An M&G manager who helped get a niche fixed income trust off the ground less than two years ago is set to leave the fund group.
In an RNS statement the board of M&G Credit Income Investment Trust said it had been informed that the trust’s lead manager Jeremy Richards (pictured) will shortly leave M&G for “personal reasons”.
M&G confirmed Richards’ departure and told Portfolio Adviser that after 37 years he would be retiring from the business. Alongside the Credit Income Investment Trust, Richards has served as M&G’s head of internal funds management for the past 20 years.
Richards will be replaced on the private credit trust by deputy manager Adam English who has managed credit portfolios alongside him since 1999.
M&G said he would be around to ensure an orderly handover with the internal funds he manages.
Initial fundraising was a test
Richards spearheaded the launch of the M&G Credit Income Investment Trust in November 2018.
The trust, currently the only closed-ended vehicle in M&G’s stable, aimed to give investors broader exposure to niche areas of the fixed income market, with private, alternative and illiquid credit assets making up a significant portion of its allocation.
M&G set itself a “challenging” IPO target of £250m in September 2018 but only managed to scrape together £100m before listing a few months later.
At the time William Nicoll (pictured), co-head of alternative credit at M&G, told Portfolio Adviser the fundraising was not a disappointment arguing liquidity constraints made it tricky to deploy large amounts of capital into private markets quickly.
At the start of 2019 M&G Credit Income Investment Trust was able to raise an additional £25m as Q1 provided a less volatile backdrop for raising capital.
>See also: Cash-heavy M&G trust raises extra £25m
‘An outstanding contribution’ to M&G
Data from Trustnet shows M&G Credit Income Investment Trust in the first quartile over three months, six months and one year versus the IT Debt – Loans & Bonds sector though returns are negative.
On a one-month view it has generated positive returns of 11.2% versus the sector’s 8.1%.
In a statement M&G said Richards had made “an outstanding contribution” to the fund group.
“His way of investing in credit, and his investment philosophy, have helped mould the processes used throughout much of the wider fixed income world at M&G,” it said.
“When he leaves, he will go with our congratulations on a brilliant career here, and our best wishes for the future.”
