The head of the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund (Isif), Nick Ashmore, is leaving the agency to take up a new role with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Washington.
Isif, established 11 years ago as successor to the National Pensions Reserve Fund (NPRF) after the latter was raided during the financial crisis to help with bank bailouts, had €16.6 billion of assets under management at the end of last year.
The agency, which falls under the remit of the National Treasury Management Agency (NTMA) delivered an average annual return of 3.4 per cent in its first 10 years of existence.
“The Isif director will leave the agency in the first quarter of 2026 to take up a new role with the International Monetary Fund,” a spokesman for the agency said in response to questions after Mr Ashmore told staff of his planned departure in recent days. “The recruitment process for a new Isif director will commence in due course.”
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The role that Mr Ashmore will take up is not yet clear.
Mr Ashmore, a chartered accountant, joined the NPRF in early 2006 as head of its private equity investments. He subsequently led the team that set up Strategic Banking Corporation of Ireland (SBCI) under the aegis of the NTMA in 2014. He went on to serve as its chief executive before moving to head Isif in early 2021.
Isif’s portfolio is made up of a portfolio directed by Government, along with a discretionary pot of investments.
The discretionary investments include: a global pot of equities, bonds and property assets that was valued at €5 billion in December; and a €3.9 billion Irish impact portfolio that has a mandate to support economic activity and employment in Ireland, while investing on a commercial basis. The impact portfolio ranges from investments in vehicles to support housing construction and venture capital funds.
The directed portfolio, valued at €7.7 billion, was used to hold much of the State’s equity stakes in bailed-out banks. However, it is now mainly made up of cash and cash equivalents as well as commitments to SBCI and Home Building Finance Ireland (HBFI).
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Isif attracted unwelcome attention in July when it paid out €5 million to fraudsters that had misrepresented themselves as a European investment fund where the agency is an investor. It subsequently managed to recoup €1.52 million. The incident is being investigated by An Garda Síochána. Isif hired Deloitte to examine a number of aspects of the incident.
Meanwhile, the Government also set up two new sovereign wealth funds in the middle of last year – known collectively as Future Ireland Funds. They are on track to have combined assets of more than €16 billion by end-2025. The funds are invested in low-risk bonds, pending the completion of a long-term investment strategy. The planned strategy is with the Government for consultation.
News of the planned departure of Mr Ashmore comes only weeks after his successor at SBCI, June Butler, handed in her notice. She is rejoining Bank of Ireland, where she worked between 2003 and 2021, in the coming months as head of corporate and SME banking.
