Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management (SMDAM) has hired Alex Barry as the head of distribution, UK and Ireland.
“I am delighted to join SMDAM and bring my extensive experience to this fast-growing global asset manager,” said Alex Barry. “The ability to access SMDAM’s expertise in Japan and Asia will be of huge benefit to Asset Owners and Wealth Managers in the UK & Ireland.”
“We are pleased to welcome Alex to the team, and we are grateful that he joined SMDAM”, said Richard Haxe, managing director, sales and marketing. “He is highly respected and well connected in the industry and we feel his hiring is another significant step for us in growing SMDAM’s profile and footprint in the European marketplace.”
Barry joined the firm in March 2024. In his last role he was head of UK wholesale at Franklin Templeton who he joined in 2020 when they acquired his previous employer Legg Mason.
Prior to joining Legg Masson he spent 19 years at JPMorgan Asset Management where he was a managing director and held a number of senior positions in both London and New York.
He began his career in the industry at Fidelity International and holds a Batchelor of Social Sciences Degree from the University of Birmingham.
SMDAM is one of the largest investment management companies in Japan, offering discretionary investment management, investment trusts and advisory services to a range of institutional investors, pension funds, government agencies and retail investors worldwide.
