BNP Paribas Asset Management has announced that Chris St John, manager of the AXA Framlington UK Mid Cap fund, will be leaving the firm at the end of September 2026.

Dan Harlow, who has been involved in the management of the fund for more than ten years, will become the fund’s lead manager.  He is also the lead manager of the AXA Framlington UK Smaller Companies fund.

There is no change to the investment approach, whereby the team blends top-down and bottom-up research and seeks growing companies that are positioned to benefit from long-run structural themes and economic tailwinds.

Given the established nature of the approach and Mr Harlow’s familiarity with the fund and the mid and small-cap opportunity set, it remains on our Recommended list.  According to our usual process, we will continue to monitor the fund closely during this period of change.

Upcoming name change

Following BNP Paribas’ acquisition of AXA Investment Managers last year, all UK-domiciled funds will be changing their names on 30 November 2026.  We will send out a separate notification nearer the time to highlight the name changes affecting the funds featured in our service.  The name of this fund will change to BNP Paribas AM(UK) UK Mid Cap.