Stockholm (HedgeNordic) – The team behind systematic market-neutral fund QQM Equity Hedge is joining Vesterhavet Fondkommission – soon Meriti Capital – as part of the financial services provider Meriti AB. Ola Björkmo, who departed QQM Fund Management earlier this year, has assumed the role of CEO and Chief Investment Officer at Meriti Capital. Jonas Sandefeldt is also set to leave QQM to join Björkmo on September 4 as Head of Systematic Fund Management.
Björkmo and Sandefeldt have formed a partnership for the past 17, most recently as co-owners and co-portfolio managers at QQM Fund Management. They managed QQM Equity Hedge since July 2010, employing a systematic market-neutral strategy to capture fundamental momentum in listed European companies. Sandefeldt managed QQM Equity Hedge alone for a couple of months following Björkmo’s departure as CEO and portfolio manager after selling his 28 percent equity stake in QQM in March.
Sandefeldt is also resigning from QQM Fund Management to join Björkmo at Meriti AB, thereby leaving behind the management of QQM Equity Hedge, which suffered an outflow of capital in connection with his decision to leave the company. Before co-founding QQM Fund Management, Björkmo and Sandefeldt held various senior positions at Brummer & Partners and Öhman Kapitalförvaltning.
“We are excited to bring Ola and Jonas aboard, not least owing to their industry experience and exceptional abilities.”
The appointments of Björkmo and Sandefeldt represent the latest initiative in Meriti’s efforts to become a leading provider of asset management services. “We view this as yet another important step toward our long-term objective of making superior asset management solutions widely available,” comments Fredrik Mattsson, the CEO of the Meriti Group. The group currently manages around SEK 9 billion and represents a leading player in Sweden in pension foundation management of pension funds linked to owner-managed companies. “We are excited to bring Ola and Jonas aboard, not least owing to their industry experience and exceptional abilities.”
“Jonas and I, together with our new colleagues Gustav Andåker and Hans Turitz, will develop and manage fund products with unique risk and return characteristics.”
“Meriti’s growth trajectory is impressive. Jonas and I look forward to contributing to the group’s onward development,” comments Ola Björkmo. “In addition to discretionary management of fixed-income securities and equities, we will develop and manage fund products with clearly defined risk/reward characteristics. Thus, our clients will have access to a full spectrum of investment services, ranging from low to high risk,” he adds. Meriti AB has outlined its plans to launch an absolute return special fund with a unique investment strategy. “Jonas and I, together with our new colleagues Gustav Andåker and Hans Turitz, will develop and manage fund products with unique risk and return characteristics,” says Björkmo.
“Our ability to attract world-class talent bodes well for the future,” further emphasizes Fredrik Mattsson. “Meriti is an innovative financial services institution whose strengths lie in digital solutions, our comprehensive and ever-expanding range of high-quality services, including asset management, foundation management, pension planning, and insurance,” he continues. “On behalf of everyone at Meriti, I extend a hearty welcome to Ola and Jonas.”
