Liontrust has acquired Argonaut’s £169m European Income and £131m Enhanced Income funds in a move which will also see manager Oliver Russ join the firm.
The move will take place, subject to regulatory approval, in June 2016. Mr Russ has been at Argonaut since its inception in 2005, having previously worked at Neptune.
Argonaut founder Barry Norris said: “We feel it is important that our income fund unitholders can have the opportunity to remain invested with Oliver, with minimal disruption. We wish Oliver success for the future and all the best in building his income franchise on the Liontrust platform.”
Argonaut stated the changes would allow it to focus on the “core” of its business, the European Alpha, pan-European Alpha and Absolute Return franchises, which now constitute more than £1.1bn of assets under management.
Mr Norris has now assumed full ownership of Argonaut Capital, a deal that will see him take over the passive minority stake owned by Standard Life Investments gained following the latter’s acquisition of Ignis in 2014.
Meanwhile, Argonaut has also announced Jonathan Polin, currently chief executive of Sanlam, will join the firm as chairman in a move to strengthen Argonaut’s corporate governance.
Mr Polin said: “I have a long association with Argonaut and am extremely pleased to witness its strong growth, particularly since the business became operationally independent. Argonaut’s investment process has proven the test of time and this move will allow the group to continue to invest in its investment team and distribution capabilities.”
Meanwhile, reporting its annual results today (April 7), Liontrust announced a 7 per cent boost in assets under management for the 2015/16 financial year, reaching £4.8bn.
Net inflows hit £255m in the financial year, which is strong given Investment Association figures found that £437 had been withdrawn from all UK-authorised funds in January, followed by £399m net outflows in February.
John Ions, chief executive of Liontrust, said: “The focus of our fund management teams on applying robust investment processes to the management of our funds also ensures the way we run money is predictable and repeatable, which provides reassurance to investors at times of market volatility.”
