Gartmore has announced the appointment of Ana Tomic as business development director for hedge funds, with responsibility for strengthening the distribution of the asset manager's alternative investment products throughout Europe. She reports to Martin Phipps, head of alternative distribution.

Tomic previously spent three years at Gandhara Capital, a global equity long/short hedge fund manager, where her remit involved raising capital for the launch of the firm's flagship fund and sales and marketing responsibility. Her previous experience includes a spell at Bondholder Communications Group working on the debt restructuring of companies such as Parmalat, Cirio and Marconi.

'Ana's appointment reflects the emphasis we continue to place on expansion of Gartmore's footprint in key markets, such as Europe,' Phipps says. 'We are certain she will make a strong contribution to the team.'

Gartmore offers investment management products and services to retail and institutional investors in the UK, continental Europe, the US, Japan and Chile, and had more than USD24bn in assets under management at the end of March.

Headquartered in London with offices in Boston, Frankfurt, Madrid and Tokyo, Gartmore is owned by international private equity firm Hellman & Friedman together with the company's senior fund managers and executives.

Hellman & Friedman's financial services investments also include Artisan Partners, Mondrian Investment Partners, Axa Re, LPL Financial Services, Franklin Resources, the Nasdaq Stock Market, Brinson Partners and Arch Capital Group.