After over 43 years in financial services, including 13 years as Manager of Henderson European Focus Trust (HEFT), veteran fund manager John Bennett (pictured) is retiring from the asset management industry and Janus Henderson Investors at the end of August 2024. In the meantime, John will continue to work closely with both co-fund manager, Tom O’Hara, and the board as part of a the trust’s succession plan.
Comments from Vicky Hastings, chair of Henderson European Focus Trust
“John works with and has led a very strong investment team with an excellent investment process. We are confident that this will continue for HEFT. We have worked closely with Tom as Co-Fund Manager for three years, and have John in place for a final year, so we are confident about the succession and continued support for the Company.”
Tom O’Hara
Tom O’Hara has 17 years of financial industry experience and will continue as co-fund manager of the Company, supported by the European Equities team at Janus Henderson. HEFT says that there will be no change to the investment process implemented by John, Tom, and the team, “which has delivered outperformance in most market conditions over many years”.
[Matthew Read’s QD comment: John Bennett is a very well-regarded fund manager who has been a fixture of the market for many many years. I’ve always enjoyed my dealings with John and have found him to consistently have a sharp eye for what’s going on in markets and a perpesctive that’s always worth listening to. We’ve know doubt he’ll be sorely missed, both inside and outside Janus Henderson, and wish him all the very best in his retirement when it gets here next August.]