Henderson to merge Casson's European Opps into Pease fund

Henderson is to merge away both its UK and European Opportunities funds as part of its rationalisation programme following the acquisition of New Star.

Stephen Peak's £87m UK Opportunities fund will be merged into his £327m UK Alpha fund while the £209m European Opportunities fund will be absorbed into Richard Pease's £755m European Growth fund, subject to shareholder approval.

Pease and Simon Rowe will remain at the helm of the European Growth portfolio while European Opportunities manager Paul Casson will stay with the group.

The firm is also proposing to merge Mark Harris and Craig Heron's £34m Cautious Portfolio into Bill McQuaker's £508m Multi-Manager Income & Growth fund.

Henderson pointed to the crossover in the funds' objectives and management as the main reason for the mergers.