Alexander Darwall, the European equity fund manager who resigned from Jupiter last year taking one of his previous employer’s largest clients with him, has spoken of his plans to expand the new business.
In a video posted on the website of his new company Devon Asset Management, Mr Darwall said he may create another fund for an institutional client who has asked to work with him but he has no plans for further expansion beyond that.
Mr Darwall does not run his new business but acts as chief investment officer. The business is run by former Jupiter investment trust boss Richard Pavry.
Mr Darwall won the £1.1bn European Opportunities trust from Jupiter last year after announcing his departure. In addition he has one institutional client.
Under the terms of his exit from Jupiter, Mr Darwall is not allowed to compete with his former employers in the unit trust market, the type of funds that advisers can buy for clients.
Mr Darwall ran about £7.7bn in open-ended funds money at Jupiter, with the Jupiter European fund being the top performer in its sector over five years.
Devon Asset Management, which is based in Victoria, also employs Luca Emo, a long-time fund management colleague of Mr Darwall’s at Jupiter.
In total the company has eight full time employees. The non-executive chairman is Simon Troughton, a former chairman of Aberdeen Asset Management.
Mr Darwall said: “We want to recreate what we did at Jupiter, but crucially I am not running the business, I can concentrate on the fund management.”
david.thorpe@ft.com
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