Polar Capital has increased assets under management (AUM) by 80% in the nine months to December 2013 despite closing its UK equity desk, the group's update has revealed.
At the end of the year, the boutique held £7.95bn in assets, compared to £4.4bn in March 2013. Assets also climbed 14% from the September figure of £6.97bn.
The closure of the UK equity desk last October resulted in a £179m reduction in AUM, and the third quarter inflows are down compared to previous quarters as a result, something Polar Capital had already warned on.
The group said: “As we cautioned at the interim results, our net inflows for our third quarter, at just under $1bn, were below the levels seen in the previous two quarters, although it was pleasing to see inflows continue across a wide range of strategies.
“Markets have made an uncertain start to 2014, but assuming market conditions do not deteriorate, we remain well positioned to grow assets further in 2014.”
The group closed its UK equity desk in October after the departure of manager Philip Hardy.
In a statement at the time, Polar Capital said its strategy is based on the presence of 10-12 investment teams: “The departure of the UK team will leave ten teams in place, leaving further scope to add additional teams should the opportunity arise.”
