Old Mutual, the rapidly expanding South African financial services group, sees money to be made in investment trusts, even as Merrill Lynch, one of the giants in the business, largely abandons the sector.

Ed Warner, the head of Old Mutual's institutional equities business, has recruited analyst Tom Tuite-Dalton, who recently parted company with Credit Lyonnais Securities (CLS) following a well-publicised row over bonuses within the investment trust division.