Hedge funder Paul Marshall has described fund managers who charge investors trapped in suspended funds as “a disgrace to the industry”.
Marshall, who co-founded Marshall Wace with Ian Wace, said investors should not have to pay for a fund manager’s incompetence in managing liquidity, The Times reports.
He said he was referring to equity funds rather than property funds and that his criticism could be applied to Neil Woodford.
Woodford Investment Management came under fire for continuing to charge full fees on the Woodford Equity Income fund when it suspended in June 2019. It is estimated the firm raked in £100,000 daily from fees during the period it was suspended, which prompted calls from MPs on the Treasury select committee for Woodford to waive charges.
“He gated and charged. That’s a disgrace,” Marshall said.
In the year leading up to the Woodford Equity Income fund suspension, Woodford and his business partner Craig Newman bagged £20m in dividends. Woodford Investment Management company accounts for the period since have not yet been publish.
Marshall Wace, which recently made $150m (£119m) betting against Wirecard, manages $44bn (£35bn). It suffered outflows during the financial crisis due to the fact it did not suspend its funds, prompting assets to fall from $14bn to $3.5bn.
See also: Woodford profits highlight misalignment in ad valorem fees
