St. Louis-based health care system Mercy has split with its first-ever chief investment officer, the nonprofit announced Monday.
“As Mercy considers the strategic evolution of Mercy’s investment program, we respectfully inform you that Tony Waskiewicz will no longer retain the role of chief investment officer at Mercy,” the statement said. “Mercy is grateful for Tony’s leadership in establishing an institutional quality investment program for Mercy, elevating Mercy to national recognition.”
Other members of Waskiewicz’s small investment team will remain in place and have Mercy’s full support, according to the organization. Elizabeth Jourdan serves as deputy CIO.
Waskiewicz led the now-$2.5 billion portfolio for nearly a decade, according to his LinkedIn profile.
Mercy did not provide an explanation for its sudden split with the investment chief.
However, Waskiewicz gestured to a strategy reset at Mercy in a statement provided to Institutional Investor Tuesday.
“It has been an honor to serve Mercy as CIO for the past 10 years,” he wrote. “I am especially thankful for the opportunity to hire and work with one of the best investment teams in the country. They are all true stars as investors and even better people. I am truly thankful for the support, advice, and counsel from my award-winning investment committee who helped provide leadership and guidance for a nationally recognized investment program.”
“As Mercy resets its focus and approach to investing the balance sheet, I will forever be grateful for having been given the opportunity to lead that effort the past 10 years,” Waskiewicz went on. “I am extremely proud of the work done to build and evolve a high functioning investment program and will fondly celebrate the journey, memories and successes of my work with Mercy. Thank you to my many friends, teammates and committee members for an incredible 10 year run!”
Note: This article was updated Nov. 19 to include a statement from Waskiewicz.
