Insight Investment, the fund management arm of UK bank HBOS, has appointed Charles Farquharson, formerly at Merrill Lynch Investment Managers, as head of distribution. It follows the decision of Gary Mairs, deputy chief executive, to quit the firm.

Farquharson, a lawyer by training, was seen as a safe pair of hands at MLIM, where he finished up as head of European, Middle Eastern and Asian institutional businesses. He recently agreed to accept a redundancy package from the firm.