Rambourg seeds charity with £10m Henderson stake

Guillaume Rambourg, the ex Gartmore fund manager embroiled in allegations over trading irregularities last year, is to seed a new charitable foundation using his entire stake in Henderson.

The Rambourg foundation was set up by the manager with his wife, Olfa Terras, and was registered with the Charity Commission in February.

"My wife and I were giving a few donations on a yearly basis so we decided to organise it in a more efficient way by having our own UK-registered charity," said Rambourg.

"I will be transferring my Henderson shares into it tax-free, which is a great advantage, and it also means we can raise money for the foundation."

Rambourg was suspended from Gartmore in April 2010 amid claims he had breached internal procedures, but he was subsequently cleared of all charges. He resigned last July.

Rambourg's 3.9% stake in Gartmore was initially valued at £16.4m prior to Henderson's acquisition of the group for £366m in April 2011. He said his stake in Henderson is now worth around £10m.

The manager plans to transfer the shares as soon as he receives approval from HMRC that they qualify for Gift Aid status. Trustees of the foundation will then decide when the time is right to sell the shares, he said.

The foundation itself will focus on human rights, injecting cash into education and training, the improvement of health and saving of lives and the prevention or relief of poverty, through grants to individuals and organisations.

It will collect donations from third parties, through dinners or sporting events, according to Rambourg. But the main intention of the foundation will not be to raise money as the bulk of the financing will come from Rambourg's transfer of shares.

In his heyday as a fund manager, Rambourg was one half of Gartmore's award winning duo with Roger Guy. The pair managed more than 20% of Gartmore's £21bn of assets.