Carmignac bolsters emerging market debt capabilities

Carmignac has reinforced its emerging market debt (EMD) team with the appointment of a Citywire AAA-rated¹ fund manager, Lamine Bougueroua and dedicated analyst, Thomas Belaich.

Lamine joined Carmignac in February from UBP Asset Management where he was a senior portfolio manager in the emerging markets fixed income team. At UBP he managed a Morningstar 5-star rated frontier markets bond fund and a 4-star rated local currency EMD fund, both with top-quartile performance over three years². Prior to UBP Asset Management, he worked at Nordea Investment Management and First State Investments. He started his investment career, specialising in emerging markets, over 20 years ago and has a Master’s in physics from the University of Bristol and certificate in risk management from the Cass Business School.

EMD is a key conviction for Carmignac, with exposure to the asset class of over €3.7 billion³. Once based in Paris, Lamine will become co-portfolio manager of the Morningstar 4-star rated⁴ Carmignac Portfolio EM Debt fund, working alongside Alessandra Alecci. Alessandra joined Carmignac in 2023 from American Century Investments, where she was an EMD portfolio manager and head of sovereign research until August 2022. The EMD fund is ranked first quartile over one, three and five years and since launch⁵. Alessandra and Lamine have highly complementary expertise and experience across the EMD universe, both adopting a deeply analytical approach and rigorous process focusing on fundamentals and valuations.

Lamine will also become manager of the fixed income sleeve of the Carmignac Portfolio Emerging Patrimoine strategy, working alongside head of emerging market equities, Xavier Hovasse who will continue to run its equity component.

Thomas Belaich joined Carmignac as a dedicated emerging market debt analyst in early December 2025. He joined from Global Sovereign Advisory, where he was a senior emerging market debt analyst supporting emerging countries with sovereign debt restructuring and public policies. He has six years’ experience including at Lazard’s Sovereign Advisory Group and as a member of the staff at the French Ministries of Finance and Labour. He holds a Master’s degrees from the Ecole Normale Supérieure (Paris-Saclay), the Paris School of Economics, HEC Paris and Sciences Po Paris.

Guillaume Rigeade and Pierre Verlé, co-heads of fixed income, comment:

“Emerging market debt is a key pillar of our fixed income offering and remains one of the most dynamic segments of today’s market. With an abundance of attractive opportunities, but also risks to navigate, our flexible, active approach has been essential to the strong results we’ve delivered over time. We’re pleased to welcome Lamine and Thomas to the team to further strengthen our coverage of this asset class and support our continued success.”

Lamine Bougueroua adds:

“Carmignac was among the pioneers in emerging market investing, with a strong reputation for its long-term, conviction-driven approach. This philosophy aligns perfectly with my own. Now, with emerging markets benefiting from economic tailwinds, investors’ desire for diversification away from developed markets and improving fundamentals, it is an exciting time for the asset class. I look forward to helping Carmignac’s award-winning fixed income team identify the most compelling opportunities.”