L&G to close £200m former North fund as Gill exits

Legal & General is to close its £222m Global Macro Themes fund - formerly David North's Diversified Absolute Return trust - as current manager Ben Gill leaves the group, Investment Week can reveal.

The absolute return fund, run by Gill (pictured), will be closed on 25 April. Investors have been given the option of either redeeming holdings or switching them into another L&G fund. It is understood the majority of the £222m in the fund is internal money. Launched in late 2008 as the Diversified Absolute Return trust (DART) run by David North, the fund was taken over by Gill in 2011 when the former took sick leave. The fund, which held £590m at its peak, was later renamed and moved from the Absolute Return sector to the IMA Specialist sector. But performance has continued to str...