Wealth Shortlist Update: Jupiter Global Value Equity

Ben Whitmore and Dermot Murphy, the fund’s managers, as well as Investment Director Claudia Ripley, will be leaving Jupiter Asset Management. It is expected that Whitmore and the team will remain at Jupiter until at least the end of July whilst they facilitate a transition to their own boutique investment company Brickwood Asset Management subject to regulatory approval.

Jupiter is exploring the option of allowing Whitmore and Murphy to continue managing the fund on a sub-advisory basis. This means once Brickwood is open, Jupiter would hire the new company to manage the fund. This in turn allows Whitmore and Murphy to continue to manage the fund as they do now. This would be subject to Jupiter’s due diligence and broader governance considerations of the new business.

Importantly, this has not been confirmed by Jupiter and it’s possible Brickwood does not pass its due diligence requirements. At the time of writing, Jupiter has not confirmed the alternative for the Global Value Equity fund, for example, for new managers to run the fund should it not be managed on a sub-advisory basis. Additionally, it is important to note that we have not conducted our own due diligence process on Brickwood to date, which we normally undertake before adding a fund to any of our solutions, including the Wealth Shortlist.

Our View

Our conviction in this fund lies with the two fund managers Whitmore and Murphy. But running it on a sub-advisory basis causes additional complexity from a governance perspective. When evaluating a fund group, we assess multiple areas of the business including people and culture, governance, investment risk and oversight, compliance and audit, operations and portfolio management and the business’ financial strength.

As things stand it’s unclear whether the new business would meet the required standards in these areas, for either Jupiter or HL. Jupiter has also not yet confirmed this is the direction it will take for the fund. As a result of this continued uncertainty, we have taken the decision to remove the fund from the Wealth Shortlist.

Although we're removing the Jupiter Global Value Equity fund from the Wealth Shortlist, this isn't a recommendation to make any changes to an investment portfolio. Investors should make sure any investments match their investment goals and attitude to risk and are held as part of a diversified portfolio. If you're not sure if an investment is suitable for your circumstances, please seek personal advice.