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| Sanjeev Handa |
TIAA-CREF may add up to two structured finance analysts in buy-side roles. The new recruits will be asset-backed generalists and will report to Sanjeev Handa, managing director and portfolio manager of $9.5 billion in ABS. The new hires will cover a range of collateral classes, such as mortgages, credit cards and auto loans and will aid the portfolio manager in selecting new deals as well as managing the existing portfolio, Handa said. He is currently interviewing candidates to fill the positions left vacant by turnover, but he declined to provide more specifics about who left or what qualifications he was seeking. Handa's ABS holdings are 42% devoted to mortgage ABS, 10% to collateralized debt obligations, with the rest spread across different collateral classes. The manager looks for value in a wide variety of deals and tranches. "We have a lot of experience in credit so we don't mind rolling up our sleeves to find value there," he said. He declined to give examples of deals he recently bought or was considering. The asset manager in April received its first mandate to manage an ABS strategy for an outside investor through its TIAA-CREF Asset Management group.