The latest hires, promotions and appointments for the week ending 22 May 2026.
Professional trustee firm Zedra has hired former Coal Pension Trustees executive Dan Whincup as a client director and professional trustee.
Whincup worked at Coal Pension Trustees – which caters for the Mineworkers’ Pension Scheme and British Coal Staff Superannuation Scheme – for more than 11 years in several senior roles, including CEO, before stepping down last year. He has since worked with TPT Retirement Solutions on a short-term basis.
He has also previously worked as an actuarial consultant at PwC, Willis Towers Watson, and Mercer.
Kim Nash, managing director at Zedra, commented: “We are seeing sustained demand for independent trustee services as schemes place greater emphasis on experienced support, long-term partnerships and trusted decision-making that delivers better member outcomes. There is also a growing preference for partners who can bring insight from across a wide range of arrangements…
“Dan brings extensive experience from senior leadership roles across the pensions industry, particularly in relation to member experience. His background gives him a well-rounded perspective on scheme oversight, member outcomes and trustee decision-making, adding further strength to our collective expertise and further enhancing our ability to support clients in an evolving market.”
Dan Whincup added: “Member outcomes have always been central to my approach, with a focus on improving engagement, retirement outcomes and the overall pension experience. So for me, it was important to join an organisation where members genuinely sit at the heart of everything.”
Zugic to leave Clara Pensions
Richard Zugic is to leave his role at defined benefit superfund Clara Pensions after three years. Zugic joined in 2023 from Phoenix Group – now Standard Life – as chief financial officer and has helped Clara bring on board five schemes and more than 22,000 members.
In a post on LinkedIn, Zugic said: “Navigating an evolving pensions landscape, finding innovative member-first solutions in a competitive market, evolving our product offering, growing our capabilities and pipeline of opportunities – this, and much else, has made the first five superfund transactions possible, and has blazed the trail for the wave of new superfund entrants to follow.”
Zugic has previously worked for Swiss Re and Zurich Insurance, and is a trustee of the Abbey Life Assurance Company Pension Scheme.
WTW appoints Clutterbuck to lead Cushon Master Trust
Troy Clutterbuck has been appointed managing director of the £3.9bn Cushon Master Trust following its acquisition by WTW earlier this year. He has worked at the master trust since 2020, helping it scale up and playing a key role in its acquisitions by NatWest and subsequently WTW. Read the full story.
Raindrop adds former pensions minister to board
Pension-finding platform Raindrop has named Guy Opperman as a non-executive director on its board of directors. A former pensions minister, since leaving parliament in 2024 Opperman has worked with master trust Smart Pension and administration provider Aptia in advisory roles.
As pensions minister between 2017 and 2022, Opperman was in post through the development of the first master trust authorisation regime and helped promote the collective defined contribution model.
Raindrop uses pension finding technology to help savers reunite with ‘lost’ pension pots. Since its launch in 2021, it says it has helped savers locate 172,000 pots worth more than £1.6bn in total.
Vivan Shridharani, co-founder of Raindrop, said Opperman joining the board was “a major coup” for his company. He added that the new non-executive director would “play a leading role as Raindrop continues to unlock access to simple tracing tools”.
Opperman added: “I have been really impressed with the work of [Raindrop’s] founders, who have built an innovative platform that delivers real impact to both UK savers as well as pension providers.”
Law firm Walker Morris boosts pensions team
Walker Morris has announced that Danny Fowler has joined its pensions team as a director. He joins from rival law firm Fieldfisher and has previously worked in PwC’s pensions legal practice.
In his new role, Walker Morris said Fowler would “play a key role in supporting the continued growth of the pensions team”.
Ruth Bamforth, partner and head of pensions at Walker Morris, said: “We’re pleased to welcome Danny to the pensions team. His experience across a wide range of pensions matters, combined with his strong client focus and technical expertise, makes him an excellent addition to our team.
“His appointment reflects our continued investment in the growth of our pensions practice and our commitment to delivering high-quality, commercially focused advice to our clients.”
