QuilterFeb 28 2023

Quilter Investors signals portfolio changes after shake-up

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Quilter Investors signals portfolio changes after shake-up
'This process will be an evolution for the portfolios,' said investment manager Sacha Chorley

Quilter Investors has kickstarted a series of changes to its Cirilium Active portfolios following the exit of two fund managers late last year.

Paul Craig and Hinesh Patel left Quilter Investors after the company revamped its model portfolio service and multi-asset structure.

FTAdviser understands that the departures came after internal changes to the management of the asset manager's Cirilium portfolio range.

We still have work to do to get the portfolios to where we would like them.Ian Jensen-Humphreys, Quilter Investors

As part of the changes, Ian Jensen-Humphreys and Sacha Chorley - who previously ran the Cirilium Blend portfolios - took over the management of the £7bn Cirilium portfolio range.

Following a period of review and meeting with managers, Jensen-Humphreys and Chorley have added the Alliance Bernstein International Health Care, Quilter Investors Global Equity Value, Liontrust UK Growth and Brevan Howard Absolute Return Government Bond funds across the range. 

All three are already holdings in the Cirilium Blend portfolios.

The duo believes the new holdings will complement the existing funds in the portfolios, as they have a bias towards quality large cap names, as well as adding defensive characteristics in the shape of healthcare and an absolute return strategy. 

Before the shake up, the Cirilium Active portfolios had a greater exposure to a growth style and more small and mid-cap businesses.

This process will be an evolution for the portfolios.Sacha Chorley, Quilter Investors

“We want to get consistency across the Cirilium range so that no matter what set of portfolios an investor goes into, they get the same investment philosophy and access to what we consider best ideas,” Jensen-Humphreys explained.

“We still have work to do to get the portfolios to where we would like them, but this is a good start.

“We are also using this process to identify where some holdings in Cirilium Active could be used in Blend as there are strong options there too.”

Jensen-Humphreys said he wants each range to be distinct but have consistency running through how they are managed.

“As such, it is important funds are considered for inclusion in both active and blend,” he explained.

Chorley added that part of that consistency means ensuring that the portfolios have the correct balance so Quilter can take advantage of shorter as well as longer-term opportunities in the market.

“These funds will help us to do just that and should complement the existing names held by the active range, while also providing strong defensive characteristics for the portfolio,” Chorley explained. 

“This process will be an evolution for the portfolios, and we continue to be on the lookout for best in breed managers for both the active and blend ranges.”

Internal changes

As part of the changes, Quilter Investors is bringing a number of functions in-house.

This includes the fund manager selection which was previously done by Quilter Cheviot, alongside an expansion of the research team, which is split into a manager selection team, an operational due diligence team, and a responsible investment team.

Quilter Investors has hired Given Chanetsa-Mazarura as head of operational due diligence, who started in January 2023.

The changes were announced by Marcus Brookes, chief investment officer at Quilter Investors, who joined the company six months ago.

He joined from Schroders Personal Wealth, where he was CIO for three years, and previously spent 11 years at its parents company, Schroders, as head of multi-manager.

Brookes told FTAdviser the changes are a result of his desire to get closer to the client, run a more successful portfolio range, and increase transparency with IFAs and their clients. 

sally.hickey@ft.com & ruby.hinchliffe@ft.com