UK - US investment manager OppenheimerFunds Inc. has hired Adrian Gordon from Barclays Global Investors to spearhead a push into the European institutional market.

OppenheimerFunds said it opened a division within its London-based subsidiary, Tremont Capital Management Ltd., in June to focus on the area.

Gordon, director of European distribution at OppenheimerFunds, was head of the strategic accounts team at BGI and has not been directly replaced, said BGI spokesman Richard King.

Gordon told IPE the new office was targeting the big pension funds market and that “some strong interest” has been so far shown by a large European pension fund.

The new venture is to focus on specialist mandates, offering 11 Dublin–registered mutual funds for non-US investors as well as sub-advisory services and participation in fund of fund platforms, he explained.

“The outstanding reputation and investment capabilities of OppenheimerFunds are powerful tools to be working with,” Gordon said.

John Murphy, the company’s chairman, president and chief executive officer said: “Our strong investment capabilities and the efforts of our US-based international client service team have been rewarded with an increasing number of inquiries and accounts from institutional investors in Europe.”

“The establishment of a local presence is a natural next step in our long term strategy to be a significant player in the European market and a global asset management firm” he also said.

OPI said that it had 155 billion dollars (125.06 billion euros) in asset under management as of June 30.

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