Leading PIMCO in Italy and the Alumni Community in Como

A group of alumni is always an asset, and the person heading the Como Chapter of the Bocconi Alumni Association (BAA) knows a lot about asset management. We're talking about Alessandro Gandolfi, head of Italy at Pimco Europe Ltd., the European branch of the American asset management company, which manages financial assets worth about $1.6 trillion globally.

➜ What was your career path in the financial industry?
I started at Credito Italiano, and only in 1997 I entered asset management thanks to IMI Fideuram, a financial management company that at that time was creating a team working on institutional investors, something that had not really existed in Italy until that moment. The first licenses to run investment funds were being granted. I stayed at IMI Sanpaolo (the name it took subsequently) for ten years until I reached the position of head of the Sanpaolo team for institutional investment management.

➜ What was your first contact with PIMCO?
In 2006, while reviewing a portfolio. At the time PIMCO did not yet manage many assets in Italy. At that meeting they showed their concern about the situation of subprime mortgages in the US and I asked them a few questions about it, since at the time in Italy there was little debate on the topic. They were struck by my interest in the issue and in November of that year I was asked to join the company. For the first three years the had me work in London. It was a very intense period, since it coincided with the explosion of the financial crisis.

➜ How was the environment?
Stressful and competitive. The first thing I had to do was to win the trust of my colleagues, all MBAs from the best US universities.

➜ You mentioned the crisis. What impact did it have in the asset management industry?
It was in fact an opportunity for three reasons. Firstly, it highlighted the fact that do-it-yourself small investors no longer had secure portfolios. Secondly, it pushed towards asset diversification, because, due to the fall in interest rates, investors no longer could turn to risk-free assets such as government bonds. And thirdly, the tightening in banking regulation resulting from the crisis has forced banks to downsize investment banking activities that were previously competing with asset management solutions. We think that structural elements such as demography, technology, and over-indebtedness will not allow rates to go back to pre-crisis levels, and this, which we call 'the New Neutral' at Pimco, can only push investors to look for diversified financial solutions, further bolstering the asset management industry.

➜ You have been leader of Como's BAA chapter for about a year. What are you focusing on?
On industry, finance and private banking, culture and the professions. On the first three subjects we have already organized a number of events, and we are now planning a cultural event and a meeting on the topic of professional advancement.