Gartmore snatches European fund star Bennett from GAM

ACCLAIMED fund manager John Bennett is leaving asset manager GAM after 16 years at the group, to take over Gartmore’s giant European retail funds.

Glaswegian Bennett is to take over the £1.5bn Gartmore European Selected Opportunities fund and its £1.6bn Luxembourg-domiciled sister fund from star managers Roger Guy and Guillaume Rambourg.

Guy and Rambourg are being freed up to focus on their hedge funds and the recently-launched European “absolute return” fund they run at the group, which aims for growth in all market conditions.

And it is thought Gartmore will also launch a pan-European fund for Bennett – who describes his investment style as “pragmatic” – allowing him play to his strength of targeting a spread of large-cap equities across the continent.

Bennett is set to remain at GAM until the end of 2009, to allow time for a replacement to be selected.

The group said: “During this period GAM will work closely with its clients to agree a longer-term arrangement that best meets their investment requirements.”

Bennett’s GAM Star Continental European Equity fund has delivered an average return of nine per cent a year over the last five years.