Jupiter CEO quits as fund managers face rising pressure The departure of Edward Bonham Carter as chief executive of Jupiter Fund Management, one of the biggest listed investment groups in Europe, comes at a critical time for the industry. Regulation and reforms on fees are putting greater pressure on active fund management groups to outperform rival passive funds, which are much cheaper and track the wider markets. Mr Bonham Carter's decision to step down as chief executive comes a few weeks after Graeme Dell announced he is to quit as group finance officer at Ashmore, Jupiter's FTSE 250 rival. Significantly, Mr Bonham Carter's successor will be Maarten Slendebroek, Jupiter's distribution and strategy director, who is highly experienced in retail asset management. He joined the group in September 2012 from BlackRock, where he was head of the international retail business and before that head of BlackRock Solutions. Mr Slendebroek's key task will be to develop a strategy to retain business in the retail sector. This is Jupiter's strength, but it faces regulation on transparency over fees, which is likely to cut profit margins for investment groups. The Retail Distribution Review, which came into force this year in the UK, forces fund managers to outline their fees in a transparent way. This prompted some customers to switch to cheaper passive funds. Reforms on transparency are being enacted in the Netherlands, while countries such as France and Germany and some Asian markets are considering similar reforms. The asset management industry faces more challenges because of the difficult task of producing strong returns in a world of low bond yields and sluggish economic growth in the industrialised regions. Some analysts think this will lead to consolidation in the industry. Aberdeen Asset Management's swoop on Scottish Widows Investment Partnership last month was a sign of this consolidation. Aberdeen, the biggest independent investment group in Europe with £336bn under management, bought SWIP from Lloyds Banking Group with an eye to boost its business in the UK. SWIP was struggling with big outflows, while Aberdeen was keen to diversify as it was too concentrated in global equities, emerging market equities and Asia equities. Schroders, Europe's second-biggest independent asset management group, also bought Cazenove Capital in July, as it sought to boost its wealth management operation in the UK. This was of particular significance as Schroders rarely gets involved in mergers and acquisitions. Tom Brown, global head of investment management at KPMG, says there are arguably too many asset managers, which makes consolidation sensible. In the UK, there are 2,124 investment management groups. This compares with 319 banks and 193 life assurers, he says, implying that a leaner industry might boost efficiency and productivity. Mr Dell's departure highlights a potential strategic shift at Ashmore, too. He hands over responsibilities to Tom Shippey, the group's head of corporate development. Like Mr Slendebroek, Mr Shippey will take up the reins next year. Ashmore is a specialist emerging market focused fund management group. But like other investment companies, it is trying to diversify. In its case, it is diversifying into areas such as equities to win new business. As Martin Gilbert, the chief executive of Aberdeen, says: "It is a tough climate out there. Only the best groups will survive. Consolidation in the industry is perhaps inevitable.