APG Promotes Thijs Aaten to Asia Chief Executive

Dutch pension fund manager APG Asset Management on Wednesday announced the promotion of Thijs Aaten to chief executive for Asia, replacing departing Asia boss Wim Hazeleger, at the same time that it named a new chief finance and risk officer for the region.

“We are deeply indebted to Wim for filling the position of CEO of APG Asset Management Asia over the last ten years,” said Ronald Wuijster, chief executive of APG Asset Management. “Under his leadership and active engagement with the Board, APG Asset Management Asia more than tripled its employee base in the region to about 100 people and grew its AUM by 400 percent plus – to approximately $30 billion.”

Aaten, who has served as chief finance and risk officer for APG Asia since 2018, takes on his new role from 1 September, with Hazeleger leaving his the position after ten years to pursue opportunities outside the firm. Aaten will continue to be based in APG’s APAC headquarters in Hong Kong.

In Asia Pacific, APG has been among the most active European pension fund managers in pursuing real estate strategies, with the firm having in recent weeks increased its commitment to a Korean logistics development joint venture with ESR and Canada’s CPPIB, as well as giving itself an option to double an existing $419 million commitment to Aussie mortgage lender MaxCap.

Moving Up

Aaten’s latest promotion comes more than 20 years after he first joined APG in 2001, with the executive having relocated to Hong Kong in 2018 to take on the CFRO role for the region, where he was responsible for risk management, compliance and finance.

With his ascension to the top regional role, APG has hired Michael van Ommeren from Indosuez Wealth Management to take over the CFRO position, with that change also happening on 1 September.

Before joining APG, van Ommeren was chief operating officer at Indosuez, where he also looked after finance and treasury matters. An Asia veteran, van Ommeren also has previous experience as chief operating officer of the Hong Kong branch of ABN AMRO Bank, as well as serving stints with Merrill Lynch, CLSA, Standard Chartered Bank and Credit Suisse First Boston.

“We are fortunate to have Thijs take over as CEO of our Asia Pacific operations,” Wuijster said. “He is an accomplished financial expert and APG has gained from his broad vision and ability to make good use of opportunities for many years now. His experience in both financial and risk management, and his four years in Hong Kong ensures a smooth transition in leadership and provides continuity for our Asia Pacific operations.”