Mirabaud Asset Management has poached Hywel Franklin (pictured) from UBS as senior portfolio manager to head the European small and mid-cap equities team.
Franklin, who has 16 years’ experience in European equities, joins from UBS Asset Management where he was most recently senior portfolio manager, focusing on global equities in London.
He joined UBS Philips & Dress in 2002, before he was soon appointed by UBS Global Asset Management as the youngest senior portfolio manager within the European Small & Mid cap segment in 2005. Following this, he became head of global small caps from 2012 to 2016.
Ryan Hughes, head of active portfolios at AJ Bell, said: “It looks like a move back to his mid and small cap roots as this was where has spent the majority of his investment career.
“More recently, he has been managing global thematic investments at UBS which is very different to the small cap space so no doubt the opportunity to get back into small cap investing is appealing given the nature of work that is required when running this type of strategy.”
Mirabaud struggles to make impact in UK
Franklin’s arrival marks a step towards strengthening the capabilities of its European small and mid-cap equity team, according to a press release by Mirabaud.
Earlier this year, Mirabaud AM announced its specialist European small and mid cap fund manager, Ken Nicholson, is to retire later this year.
Hughes said: “In the UK, Mirabaud have struggled to make a real impact, not just in European equities but across the board, perhaps with the exception of fixed interest but they have recently appointed a new head of sales with a view to making a greater impact in this market.
“European small cap is a relatively niche area with a low allocation from UK investors but it will be interesting to see how the new manager settles in before the fund warrants a more detailed look.”
Darius McDermott, managing director at Chelsea Financial Services, said he very much rated Nicholson but knew little of Franklin.
