Thomas Holman Named Senior Portfolio Manager For Manulife Asset Management

BOSTON, June 13, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Thomas L. Holman has been named Managing Director and Senior Portfolio Manager on the Manulife Asset Management U.S. Small/Mid Cap Growth team, said Chris Conkey, Chief Investment Officer, Global Equities, Manulife Asset Management.

Mr. Holman, whose appointment is effective immediately, will be based in Boston and join the four member U.S. Small/Mid Cap Growth team, led by Senior Managing Director Dan Cole. The team currently manages a top quartile Small Cap Growth strategy with $460 million in assets and a three year universe ranking of 19th percentile within the eVestment Small Cap Growth universe, as of March 31, 2012.

"We're very pleased to add Tom to our organization. He brings a wealth of experience and a solid investment track record, further strengthening our high-performing U.S. Small/Mid Cap Growth team," Mr. Conkey said.

Mr. Holman has more than 19 years of fundamental investment experience and an established track record of managing U.S. small-mid cap strategies for pension plans, public funds and Taft-Hartley clients. 

Before joining Manulife Asset Management, he had been a portfolio manager with Lee Munder Capital Group since 2004.

Previously, he was a portfolio manager at Evergreen Investment Management from 1997 to 2004. He coordinated asset allocation decisions with the international equity managers while managing the US allocation within the Evergreen Global Opportunities Fund. He began his investment career in 1993 at Invista Capital Management.

Mr. Holman earned a B.S. in General Business and later earned an M.S. in Business Administration Sciences from Iowa State University.

About Manulife Asset Management

Manulife Asset Management™ is the global asset management arm of Manulife Financial. Manulife Asset Management provides comprehensive asset management solutions for institutional investors and investment funds in key markets around the world.  Manulife Asset Management also provides investment management services to affiliates' retail clients through product offerings of Manulife and John Hancock. This investment expertise extends across a full range of asset classes including equity, fixed income and alternative investments such as real estate, timber, farmland, as well as asset allocation strategies.

Manulife Asset Management has offices with full investment capabilities in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia and the Philippines. In addition, it has a joint venture asset management business in China, Manulife TEDA. It also has operations in Australia, New Zealand, Brazil and Uruguay. John Hancock Asset Management, Hancock Natural Resource Group and Declaration Management and Research are units of Manulife Asset Management.

Manulife Asset Management was named a 2011 Bond Manager of the Year finalist in the United States by Money Management Intelligence (MMI) and Best Asian Bond House by Asia Asset Management.

As at March 31, 2012, assets under management were US$220 billion.  Additional information about Manulife Asset Management may be found at ManulifeAM.com.

About Manulife Financial

Manulife Financial is a leading Canada-based financial services group with principal operations in Asia, Canada and the United States. In 2012, we celebrate 125 years of providing clients strong, reliable, trustworthy and forward-thinking solutions for their most significant financial decisions. Our international network of employees, agents and distribution partners offers financial protection and wealth management products and services to millions of clients. We also provide asset management services to institutional customers. Funds under management by Manulife Financial and its subsidiaries were C$512 billion (US$512 billion) as at March 31, 2012. The Company operates as Manulife Financial in Canada and Asia and primarily as John Hancock in the United States.

Manulife Financial Corporation trades as 'MFC' on the TSX, NYSE and PSE, and under '945' on the SEHK. Manulife Financial can be found on the Internet at manulife.com.

SOURCE Manulife Asset Management