InvestmentsAug 26 2014

Polar Capital hires Rushton for UK equity franchise launch

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Polar Capital has hired former Legal & General manager Guy Rushton to set up a new UK alternatives franchise.

The specialist asset management firm is set to launch its first fund for Mr Rushton, the UK Equity Absolute Return fund, by the end of September.

The fund will be the first in a new franchise of UK alternative products to be set up by Polar Capital.

Last year Polar had closed its then $293m (£183.2m) UK equity desk, which had included UK equity long/short mandates, after manager Philip Hardy left to join rival Four Capital.

The new franchise will bring the number of management teams at Polar back to 10, returning it to the range of 10 to 12 teams the firm has long targeted.

Tim Woolley, chief executive of Polar Capital, said the appointment of Mr Rushton “demonstrates our commitment to developing this side of our business further in the years ahead”.

“Guy is one of the rising talents in the UK alternative space and we look forward to him developing a significant franchise for us over the coming years.”

Mr Rushton joined last week from Legal & General Investment Management (Lgim), which he left in April this year.

At Lgim, Mr Rushton ran the L&G UK Absolute fund from July 2013, when he took on sole management of the fund from Robert Churchlow. The fund was shut on Mr Rushton’s exit.

Mr Rushton had joined Lgim in August 2011 as an equity analyst, having previously been a healthcare equity analyst with Clear Capital.