Asset allocation key to multi-manager says Cazenove's Brookes

The group's head of multi-manager believes funds which simply offer a list of top managers do not warrant their high fees. Brookes says fund of fund managers need to adopt an economic viewpoint, and be prepared to change their allocation and managers when they no longer meet their needs, regardless of how highly regarded a manager may be. "If you do not provide asset allocation, then you cannot really provide a long-term view, and are essentially just providing a list of names of managers you like for some unspecified reason," he adds. Darius McDermott, managing director of Chelsea F...