Benchmark Capital, the owner of several financial and Financial Planning firms, has appointed a new chief investment officer.

The firm has hired Alex Funk, who will lead the growth of the Fusion Wealth discretionary investment business which currently manages £2.1bn of assets across a range of strategies.

The business says it has been experiencing “strong client demand and has ambitious growth plans”.

Mr Funk will report to Ian Cooke, chief executive of Benchmark Capital.

Prior to joining Benchmark he was an investment specialist at Premier Asset Management.

He has held several senior positions in South Africa including director at exponential venture capital, CEO of Cinnabar Investment Management and wealth manager at GCI Wealth.

Ian Cooke, CEO of Benchmark Capital, said: “Alex joins at a time of significant growth for our business.

“He has a wealth of experience in investment, product development and distribution and will bring great focus and leadership to our investment solutions.”

Mr Funk said: “I am delighted to be joining Benchmark Capital at an exciting time for the business, Ian Cooke and his team have built a solid foundation with their Fusion Wealth investment solutions and working together we plan to go from strength to strength.

“We have ambitious growth plans for the business and the discretionary investment solutions available on the Fusion Wealth platform.”

In 2016 Benchmark Capital joined global investment manager Schroders.