Philadelphia pension fund CIO found dead

The chief investment officer at the City of Philadelphia Board of Pensions & Investments killed himself  after spending less than a month in the role.

Michael Donatucci, 30, committed suicide on Friday night (15 July) and was found by fiancée Meghan Klein, according to his Philadelphia Inquirer obituary. The pension fund declined to comment. Michael’s father, Ronald Donatucci, told the newspaper his son fought mental health issues.

Before taking the CIO position with the city pension fund in June, Donatucci held multiple roles at advisory and investment firm SEI Investments Company, based in Oaks, Pennsylvania, according to his LinkedIn profile.

Donatucci replaced former CIO Brad Woolworth, who left in April for family reasons, according to press reports at the time. Before becoming CIO, Woolworth served as the deputy CIO for the pension fund.

The Philadelphia pension fund’s private debt exposure includes subordinated/mezzanine debt, senior debt and distressed debt, according to PDI data. It has invested in funds managed by Almanac Realty Investors, Avenue Capital, Summit Partners and Oaktree Capital Management, PDI research shows.

As of 30 April, the fund had $4.4 billion in assets. Of that total, about 9.12 percent was invested in private assets, which includes private equity and debt.