AMP Capital, the asset management unit of AMP Ltd., will seek investor money for a new global resources fund that will be managed by John Payne.

Payne, 52, worked at Hexam Capital and Baring Asset Management. He joined the Sydney-based firm on February 15.

AMP Capital has about $123 billion in assets under management

“John’s appointment will allow us to launch a global resources fund to meet increasing demand from our clients in Asia and the Middle East,” AMP Capital’s head of fundamental equities Ella Brown says in a statement.

AMP Capital has also hired Andy Gardner, 29, and Ed Rayner, 40, as portfolio managers.

Rayner, who was seconded from AllianceBernstein in October, will become a senior portfolio manager effective April 1. Rayner’s role also includes the responsibilities of an analyst.

Gardner joined the firm on January 16 from the bankrupt MF Global. He will also analyse Australian mining stocks.

Both men join AMP Capital’s Australian fundamental equities team which now has 13 members.

The team includes portfolio managers and analysts Gian Pandit, Jonas Palmqvist, Michael Price,
Andrew Lally, Adrian Lemme, Carlos Castillo, Phillip Hudak and Thomas Young, as well as economic, social and corporate governance analysts Ian Woods, Mans Carlsson-Sweeny and Karin Halliday.