Foresight Group has named CFO Gary Fraser as chief executive officer.
Fraser takes the role after 20 years at Foresight. He will retain the CFO responsibilities until a further appointment is made, while Bernard Fairman will remain as chair.
The announcement came in the firm’s annual results, released this morning (26 June), which saw Foresight report a 14% growth in funds under management.
In January, the group announced the acquisition of impact investment specialist WHEB Asset Management, in a deal which added almost £800m to the group’s AUM.
AUM for its Capital Management business increased by £457m, owing to the WHEB acquisition. However, the firm suffered £246m net outflows, which it attributed to market headwinds.
Foresight Group’s FUM currently stands at £9.6bn, while AUM grew 9% to £13.2bn over the financial year. The group also reported a revenue increase of 9% to £154m.
Bernard Fairman, co-founder and executive chair of Foresight Group, said: “Global decarbonisation, increasing electricity consumption as technological advancement transforms economies, national efforts to increase energy security and the enduring funding gap for SMEs are long-term structural trends which make Foresight’s expertise more relevant than ever.
“Valuations in recent private market transactions continue to demonstrate strong investor appetite for energy infrastructure exposure, supporting our confidence that as we deliver against our medium-term guidance, our shareholders will benefit from the narrowing of what we believe to be an unjustified valuation gap.”
