NETHERANDS - AXA Investment Managers has hired Hanneke Ketellapper-Veringa from rival ABN Amro to be head of its Dutch institutional business.

AXA said it has opened a new office at Amsterdam Schiphol to serve institutional asset management clients and investment fund distribution.

"Hanneke Ketellapper-Veringa will be head of the Amsterdam office and she will be as well in charge of institutional clients in the Netherlands," AXA said.

She was formerly responsible for marketing investment management solutions to Benelux institutions for ABN Amro Asset Management, it added. She's also worked at ING Group and Deutsche Bank.

The new office will have four staff, working with 18 from the Benelux main office in Brussels. AXA IM has €14bn in Dutch institutional and retail fund assets.

"This physical presence in Amsterdam enables us to further strengthen our service to our existing clients, better understand their needs and it also demonstrates our commitment to the Dutch market," said AXA IM northern Europe head Christian Wrede.

"We want to establish a close relationship with our clients and we have solid plans for the Netherlands in the years ahead. The Dutch market is very important to us."

Meanwhile, sister company AXA Rosenberg Group has announced it will offer a "130/30 limited shorting" strategy to its institutional clients.

"Available from AXA Rosenberg as both global and regional strategies, these types of portfolios allow managers to extend a traditional long-only portfolio to include a limited number of short positions," it said.

"A 130/30 strategy is the perfect bridge between the alternative space and a traditional long-only strategy," said chief executive Stephane Prunet. "We feel this is a very important product, as the opportunity for enhanced alpha and information ratio is dramatic."

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