Retirement Systems Committee holds confirmation hearing for Keith Olsen

Sen. Beau Ballard, chair of the Nebraska Retirement Systems Committee, opened a confirmation hearing for Keith Olsen on Jan. 30. Olsen identified himself for the record and said he is seeking confirmation for a second term.

Olsen told the committee he is “currently working at Grama University’s business school,” where he teaches investment and financial-modeling courses at the undergraduate and graduate levels. He described prior private-sector experience managing Asian investments at a boutique investment firm during the 2008 financial crisis and later co-founding Environmental Investment Management Services. “Our first meeting was about integrity,” Olsen said, describing that principle as foundational to the firm.

Committee members asked few substantive questions. Sen. Tony Sorrentino and Olsen exchanged informal remarks about teaching commitments, and Chair Ballard asked Olsen about his time in Hong Kong and his work managing funds in Asia. Olsen said the 2008 market disruptions and exposure tied to Madoff-related funds shaped his subsequent approach to asset management.

No one signed up in support or opposition to the confirmation at the hearing, and the committee received no letters for the record on the nomination. The committee closed the confirmation hearing and proceeded to hearings on committee bills LB820 and LB821.