Bennett joined Gartmore in January from GAM, and has since headed up European Selected Opportunities and Sicav Continental European Funds totalling €4bn in assets under management.
The new fund will be managed in a similar style to GAM’s European Equity Hedge Fund, which Bennett ran since its inception in January 1999 until September last year. Under his tenure, this fund achieved an annualised return of 7.3% according to Euro Hedge/Thompson DataStream.
The fund will pursue an all cap strategy, although the portfolio will largely comprise companies with a market capitalisation of greater than €1bn.
This is Gartmore’s first hedge fund launched as a sub-fund of a Dublin-domiciled Qualified Investor Fund umbrella (QIF). The decision to domicile the fund in Dublin was made in anticipation of possible requirements arising in the forthcoming Alternative Investment Funds Directive and in line with the increased investor demand for alternatives funds to be domiciled in the European jurisdictions.
Minimum investment in the new fund is €250,000.
Paul Graham, global head of alternatives, said: “This is a superb addition to Gartmore’s highly respected hedge fund range with John’s ten years’ experience of running European equity long/short funds. Investors will now be able to access his distinctive investment style and excellent track record through this latest offering.”
He concluded: “The Fund’s Dublin domicile is an example of how our operations platform can easily adapt to meet the needs of our clients in the face of regulatory change.”
