Deflandre will be responsible for leading Candriam’s institutional, corporate and retail activities related to clients in Luxembourg and the Nordic countries. He will be assisted in his new function by Gustavo Ljunberg who will provide expertise in these regions. The Luxembourg and Nordic markets represent and important piece in Candriam’s business, the company says, as they provide a strong demand for sustainable investment which is an important part in the asset manager’s activities.

Deflandre occupied the position of client relations director for the Nordic countries at management company FundRock and the same function for the Belgium, France and Luxembourg sector at investment management firm T. Rowe Price. He had also previously been a member of Candriam’s fund selection team.

"We are delighted to welcome Alain back to Candriam at a pivotal moment in our development of ESG and sustainable investments in Luxembourg and the Nordic countries. We look forward to him and Gustavo strengthening our business in these regions, helping new and existing clients access our broad range of industry-leading ESG products,” said Renato Guerriero, chief sales and distribution officer.

Candriam manages around €158bn of assets and has management centres in Luxembourg, Brussels, Paris and London. Its services cover more than 20 countries throughout continental Europe, the UK, the US and the Middle East.

The asset manager is established in Luxembourg as well having developed recognised expertise in sustainable investment and was one of the first signatories of the United Nations Charter for Responsible Investment. to provide training and advice to the Luxembourg bank on ESG investments and provide access to its proprietary data. A partnership that will allow BIL to better measure the environmental or social character of the investments it offers.