It's been an exciting week in lots of ways. Firstly, there was the announcement that Neil Woodford is leaving Invesco Perpetual next year, and that his funds are to be managed by Mark Barnett. The industry reacted with immense shock and I suppose that after 25 years, Woodford was very much an integral part of the furniture. But to a certain extent it was also unsurprising — in a world where fund managers jump ship on an all too regular basis, it was just as surprising that he hadn't gone to another fund manager, or started up his own fund group years before. The difficulty that Invesco now faces is a potentially significant shift of assets from its two flagship funds to other fund managers; some fund managers are already rubbing their hands in glee at the idea of the fresh flows coming their way, but hopefully some will give Barnett the benefit of the doubt. Whatever happens, he is going to find Woodford a very hard act to follow.
