Ex-Bridges Financial Services chief executive Alex Hutchison has resurfaced in the top job at MMC Contrarian.
Hutchison started work yesterday at the boutique fund manager as a replacement for outgoing chief executive Andrew Fairweather.
Fairweather resigned in January to take up the job of head of corporate development at Select Asset Management. He is working out a six-month leave period.
On March 17 it was announced that Hutchison had resigned as wealth management chief executive for Australian Wealth Management (AWM) and its financial planning subsidiary Bridges Financial Services.
The trained lawyer, stockbroker and former ASIC law enforcer earned $698,755 in salaries and bonuses last year, making him the second highest paid executive at AWM.
Hutchison's new salary package includes annual remuneration of $420,000 plus bonuses and an executive share plan of up to three million company shares.
"We are delighted that Alex has agreed to accept this new challenge and are looking forward to working with him to extract the most from our funds management business," MMC Contrarian chairman Kevin Eley said.
Global economic volatility led to a combined after tax performance loss of $2.6 million for the six months to 31 December 2007 for MMC, which still managed to maintain its interim dividend at four cents a share.
The company's portfolio returned -1.60 per cent during the December quarter versus -1.73 for the All Ordinaries Accumulation Index.
MMC shares rose 2.6 per cent yesterday to 59 cents.