Prudential to merge trust range into M&G funds

M&G's Jim Leaviss will see his Corporate Bond fund swell to nearly £5bn as part of a series of mergers being carried out by parent Prudential.

The mergers are set to take place tomorrow, with the most notable change seeing Prudential's £783m Corporate Bond trust merging into Jim Leaviss' £4.1bn M&G Corporate Bond fund.

Prudential's £60m North American Trust will also merge into Aled Smith's £2.3bn M&G American fund.

Meanwhile, the £278m Managed trust will merge into the £717m M&G Managed fund, headed up by Juan Nevado, with the £90m European Trust becoming part of Charlie Anniss' £175m M&G Pan European fund.

A spokesperson for M&G said the time is now right to merge the funds, in order to simplify the group's range.

"It makes sense to merge the funds and do a bit of housekeeping as M&G has managed the Prudential range for the last ten years.

"We have streamlined it to ensure the offering is relevant for our clients."