F&C Asset Management has today announced the appointment of Adrian Hickey as Director, Japanese Equities. Hickey, who has fourteen years experience covering Japanese equities, joins from Shell Pensions Management Services.

Hickey is a graduate of the universities of Birmingham and Lancaster. He is a fluent Japanese speaker having spent two years teaching English in Northern Japan immediately after graduating from his first degree. He began his investment career in 1991 with Scottish Equitable, initially as a buy-side analyst before moving into a portfolio management role. In 1996 he moved to the Tokyo office of Commerz International Capital Management where he spent four years as an equity analyst. In 2000 he returned to the UK where he joined Edinburgh Fund Managers. He was promoted to Head of Japanese Equities at EFM in late 2002, a position he held until EFM was taken over by Aberdeen Asset Management in 2003. He has worked for Shell Pensions Management Services since December 2003.

At F&C Hickey will work as part of a London-based team of four fund managers focused on Japanese equities. He will report to Mike Hanbury-Williams, Head of Pacific Basin Equities.

Commenting on the appointment Mike Hanbury-Williams said:

”We are delighted to be adding to our Japanese equities team, demonstrating our commitment to invest in our business. Adrian is a highly experienced investor with first-hand experience living in Japan and a passion for the Japanese culture. This hire brings further strength and depth to our overall Pacific Basin proposition.”

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Mike Hanbury-Williams
Head of Pacific Basin Equities
F&C Asset Management plc 
+44 (0) 20 7506 3550

Jason Hollands
Director, Head of Communications,
F&C Asset Management plc 
+44 (0) 20 7506 1168 / +44 (0) 7768 661382

Deborah James 
Senior Communications Manager,
F&C Asset Management plc 
+44 (0) 7770 5222

Hayley Frain 
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F&C Asset Management 
+44 (0) 20 7506 1402

Sonia Jamoulle 
Communications Manager,
F&C Asset Management plc 
+44 (0) 20 7506 1103

Notes to Editors

• F&C Asset Management plc (F&C) was created on 11 October 2004 from the merger of F&C (Group Holdings) Limited and ISIS Asset Management plc.
• Shares in F&C are listed on the London Stock Exchange under the code FCAM. Friends Provident is the majority shareholder with a 51% stake in the F&C.
• F&C is a pan-European business managing ฃ125.3 billion (as at 31 March 2005) for a diverse range of institutional, insurance and retail clients. F&C has offices in seven countries: France, Germany, Ireland, Netherlands, Portugal, UK and United States.
• F&C is a top five UK fund manager by assets under management and ranks amongst the top ten managers of institutional pension funds across Europe. F&C is a leading provider of fund services to the Portuguese and German retail markets.
• F&C has a major presence in the UK retail market with strength in corporate bonds, UK and European equities, multi-manager and ethical funds.
• F&C is a major force in the UK investment trust industry. The flagship Foreign & Colonial Investment Trust was the first such trust, launched in 1868, and remains the largest of its kind.
• F&C is the leading European socially responsible investor through its reoฎ (responsible engagement overlay) service and the Stewardship suite of ethically screened funds, the oldest retail ethical funds in the UK.
• F&C is a leading manager of Venture Capital Trusts under the Baronsmead brand.
• F&C is