at BlackRock Financial Management, Nomura Securities, Nikko Securities and Fitch Investor Services.