IRELAND – The departure of Bank of Ireland Asset Management UK head David Boal to join five previous defectors to Perpetual Trustees has prompted speculation about its future path.

Boal follows former deputy Bank of Ireland CIOs Des Sullivan and John Nolan, senior portfolio managers Richard Kelly and John Forde, and portfolio manager Sarah Molloy to Australian financial services group Perpetual, which is expected to set up a Dublin-domiciled global equities business early next year.

Bank of Ireland Asset Management is reported to have lost some €6bn since the first four departures in October. They include the Alaska State Pension Investment Board which terminated a $356m active global equity mandate and Australia’s Just Super’s A$35m mandate.

In addition, the $2.7bn District of Columbia Board has placed the manager under watch for $303m in global equities as have UK-based consultants.

“It’s a big problem for them,” said one industry watcher who did not want to be Identified. “If all six defectors had left in one go it would have been worse than four going but not that much worse, and it would not have been as bad as four, then one and then another one. It must be morally debilitating.”

“BIAM are going to reinvent themselves,” said another. “They’ll have to rebuild their reputation as a value manager and by the time they’ll have done it the business model they’ve evolved as a specialist international equity manager may not work any more.”

“North American clients have been upset by these changes,” said a third. “They’ve been reviewed and as a result have been losing business, and as soon as that ball starts rolling it raises questions about the gradient at which everyone else needs to market the business.”

Boal’s deputy, Olivier Santamaria, has been named interim head of the UK business until his replacement can be found.

Paul Boyne, formerly with Morgan Stanley Investment Management, is taking charge of global equities.

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