Kiran Nandra-Koehrer will join Jupiter in the new role of head of equities, the asset manager announced yesterday (December 8).
Earlier this year Jupiter changed its management structure, splitting its chief investment officer role into head of equities and head of fixed income.
Matthew Morgan, previously the investment direction for Jupiter’s fixed income and multi-asset platform, was appointed to head of fixed income in October this year, and John Chatfield-Roberts was acting as interim head of equities while the position was filled.
Jupiter said the changes will bring a more “focused and efficient” investment oversight and more “targetes business support” to Jupiter’s fund range.
Nandra-Koehrer was most recently head of emerging equities management at Picet, and prior to that she spent 12 years at Wellington Management.
Both roles will report into Jupiter’s chief executive officer, Matthew Beesley.
Beesley said: “Working with me, Jupiter’s new heads of equities and fixed income will offer strategic leadership and oversight across our investment teams, leaving managers free to focus on the management of their portfolios and delivering returns for their investors.
“I look forward to working closely with both Kiran and Matt as we continue to drive forward our strategic goals across the asset classes.”
Outflows persisting
The fund house has struggled with outflows for years, with its funds losing £3.8bn last year despite gross inflows of £16.5bn.
It is known as a specialist in the value style of investing, which has been unpopular in recent years, and has also suffered from the rising market share captured by model portfolio providers which has impacted its multi-manager products.
The outflows are focused mainly in the group’s European and UK equity funds, but also in the Merian funds, a fund house taken over by Jupiter in 2020.
Former chief executive Andrew Formica announced his resignation in June, saying the initial phase of the business’s transformation project had been completed.
Formica said he was leaving to move back to Australia with his family.
However, a month before his resignation, former board member Jon Little criticised the fund house, saying it has "lost its way" and needs to change its management and strategy.
Little took aim at Formica, saying his appointment was a “mistake”, and the selection process was undertaken with “undue haste and without proper consideration of the risks involved”.
He also suggested the company's drop in share price seen over the past few years was “self inflicted”.
At the time Jupiter said: “We listen to and respect the views of our shareholders and will respond to Little directly…we are confident that we have the right foundations in place to deliver...underpinned by our strong capital position.”
