ING Investment Management (INGIM) has appointed Rajeev de Silva as senior analyst in its small caps team.
De Silva joins from fund manager PM Capital where he was an analyst covering healthcare and telecommunications. He will report to director of Australian equities Paul Cuddy.
De Silva has 10 years' experience in financial services and before joining PM Capital he was an analyst in JP Morgan's small cap research team.
INGIM's Emerging Companies Trust invests in companies outside the S&P/ASX 100 Index or those about to list on the Australian Stock Exchange.
The fund has generated returns of 33 per cent and 50 per cent nominal a year over the past three years with alpha of 10 per cent and 28 per cent respectively.
"Local small caps can play an important role in investors' portfolios as the growth potential for companies of this size is generally far higher than their larger cap counterparts," Cuddy said.
A November survey by investment consultant Mercer, however, found that global small cap equity mandates commanded the highest management fees.
The report found Canadian and US small cap managers commanded a premium of between 25 to 30 basis points, above traditional asset class fees, while in Europe, Japan and the UK premiums ranged between 15 to 20 basis points.
