Based in Frankfurt and reporting to Phil Barker, head of European business development, Mr Grier will be responsible for developing business relationships with leading wholesale and institutional organisations in Germany and Austria.

“Michael has around 18 years' experience of working within this region and his in-depth local knowledge will help Standard Life Investments provide existing and prospective clients with the appropriate level of before and after sales support,” said Mr Barker.

Mr Grier joins Standard Life Investments from ABN AMRO Asset Management, where he had been a managing director based in Germany; he had also been head of third party distribution at the firm. 

Standard Life Investments manages €127 billion ($178 billion) in assets. Its parent, the Standard Life Group, has around seven million customers in over 50 countries.