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Gartmore said Mr Bennett would assume lead management responsibility for the £1.5bn European Select Opportunities and the €1.9bn (£1.6bn) Gartmore Sicav Continental European funds as the current managers, Roger Guy and Guillaume Rambourg are set to take on other projects within the company.

Once Mr Bennett is on board, the previous managers will focus more on their institutional mandates, as well as the recently launched European Absolute Return mutual fund, the Gartmore European investment trust and three hedge funds - Capella, Tucana, and Acamar.

Mr Bennett, who is expected to take up his new role officially in 2010, will report to Dominic Rossi, chief investment officer at Gartmore. He joins the company from Julius Baer subsidiary GAM, where he managed both the GAM Star Continental European Equity fund and the GAM Star European Equity fund.

In addition to his new management duties, Mr Bennett will also be tasked with developing a range of pan-European products.

Mr Guy said one of the reasons Mr Bennett was a good replacement as manager was that he followed a blended investment process focused on large-cap stocks, similar to the process already employed by himself and Mr Guillaume.

He added: "He has a wealth of experience and a long-standing track record of success, which will expand and diversify our European equity capabilities."

Jeff Meyer, chief executive, said Gartmore's European equity franchise had "grown significantly" in terms of clients and products and that Mr Bennett's appointment enabled the company to satisfy both "the performance and service demands" of the current environment.

He said: "With Mr Guy and Mr Rambourg focusing on alternative and institutional products, and Mr Bennett concentrating on the long-only funds, we will have one of the strongest European equity franchises in the market."      

Lastly, Dominic Rossi, chief investment officer at Gartmore, welcomed the appointment, describing Mr Bennett as a "highly talented investor" with a "superb track record".

"He is an important addition to our investment capability, and his appointment further endorses Gartmore's commitment to invest in fund management talent," he said.

"He joins a list of six other significant recent investment hires, all of whom will accelerate our organic growth."