Josh Clark has joined Bennelong Australian Equity Partners (BAEP) to work on the new Bennelong Emerging Companies Fund, which will open to retail and wholesale investors in September 2017.
Mr Clark makes the move from Ausbil Investment Management where he was a microcap specialist analyst for just over a year.
His departure comes after Ausbil portfolio managers Tony Waters and Chris Prunty left the business in April 2017, prompting research houses to downgrade the fund.
Ausbil has since beefed up its microcaps team with the recruitment of Mason Willoughby-Thomas as a portfolio manager and Arden Jennings an an equities analyst.
The new BAEP fund will be managed by the existing Bennelong team led by Mark East, who said, "After some time looking for the perfect fit, we are fortunate to have been able to recruit Josh.
"We believe his experience in the microcap space complements that of the existing team, particularly as we come to manage the new microcaps fund."
BAEP investment director Julian Beaumont said, "The Bennelong Emerging Companies Fund represents a natural extension of BAEP’s current offering to clients.
"In some respects, the new microcap fund will also support our existing funds. For example, it is likely to mean we discover up and coming opportunities, some of which may grow their way into a size suitable for investment in the larger-cap funds.
"We have been considering the possibility of a microcap fund for some time and being able to recruit Josh, with his specialist expertise in the microcap space, now gives us the final piece in the jigsaw. We believe we have the right team to make a success of the new microcap fund."
