Daniel Godfrey to head IMA

The Investment Management Association has appointed Daniel Godfrey, former director general of the Association of Investment Companies, as its new chief executive, Financial News has learned.
Godfrey will take over from the UK trade body’s chief executive Richard Saunders at the start of December, although Saunders has agreed to advise the IMA for a further month.

Godfrey was communications director at insurance group Phoenix between November 2009 and February 2012. He chaired HM Treasury’s Personal Finance Educational Group between 2006 and 2010.

But Godfrey is best known for his stewardship of the Association of Investment Companies, the trade body which represents UK closed-end funds, between 1998 and 2009.

During his tenure at the AIC, Godfrey had to deal with the controversy over "split-cap" investment trusts.

                   

These investment trusts issued classes of shares that were entitled, separately, to capital gains and dividends.

However, the investment trusts started to invest in each other, using debt to enhance their returns, and suffering losses when markets fell. Godfrey presided over action taken by the regulators against the trusts.

One fund manager said: “Daniel did a great job piloting the AIC through the scandal.”

The manager said that Godfrey’s ability to communicate ideas in a straightforward fashion was probably a factor in his recruitment.

Douglas Ferrans, IMA chairman, said: “Our objective was to find an individual capable of leading the IMA in the most challenging environment we have ever seen.” According to IMA members, Godfrey is likely to campaign on the importance of transparency and customer focus, while dealing with a challenging regulatory agenda.