Investments  

More ‘Daves’ than women running funds

More ‘Daves’ than women running funds

More funds have a manager called David or Dave at the helm than a women, research has shown.

According to figures from Morningstar, 108 UK-listed open-ended funds are run by managers named Dave or David — the equivalent of 7.2 per cent of the 1,496 funds in the market.

Meanwhile just 105 funds are run by female fund managers, also accounting for 7 per cent of all open-ended funds.

Article continues after advert

Other common names included Paul, with 87 funds having a man called Paul in charge, James (65 funds) and Nick (62 funds).

The most common female name among fund managers was Kate, at 12 funds, while Johanna and Katie both had 10.

MaleFemale
NameFund ManagersManaged FundsNameFund ManagersManaged Funds
David64108Kate612
James4865Johanna510
Paul4387Helen34
Richard4353Claudia34
Andrew4049Joanna33
Mark3858Lauren22
Nick3558Katie110
Matt2953Sophie11
Will2937Lucy12
Dan2833   
Alex2549   
Tom2028   
Neil1927   
Terry23   

Jason Hollands, managing director at Tilney Bestinvest, said the proportion of female managers was “embarrassingly low”, particularly compared with other professions such as law and accountancy. 

Ann Cairns, executive vice chairman of Mastercard and global co-chair of the 30% Club, a campaign group of chairpersons and CEOs taking action to increase gender diversity on boards and senior management teams, said: “This data is disappointing, but nothing new.

"Perhaps the biggest blocker to gender balance within the asset management industry is the perception that it is a male-dominated culture. The 30% Club’s Think Future Study found that financial services rated a lowly 12th on the list of career choices for female students, versus 4th on the list for male students."

Ms Cairns said it was "vital" more women were encouraged into asset management, noting internships and early exposure was key to encourage more women to enter the industry.

Emma Morgan, portfolio manager at Morningstar Investment Management Europe, agreed, adding it was a "great shame" the industry was missing out on a swathe of talented individuals.

Just yesterday (November 19) the Financial Conduct Authority published a damning report on how little progress had been made towards achieving gender diversity in the financial services industry.

The regulator warned diversity had remained "consistently low" at industry level, with a female quota of approximately 17 per cent of FCA approved individuals.

Diversity is an issue featuring increasingly in the spotlight in the world of finance and several non-profit organisations are working on the problem. 

Campaign group 100 Women has recently launched a female fund manager visibility campaign and Gain, set up by fund manager Charlotte Yonge, aims at inspiring young women of sixth form age (typically aged 17 and 18) about a career in asset management.

imogen.tew@ft.com

What do you think about the issues raised by this story? Email us on fa.letters@ft.com to let us know.