Key Takeaways
- • York University appointed Arijit Banik as chief investment officer, effective May 2026, while he retains his role as university treasurer, according to the primary report.
- • Banik's expanded mandate covers the C$776M endowment fund and both the defined-benefit and defined-contribution pension funds of the C$4.7B institution.
- • Banik joined York in 2018 as treasurer after more than a decade at Royal Bank of Canada and RBC Dexia, with pension advisory and treasury experience.
- • The appointment coincides with the retirement announcement of Leona Fields, York's director of pension funds, who grew the pension fund from C$700M to nearly C$4B over almost three decades.
Summary
The Toronto-based York University has named Arijit Banik as chief investment officer, effective this May. The C$4.7B institution confirmed the appointment, and Banik will hold the CIO title alongside his existing responsibilities as treasurer, a combined structure that consolidates investment oversight and treasury functions under one executive.
Banik joined York in 2018 as treasurer, where he oversees the university's C$776M endowment fund. In the expanded CIO role he will also oversee the institution's defined-benefit and defined-contribution pension plans, bringing the full range of York's institutional assets under a single investment leader.
Banik's background is rooted in institutional pension and treasury work. He spent more than a decade at Royal Bank of Canada, where he served as senior manager in the Corporate Treasury Pension Investments and Asset Liability Management group and was responsible for pension investment advisory services for RBC's global DB and DC plans. He also served as senior manager of economics, pension and hedging at the RBC Dexia treasury desk, covering foreign exchange management, forecasting, pension investment review, risk management and regulatory gap profiling.
The appointment follows the announcement by Leona Fields, York's director of pension funds, that she is retiring, as disclosed in a LinkedIn post. Fields spent nearly three decades at the university and helped grow the pension fund from C$700M to nearly C$4B.
Banik joined York in 2018 as treasurer, where he oversees the university's C$776M endowment fund. In the expanded CIO role he will also oversee the institution's defined-benefit and defined-contribution pension plans, bringing the full range of York's institutional assets under a single investment leader.
Banik's background is rooted in institutional pension and treasury work. He spent more than a decade at Royal Bank of Canada, where he served as senior manager in the Corporate Treasury Pension Investments and Asset Liability Management group and was responsible for pension investment advisory services for RBC's global DB and DC plans. He also served as senior manager of economics, pension and hedging at the RBC Dexia treasury desk, covering foreign exchange management, forecasting, pension investment review, risk management and regulatory gap profiling.
The appointment follows the announcement by Leona Fields, York's director of pension funds, that she is retiring, as disclosed in a LinkedIn post. Fields spent nearly three decades at the university and helped grow the pension fund from C$700M to nearly C$4B.
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