Rambourg aims to raise $1bn for new hedge fund

Former Gartmore fund manager Guillaume Rambourg is set to launch his own hedge fund venture in Paris, without ex-colleague Roger Guy, according to reports.

Rambourg, who earlier this year was cleared by the FSA of breaking internal trading rules at Gartmore, is understood to be aiming to raise $1bn for his new fund, named Verrazzano.

If he achieves his target it will make it one of the biggest hedge fund launches in recent years.

Rambourg resigned from Gartmore last year, amid an investigation by the FSA. The investigation - which later found no evidence of any wrongdoing by Rambourg - led to investors withdrawing billions from Gartmore's funds, forcing it into a cut-price takeover deal with Henderson.

According to the Financial Times Rambourg is to be joined in Paris by four other partners: the head of Goldman Sachs' Delta One trading division, Karim Moussalem; the founder of Lyxor Asset Management, Murielle Maman; a senior investment officer at UBS' hedge fund division, Tim Williams and former Gartmore senior analyst Tomás Pintó. Ten other employees have been recruited for trading operations.