Schroders has appointed BlackRock’s Nicolaas Marais as head of multi-asset solutions, with effect from March 2011.

Marais, who is currently global head of active portfolio management within BlackRock’s multi-asset client solutions group, will also become a member of Schroders’ group management committee when he assumes his new role. He will report to Michael Dobson, the firm’s chief executive.

Schroders multi-asset business has been led since 2008 by John McLaughlin, and going forward he will be working closely with Marais to drive forward the liability-driven investment and structure solutions sides of the business, the firm said in a statement.

Multi-asset solutions and LDI are priority growth areas for Schroders, said Alan Brown, chief investment officer; the multi-asset solutions business now has close to £30 billion in assets under management and the firm sees further growth opportunities not only in its existing product offering, but also in outcome-orientated and absolute return strategies.