Colonial First State's (CFS) departing head of Australian equities Simon Shields will replace Paul Fiani in the equivalent job at UBS Asset Management (UBS AM).

UBS AM confirmed yesterday that Fiani was leaving after five years as head of Australian equities and would be replaced by CFS's Shields.

Fiani is said to be taking a holiday and market sources have speculated he plans to set up his own funds management boutique in the future.

"We think very highly of Paul and he has done very well at UBS AM, which we see as a recommend,"  Morningstar research analyst Mark Laidlaw said.

"It is obviously disappointing to lose someone of Fiani's calibre, but we feel comforted by the fact the rest of the team is in place."

He added that Simon Shields was an interesting choice to replace Fiani at UBS.  "We look forward to meeting with him once he comes on board," Laidlaw said.

A UBS AM spokesperson told Investor Weekly there was nothing deep or dark about Fiani's departure.

"He just decided to leave, it's all very straightforward." the spokesperson said.

Shields will start at UBS AM on July 1. He left CFS after his contract with the company was not renewed.

His departure is the second in a week for CFS, which manages almost $20 billion in assets, and followed shortly after his deputy head of Australian equities Jim Taylor was poached by BT Financial.

"The departure of Jim Taylor last week certainly highlighted that there were some issues with the investment team," Laidlaw said.

"The loss of two top key people in a matter of days will cause short-term uncertainty for many investors. We will be looking to meet with them and discuss the business going forward."

CFS has started discussions with potential candidates for a permanent head of Australian equities, the company said a statement.

CFS's chief investment officer, David Dixon, will move into the job of acting head of Australian equities.

Dixon temporarily managed CFS' property securities after its entire property team left in January 2006 to set up a boutique with Perennial Investment Management.

Standard & Poor's Fund Services has placed all the Australian large cap funds run by the Colonial First State Global Asset Management team on hold.