Axa Investment Managers is overhauling its emerging market debt team as Damien Buchet, head of emerging markets fixed income, has quit.
Mr Buchet will leave Axa IM in September to pursue other opportunities, according to the group, which said it was looking to hire a suitable replacement.
New hire Salish Lad will take over as lead manager on the AWF Emerging Market Short Duration fund and the AWF Global Emerging Market Bonds fund.
Mr Lad joined from Ignis Asset Management prior to its acquisition by Standard Life Investments, where he was an emerging market debt fund manager. Before this, he worked at Henderson Global Investors for six years.
Axa IM has also hired Olga Fedotova as head of emerging market credit. She joins from UniCredit where she managed a credit analyst team that covered emerging market corporate and financial issuers.
Jim Veneau, head of the Asian fixed income team, said: “This is an important area of growth for Axa IM and we will look to add more resources on the credit research side, as well as preparing for a major initiative in the renminbi bond market.”
The company has decided to merge its emerging market debt team based in London and Paris with its Asian fixed income team based in Hong Kong to create a new global emerging markets fixed income team.
This new team will be managed by Chris Iggo, chief investment officer of fixed income and Jim Veneau, head of the Asian fixed income team until a replacement for Mr Buchet is found.
