They joined earlier this month and will work on the launch of a Global Equity Fund alongside Andrew Holliman who joined the firm in August last year. Holliman will continue to run the $137m Polar Capital North American Fund.
The three worked together at Baillie Gifford, with MacKirdy bringing experience of working for Franklin Templeton and Lansdowne Partners while Williams also worked with Hermes Fund Managers.
The new global equity proposition will be launched over the coming months, according to chief executive Tim Woolley, and will specifically target the institutional market.
Woolley says the fund is in for the long haul, saying: “Although this will take a number of years to develop into a significant contributor to the business, it is a potentially important strategic move into a different client market with strong growth potential over the medium term.”
The announcement of the management hires was made at the same time as its year-end results, reporting assets under management of £5bn, up from $3.9bn at the end of March 2011.
