UK-based Arbuthnot Securities has appointed Jamie Lowe to lead a team charged with rolling out a research service allowing asset allocators to compare investment trusts and exchange-traded funds, according to Citywire.

The publication says Arbuthnot has also assigned Peter Brown, formerly of ICap and Fleming Family & Partners, and Majid Haq, an internal appointee, as market makers ahead of the launch, as well as James McIntyre, Katie Romero, Hugh Field and Finlay Bodman.

The service is reportedly aimed at institutional investors looking to compare New York and London-listed closed-ended funds and London-listed ETFs, said Citywire.

“A lot of people out there looking at ETFs might not necessarily have looked at trusts. We want to set something up so clients can compare ETFs and closed-ended funds, like-for-like,” Lowe told the news service. “Asset allocators [are] asking where the best place is to go. We are trying to encompass ETFs in a positive way.”

A spokesperson for Arbuthnot Latham's private banking division was unable to confirm the details of the report when contacted by WealthBriefing.