Man Group shares plummet by a third

Acceleration of amortisation of MGS upfront sales commissions main cause of group's $10bn outflows

Man Group's share price plunged by over a third last week after reporting a drop in funds under management of $10bn, down from $68.6bn to $67.6bn year on year. This figure was down on the $70.3bn estimated in the pre-close trading statement to $67.6bn as at 30 September 2008. Pre-tax profits were down from $820m to $622m, and its margin before tax was down 8%, from 62% to 54%. The group said the results reflected the reduction in performance fee income and the acceleration of the amortisation of Man Global Strategies (MGS) upfront sales commissions. MGS is one of the group's core in...