Standard & Poor’s Fund Services (S&P) has maintained its ‘on hold’ ratings of the UBS Australian Small Companies Fund while the manager seeks replacements for departing team members, S&P stated.
Two of the three-member Australian-equities small-cap team, Jeremy Bendeich and John Campbell, have confirmed they are leaving the firm, and co-portfolio manager Stephen Wood has assumed full responsibility for the fund in the short term, S&P stated.
Wood being is assisted by other members of the manager’s broader Australian equity team, and UBS has advised that the recruitment process for additional staff is well under way, according to S&P.
“While these two departures are a setback for UBS’s small-cap credentials, we are comfortable that the appropriate interim measures are in place. However, we will be seeking to resolve the fund’s ‘on hold’ status once an additional senior hire has been made and we have completed a full review of the fund,” S&P stated.
