PIMCO said Monday that it has rehired Paul McCulley to serve as a managing director and take on a new role as the group's chief economist. McCulley, who worked for the firm from 1990 to 1992 and 1999 to 2010, also will be a member of PIMCO's Investment Committee and will report directly to founder and Chief Investment Officer Bill Gross.
"Paul is an experienced and respected thought leader on macroeconomic issues and central banks, and he will be an important contributor to our investment process," Gross said in a press release.
PIMCO — which lost its then-CEO and co-CIO Mohamed El-Erian earlier this year — could benefit from both new leadership and new investor interest. The bond shop had net outflows of $5.5 billion last month, according to Morningstar, bringing its year-to-date outflows to some $21 billion and its 12-month outflows to $80 billion.
(Since El-Erian's departure in January, PIMCO has tapped Doug Hodge as its CEO and appointed six deputy chief investment officers.)
McCulley will not manage client portfolios or serve as a portfolio manager, but he will spend up to 100 days per year working in PIMCO offices around the world. The economist also plans to dedicate some time to non-PIMCO activities, namely leading the Morgan le Fay Dreams Foundation.
