Marlborough has hired James Athey from a senior fixed income role at Abrdn to become co-manager with Niall McDermott on the IFSL Marlborough Global Bond and IFSL Marlborough Bond Income funds.
Athey (pictured), who has more than 20 years’ investment management experience, was previously a senior portfolio manager in the team managing Abrdn’s European and global government bond funds.
He began his career at Deutsche Asset Management in 2001 before joining what is today Abrdn when it acquired DeAM in 2005.
He joined Marlborough on Wednesday 1 May and reports to chief investment officer Sheldon MacDonald.
MacDonald said: “James is an outstanding investment professional who combines a comprehensive understanding of the fixed interest arena with the all-important ‘can-do’ attitude that characterises our approach at Marlborough.
“We have ambitious plans for growth across the group and James will play an important role in further strengthening our investment capability. He shares our commitment to working in partnership with advisers and our focus on achieving first-class outcomes for investors.
“James is joining at a time when the changing macroeconomic backdrop, with the prospect of interest rate cuts, is creating what we believe are exciting opportunities in fixed income markets. I have no doubt that he and Niall represent a first-class team, ideally placed to make the most of those opportunities for our investors.”
Athey said: “Marlborough has a well-deserved reputation for investment excellence and I’m delighted to be joining the talented investment team at such an exciting time in the growth story of this entrepreneurial business.
“Marlborough has been running bond funds for more than 35 years and I’m looking forward to building on such a strong fixed income pedigree. I also believe there’s interesting scope to expand our product range to provide new opportunities for intermediaries and their clients.”
The £216m Marlborough Global Bond fund is an internationally diversified ‘one-stop’ fixed income portfolio of corporate and government bonds. It is in the Investment Association’s Global Mixed Bond sector.
The £9m Marlborough Bond Income fund aims to maximise income by holding sterling-denominated bonds issued by governments, companies and other organisations. It is in the Investment Association’s Sterling Corporate Bond sector.
