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AGF Investments has announced the resignation of senior vice-president and portfolio manager Christine Hughes, saying that after 20 years in the industry, she was taking a sabbatical.

As a result of her departure, the firm has appointed Michael White as the lead manager of AGF Canadian Balanced Fund, subject to regulatory approval.

“At AGF, our philosophy is to build strong teams and have solid succession plans in place to maintain continuity in fund management,” says Martin Hubbes, executive vice-president and chief investment officer at AGF. “Michael and Christine have a long history of managing funds together as a successful team. They also share a common philosophy in how AGF Canadian Balanced Fund is managed, so Michael is the ideal successor to assume lead management.”

The company assures investors that the AGF Canadian Balanced Fund will continue to be managed with the same investment style and approach.

“Under Michael’s leadership, the team will continue to apply a macroeconomic approach and an active asset allocation process to provide investors with proven downside protection and strong risk-adjusted returns,” Hubbes says. “Michael will continue to be supported by our diverse award-winning North American, Fixed Income and Global Equity teams as we recruit for an Associate Portfolio Manager to join the Canadian Balanced team.”

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Gluskin Sheff hires ex-PH&N exec

Gluskin Sheff + Associates has announced the appointment of Patrick Keeley as vice-president, risk management. Prior to joining Gluskin Sheff, Keeley served as co-president of RBC Phillips Hager & North Investment Counsel.

“We are pleased to welcome Patrick to our expanding team of risk management professionals. His decision to join Gluskin Sheff further demonstrates our commitment to bringing best-in-class talent to bear for our clients,” said Jeremy Freedman, deputy chief executive officer.

At the same time, the firm announced the departure of vice-president and portfolio manager, Brad Dunkley, effective the end of January.

“I’d like to thank Brad on behalf of the Firm for his contributions over the years and wish him well in his future endeavours,” said Bill Webb, chief investment officer. “Our team remains deep in talent and experience, and just as we have added David Rosenberg, Mark Wisniewski, Dean Smith, David Vankka and, most recently, Patrick Keeley to our senior ranks over the past year, we will continue to seek out and invest in the best talent in order to better serve our clients.”

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SEAMARK to manage two Mavrix funds

Mavrix Fund Management has entered into an investment sub-advisory agreement with SEAMARK Asset Management.

Effective Jan. 25, SEAMARK will act as the investment sub-advisor for the Mavrix Dividend & Income Fund and Mavrix Strategic Bond Fund. Mavrix will continue to act as the manager and trustee.

Mavrix is a subsidiary of Growth Works. Both SEAMARK and Growth Works are subsidiaries of the newly launched Matrix Asset Management.

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RBC launches U.S. infrastructure group

RBC Global Asset Management (U.S.) has launched a new infrastructure investment group to be based in Boston. The group will offer institutional investors fund of funds, co-investment and secondary strategies that provide global, diversified exposure to unlisted infrastructure investments.

The group is being launched by four new hires: Joe Lyons, Nancy Mangraviti, Matthew McPhee and Whit Porter. The team brings together seasoned professionals from State Street Global Advisors (SSgA), Macquarie and Bank of America, all of whom had previously worked together at SSgA.

“Financial firms and institutional clients are showing increased interest in infrastructure as an asset class due to its distinct investment characteristics of long-lived assets and inflation-linked, stable operating cash flows,” said John Montalbano, CEO of RBC Global Asset Management. “Additionally, returns that are uncorrelated to other asset classes are extremely attractive to institutional investors seeking diversification.”

(01/20/10)