Investors in funds run by Jupiter Asset Management and Merian Global Investors may see significant changes to their portfolios after a takeover deal was reached between the two. Jupiter is to buy Merian for £370m with the deal to be completed later this year. Analysts said the move was positive for both firms as there is limited crossover between the funds they run. Investors could even benefit from the larger company being able to reduce charges. However, both own funds that have performed poorly in recent years and the duo do compete against one another in popular areas. The move may therefore lead to some changes, after the deal completes, for investors. With a number of high profile managers and funds, Telegraph Money looks at investors should expect. Jupiter UK Special Situations vs Merian UK Alpha The British stock investment desks at both Jupiter and Merian are very popular with investors. The £2.1bn Jupiter UK Special Situations has been run by Ben Whitmore since 2006, and while it has struggled in the recent past, his impressive longer term record means he stands out from the crowd. The same can be said for Richard Buxton and his £1.7bn UK Alpha fund. Both funds buy large British companies the managers think have share prices cheaper than their true worth, and both count pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline as the top holding. It would be surprising to see one of the managers leave, or the funds merged together, given both carry an important brand and have a large following. However, Mr Buxton has spent time as chief executive of Merian, and its predecessor Old Mutual Global Investors, meaning a return to senior management instead of fund management could be on the cards. Asian, European and Global funds The team most likely for a reshuffle is that headed by Merian"s Ian Heslop. The fund manager runs a number of portfolios across different areas with varying degrees of success. The Merian North American Equity and Merian Global Equity funds are among the best available to investors, yet others have been poor. Most likely is the £105m Merian Asian Equity Income fund could be merged into the Jupiter Asian Income fund, which has been run by Jason Pidcock since 2016. Mr Pidcock, who moved to Jupiter from Newton where he ran a multi-billion pound fund, has a much bigger following. While he has failed to replicate his form at Jupiter – and the fund has just £719m of assets – a merger with the Merian portfolio could boost assets and interest from investors. Mr Heslop’s European funds could also be merged away into more successful portfolios. The £39m Merian European Equity ex UK fund would be ideal for being mixed into the £5bn Jupiter European. His £2.7bn Merian Global Equity Absolute Return fund has seen a significant amount of money withdrawn over the past year due to poor performance. However, Jupiter"s equivalent, the £800m Absolute Return fund, has also struggled with manager James Clunie under pressure. It"s unclear whether the firms would keep both funds running or who would take control, but change is likely. Swapping bond funds In the bond space, the £346m Merian Corporate Bond fund should hoover up the assets from Jupiter Corporate Bond as the £148m portfolo has been the worse performer. However, there could be a the opposite switch with the firms "strategic bond" funds. The Merian Global Strategic Bond is smaller (£83m) and has returned less than the £4.3bn Jupiter Strategic Bond fund, run by popular manager Ariel Bezalel. What should you do? Emma Wall, of fund shop Hargreaves Lansdown, said that although the merger may lead to change, often managers sign up to "lock in periods" whereby no changes can be made. This is to ensure the best managers stick around. “There is often little change in either parties offerings for at least a couple of years so at this stage there is no reason for any existing investors to take any action until further details have been announced,” she said. Phil Wagstaff, of Jupiter, said: “There will be an integration period during which we will look at the optimal product offering. "If any changes are required this is something that will take place after the deal closes. Until then, it is business as usual at both firms.”