UK equities boutique shuts after shedding almost 90% of assets

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Ardevora Asset Management, the UK-based global equities specialist, has closed its doors after its assets under management fell by almost 90 per cent in two years.

The group, co-founded by former Liontrust fund managers Jeremy Lang and William Pattisson in 2010, said in a statement that it would stop managing money for third parties and would return capital to clients.

Ardevora’s closure to external clients comes as boutique asset managers are under intense pressure as they bleed assets to big passive funds and as regulatory costs rise. The announcement from the fund house comes weeks after boutique fund manager Somerset Capital Management wound down after large client redemptions.

Ardevora’s assets under management tumbled from £10bn at the end of 2021 to £1.4bn at the end of last year, chief executive Irshaad Ahmad told the Financial Times on Tuesday. While the group manages five open-ended funds, four investing in global equities and one in UK equities, it also runs a number of segregated mandates for third parties.

The firm has experienced turnover among high-profile staff over the past year.

Pattisson stepped back as chief executive in May to focus on his role as a portfolio manager. Meanwhile, Paul Synnott, head of operations, left in April after a decade with the company. The head of client relations, Hugh Rittner, left the group in December after nine years, documents filed at Companies House show. Both Synnott and Rittner were partners in the firm.

Ardevora was profitable in the year to the end of March 2023, although profits fell to £22mn from £29mn a year before, according to accounts filed with Companies House. Cash levels dropped to £13.5mn in March last year compared with £17mn a year before.

“After 38 years of working together managing assets for institutional investors around the world, employing a unique investment approach based on behavioural psychology, Jeremy Lang and William Pattisson have decided to stop managing money for third parties,” the company said in a statement on Monday.