James S. Phalen, chairman and CEO of CitiStreet – the DC pensions recordkeeping joint venture between Citigroup and Sttae Street in the US market – is eturning to State Street as executive vice president and head of its North America investment servicing group.
Phalen, a former head of State Street’s benefits services division, returns to the company’s senior management team after spending five years as chairman and chief executive officer of CitiStreet. He will report to Jay Hooley, executive vice president and head of State Street’s investment servicing group worldwide.
In this new role, Phalen, who is aged 54, will oversee strategy, operations and business development for State Street’s investment services for mutual, public, pension and hedge funds as well as non-profit and insurance customers in the United States and Canada.
“We’re delighted that Jim is returning to State Street,” said Hooley. “Having successfully led our joint venture company, he has a deep knowledge of all of the components that fuel our own and our customers’ growth — from managing large scale operations to a keen understanding of distribution systems and servicing the shareholder. Given today’s heightened regulatory requirements and operational complexities, Jim has just the right mix of experience to lead our business in this next phase of its growth. He will help us best leverage the efficiencies we have from our considerable scale and franchise.”
Prior to joining CitiStreet, Phalen spent eight years in senior roles at State Street, most recently as head of its benefits services division. This unit was joined with Citigroup’s The Copeland Company in 2000 to form CitiStreet, which today services more than 16,000 retirement plans and 9 million participants.
Before managing State Street’s benefits services division, Phalen was president and chief operating officer of Boston Financial (BFDS), a joint venture of State Street and DST Systems Inc. BFDS is a leading provider of automated shareholder recordkeeping for mutual fund management companies.
“I can’t think of a better time to come back to State Street and once again work with some of the best in the business,” says Phalen. “With its unwavering focus on investment servicing, State Street has earned a reputation as being a place where customers can acquire value and services they can’t get anywhere else. My task is to maintain this enviable market position and stay ahead of the curve with innovative services and capabilities.”
Phalen will continue to serve as a board member of CitiStreet. Phil Lussier has been named the new CitiStreet CEO and chairman, and James Murphy has been named president of the company.
With this appointment, Phalen also becomes a member of State Street’s operating group, its most senior strategy and policy making team.