Framlington, the UK fund manager, has traditionally set out its stall as a retail operator, leery of the low fees paid by institutions as well as their index-led benchmarks. However, consultants are starting to seek raw investment skill and Peter Chambers, Framlington's chief executive, is responding warmly.

He said: "We have received interest at the small-cap end and UK equity funds managed by Nigel Thomas have started to win institutional business."