David Slack, together with the Bell Group, have formed a new funds management company called Karara Capital. The new company is a dedicated active investment manager with a highly experienced investment team; it is majority employee owned and is backed by the Bell Group.
Karara Capital has absorbed the Bell Asset Management business, which is profitable and has a strong capital base. The new company is equity focused, building on its existing Australian and international equity capabilities. Two highly experienced investment managers, Rohan Walsh and Luke Sinclair, have joined the new business and will co-manage Australian Equities. The pair come from INVESCO where INVESCO’S Australian equity investment performance has been rated top quartile over the critical three, five and seven year periods.
Mr Slack is very pleased with the new appointments. “Rohan and Luke are highly respected investment professionals with many years of investment experience. I worked alongside Rohan at County Natwest for five years in the early nineties, and Rohan and Luke have worked together very successfully at INVESCO for the past eight years. This means we have a depth of experience that provides a great platform on which to build the business. I believe our team’s collective investment experience across all market conditions – good and bad – will be one of our key strengths,” said Mr Slack.
The company’s Australian Equities strategy will target institutional clients as well as the intermediary market. To begin with the strategy will focus on long-only active investment. Over time the new business will develop a long-short capability in both Australian and international equities.
Mr Slack continued, “Ned Bell will manage the international equity portfolios. Mr Bell has 11 years experience investing in international equity markets, including a number of years based in the United States. International equity investing is an exciting part of our new business and an area where we expect to build on our top quartile track record over the critical one and three year periods.
“We believe that our structure gives us a real advantage; employee ownership aligns our interests with those of our clients, while we have the backing of the privately owned Bell Group. Over the years the Bell Group has demonstrated a long-term business focus – this critical element will enable us to build a strong, independent and investment-led funds management company,” said Mr Slack.