Ms Lau was previously with Platinum Asset Management as an analyst for its international fund, having previously worked at Perpetual in global equities.

She joins Canopy at a time when it is experiencing strong growth following its launch in June last year. Canopy is a boutique global small and mid-cap equities manager established by Kris Webster and Michael Poulsen in partnership with Bennelong Funds Management.

Mr Poulsen says Ms Lau has outstanding and broad experience in global equities and her appointment will help support the team as the firm continues to grow.

“We have seen a high level of interest in our global equities offering, which adds an attractive degree of diversification to more traditional large cap global equities portfolios.

“Emmily’s background in global equities, with experience across sectors and regions, will accelerate our discovery of even more high-quality global small and mid-cap companies.”

Mr Webster added that the recent market volatility has generated some great entry points for investing in small and mid-cap companies.

“Our disciplined, long-term approach to investing allows us to take advantage of volatile share prices driven by an uncertain macro environment.”

Ms Lau holds a Bachelor of Finance and a Bachelor of Laws (Honours) from The Australian National University.

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McManus’ career spans more than 13 years in financial services, including 10 years in global listed equities at Magellan, where he was a senior analyst and member of the Investment Committee in the Global, Small & Mid Cap, and Emerging Growth teams. Prior to Magellan, McManus spent three years as an equity research analyst at Morgans Financial.

McManus’ appointment reunites him with Canopy co-founders and portfolio managers Kris Webster and Michael Poulsen, with whom he previously developed a small & mid-cap strategy at Magellan.

Kris Webster said the appointment would bolster and support the team following the recent launch of the Canopy Global Small & Mid Cap Fund in June 2024.

“Since launching we have seen a huge amount of interest. Australian investors are clearly looking for alternatives to diversify their equity portfolios away from an increasingly concentrated global large-cap index.

“Jack is a highly experienced and passionate investor who shares our investing ethos. We are thrilled to extend our already ten years working and investing together.”

Michael Poulsen added that McManus was an obvious choice when they began this business.

“Jack has demonstrated strong performance in the past. His character, breadth of experience across sectors, and ability to identify new investment opportunities made it an easy decision to have him join our team.”

McManus holds a Bachelor of Science, a Bachelor of Arts and a Master of Commerce, Applied Finance from the University of Queensland.

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John Burke

Bennelong Funds Management has partnered with boutique investment managers Canopy Investors to launch a global small and mid-cap equities fund.

Canopy Investors was formed in 2023 by Kris Webster and Michael Poulsen, who are co-portfolio managers of the Canopy Global Small & Mid Cap Fund^[1]. They have more than 30 years of collective experience investing in listed global equities and have worked together for more than a decade, previously leading the small and mid-cap team at Magellan Asset Management.

The Canopy Global Small & Mid Cap Fund invests in a concentrated portfolio of high quality and attractively priced small and mid-cap listed companies, with balanced exposures across a range of sectors and regions.                                                  

Bennelong CEO John Burke says the partnership brings a new, attractive asset class to Bennelong and its investors.

“There is no doubt that Kris Webster and Michael Poulsen are high-calibre investment managers. Their experience and track record in managing global equities created an outstanding opportunity to bring a great team and fund to our clients, and Australian investors more broadly.

“We believe there are great opportunities in the small to mid-cap market in the current environment. The fund offers diversification away from an increasingly concentrated global large-cap index. This is an opportune time to launch a partnership with a specialist and experienced team of investment managers.

“As a business, our approach is to partner with high quality boutique asset managers and bring high-grade investment product to the Australian market.

“By providing distribution, administration and business support, we allow our partners to focus on what they do best – manage money.”

Mr Webster says that while Australian investors have dozens of options to access large-cap global listed equities, there are far fewer opportunities to invest in a portfolio of high-quality smaller global companies.

“By allocating to small and mid-cap companies, investors benefit from a broader range of opportunities and greater diversification. The global index is increasingly concentrated in the largest companies – the largest 200 companies represent about two-thirds of the most commonly referenced global index – and most global equities strategies are naturally focused on these stocks. We think such a focus ignores incredible opportunities among the more than 5,000 smaller global listed companies, many of which are very high-quality businesses and have strong and aligned management.

“Smaller companies also offer the potential for strong returns, as seen historically. These companies typically have longer growth runways than larger companies, and mispricing is more likely to occur and persist, given that they often attract less investor focus than their larger counterparts.” 

Mr Poulsen says the name ‘Canopy’ connotates forest canopies, symbolising growth and protection, which aligns with the firm’s investment goals for its clients.

“Canopies are also rich in diversity, similar to the global small and mid-cap universe in which we invest. 

“The fund will only invest in high-quality companies with demonstrable competitive advantages, aligned management, strong financial results, and favourable ESG characteristics. Quality companies have been shown to outperform over time, and this is especially true among smaller companies.

“We are long-term investors, and conduct in-depth fundamental research to uncover high-conviction investment ideas. Our team is highly collaborative, having worked directly together for many years. We have implemented the latest software and systems, coupled with our proprietary data and processes, to build a balanced best ideas portfolio.

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