Wealth news

Skandia at Liberty

Liberty Ermitage has been appointed by Sweden’s Skandia Liv to manage a Japanese long/short equity mandate worth $100m (e77m). The appointment is part of Skandia’s new portable alpha strategy.

“Japan and Europe are regions I believe can make most effective use of the [portable alpha] strategy, as the structural evolution of these markets should continue to offer long/short hedge funds with the ability to produce high levels of alpha,” said Ian Cadby, CEO and CIO of Liberty Ermitage.

The appointment is not the first Scandinavian mandate for Liberty, which manages $1.8bn in hedge funds.

Leaving Gartmore

Changes in the structure of Gartmore mean its UK chief executive, Glyn Jones, will leave the company at the end of the year.

The firm has created a new integrated global asset management business with investment management and distribution capabilities in Europe, including the UK, US and Japan.

“Given the impact of these changes, we have discussed alternative roles for Glyn but have been unable to agree on one that matches his leadership and experience,” said Paul Hondros, the group’s CEO.

From January Mr Hondros will assume direct management responsibility for the new integrated business.

Joint hedge fund

Threadneedle Investments and Feri Trust have announced they are launching a new fund of hedge funds. The Threadneedle Crescendo fund is designed for international clients and for cross-border distribution in European retail markets and will be in compliance with the new German legal requirements.

“The new German rules for funds of hedge funds are considered to be a landmark decision in Europe and as such, put high demands on investment managers, custodians and administrators,” said Dirk Söhnlholz, managing director for alternative assets at Feri.

The fund invests in a portfolio of 15 hedge funds.