River and Mercantile Group PLC Infrastructure Investment business established

TIDMRIV

River and Mercantile Group PLC

26 January 2021

26 January 2021

LEI: 2138005C7REHURGWHW31

River and Mercantile to establish Infrastructure Investment business

River and Mercantile has today announced that Ian Berry, former Head of Infrastructure Equity at Aviva Investors, has joined the Group to establish an infrastructure investment business which over time will launch a range of infrastructure strategies. A number of Ian's former colleagues will also be joining him in the near future to assist in the growth of the business.

The first infrastructure investment initiative at River and Mercantile will be the launch of an Infrastructure Equity Income Fund which will focus on delivering long term, stable cash flows to institutional clients through investing in long-life infrastructure. The sustainability of returns to investors and the asset-level Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) factors have always played a key role in Ian's investment philosophy and processes and will sit at the very heart of this investment strategy. This focus on the sustainability of income for clients is entirely aligned with the significant demands for new infrastructure to support the energy and digital transition required by the economy. The investment strategy allows institutional investors the ability to combine attractive financial returns while positively contributing to the world we live in - now and

in the future.   Further details will follow in due course. 

Ian previously worked at Aviva Investors where, since joining in 2009, he successfully established their infrastructure business, initially launching infrastructure debt strategies, then an infrastructure equity income strategy and building Aviva Investors' highly rated infrastructure equity platform. Ian has developed an enviable track record through delivering stable yields for his investors at highly attractive levels.

Ian Berry, Head of River and Mercantile Infrastructure, commented:

"I am delighted to be joining a Group with the vision and ambition to deliver investment solutions to meet clients' needs through innovative approaches to infrastructure investing. We are very excited by the opportunity to continue to provide our investment expertise to clients in both near-term investment opportunities and over the long-term."

James Barham, Group Chief Executive, commented:

"Ian and his team have an excellent track record in this competitive market. They are highly regarded both by clients and investment partners alike and I am delighted that they are joining the Group to build this new capability that is playing an increasingly important part in portfolios. Ian is actively progressing a pipeline of well-advanced sustainable investment opportunities for our new fund and we look forward to helping our clients meet both their growth and long-term cash flow needs whilst delivering on their ESG requirements with our new strategy."

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About River and Mercantile

River and Mercantile Group PLC has AUM of GBP45.4bn, as at 30(th) September 2020. The Group's capabilities encompasses Equities, Fiduciary Management, Derivatives, Advisory Solutions and Macro investments. Infrastructure will be the next division in the Group designed to meet the investment needs of the existing and future clients. The Group works across the institutional, wholesale and intermediary markets spanning the UK, Europe the US as well as Australia and New Zealand.

Recent News

The establishment of this new business follows on from the hire of the highly regarded European Fund Manager James Sym from Schroders last year and the launch of his Unconstrained European ex UK Equity fund. There have also been a number of experienced hires in the sales team as David Hanratty continues with the significant investment in distribution set out by James Barham. These include Simon Smith, Martin Canavan and most recently Nick Pearse from Jupiter earlier this month in the UK Wholesale team and Colin English and Ronan O'Riordan in the UK Institutional team.

For further information, please contact:

   River and Mercantile Group PLC:     James Barham 

Group Chief Executive

020 7601 6260

07785 718 121

   MRM:                                                  Chris Duncan 

Director

020 3326 9907

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January 26, 2021 07:27 ET (12:27 GMT)