SWIP confirms Clunie and three other managers safe

Scottish Widows Investment Partnership (SWIP) has moved to reassure wealth managers that one of its rising stars, absolute return manager James Clunie, will remain in his role despite a major overhaul of its equities business.

The asset manager has confirmed Clunie (pictured), who runs the £14m UK Flexible fund, and UK Smaller Companies managers Gregor MacDonald and Andrew Paisley will not be affected by the changes, with their products and roles remaining intact. Investment manager for real estate securities Vicky Watson will also remain with the firm. SWIP today announced a major reorganisation of its £54bn equities business, with some strategies set to shift from an active to a passive investment approach driven by quant models. There will also be a major move away from regional desks to a single global tea...