Hyde Hsu joined MMBB Financial Services as Chief Investment Officer (CIO) in October, and she brings more than 20 years of investment experience to the role. Before joining MMBB, Hyde was a Senior Investment Officer for the Bureau of Asset Management at New York City's Office of the Comptroller, with oversight responsibilities for the public equity investments of the New York City Retirement Systems. She spent much of her professional career with Willis Towers Watson (now WTW), where she was a Director of Investments and advised global pension funds on investment strategy and implementation, including portfolio construction and manager selection.
When asked what attracted her to MMBB, Hyde said, “The mission-driven, non-profit nature of MMBB appealed to me, and I’d like to be of service to the members who have given so much serving their communities. Also, my colleagues were a factor. When I interviewed with various MMBB Cabinet members, it felt more like a natural conversation than an interview, so I thought MMBB would be a good fit. These first few months at MMBB have been wonderful with the warm welcome and generous support from everyone at MMBB.”
Hyde holds a Master of Science degree in actuarial science from Boston University and a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics and mathematics from Wellesley College. She is a Chartered Financial Analyst charter holder and a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries. “My experience is different from my predecessors at MMBB because I was trained as an actuary initially. As a result, I have more awareness of liability than someone with a pure investment background,” Hyde explains.
According to Hyde, her actuarial skills give her added insight into the mortality adjustments and other factors used to determine the MMBB annuity. In addition, Hyde believes her many years as a consultant at WTW provides her with enhanced knowledge of how MMBB can better leverage its relationship with Mercer, an independent consulting firm retained by MMBB for their actuarial and investment consulting services.
In her new role as CIO, Hyde will initially focus on continuing the work her predecessor performed reducing the complexity of MMBB’s investments and increasing efficiency in order to enhance the MMBB member investment experience. The three broad areas begun by the previous CIO that Hyde will carry on are:
- Long-term investment approach, with a dual focus on fiduciary responsibility and liability framed investing
- Reducing and mitigating operational risk
- Fee and cost minimization
Over the longer term, the Investment department’s goal will be to help members secure their retirement outcomes and be prudent stewards of their savings. Hyde adds, “The investment world is dynamic, so we’ll make enhancements along the way and adapt as needed.”