Mackenzie Financial Corp. announced Tuesday that it has appointed Ian Ainsworth, senior vice president, Mackenzie Financial Corp. to manage the Janus Global Equity Fund, and Phil Sanders and Dan Becker, senior vice presidents of Waddell & Reed Investment Management Co. and co-managers, to oversee Janus American Equity Fund. The changes also affect the RSP versions of the funds.

Ainsworth, Sanders and Becker will assume complete management of the portfolios on August 1, at which time the funds will be renamed Mackenzie Universal Global Future Fund and Mackenzie Universal U.S. Large Cap Growth Fund, respectively. These changes effectively end Mackenzie’s relationship with Janus Capital Corp.

The two new manager appointments will also enable Mackenzie to decrease the management fees of Series A units of the funds and their RSP versions by 0.25% to 2.25%, effective August 1.

“This change is in keeping with our promise to investors and advisors to provide the best possible investment management teams,” said David Feather, president, Mackenzie Financial Services Inc.

Ainsworth, a two-time Fund Manager of the Year industry award-winner who joined Mackenzie on April 2 to head up the company’s growth equity team, will lead the renamed Mackenzie Universal Global Future Fund (currently the Janus Global Equity Fund). This fund will remain a global growth equity fund.

Over his 23 years of experience, Ainsworth has demonstrated his skill in identifying investment opportunities in a variety of sectors in Canadian, U.S. and global markets.

Ainsworth is lead manager of Mackenzie Universal Future Fund, Mackenzie Universal Future Capital Class and Mackenzie Universal Emerging Technologies Capital Class, and heads one of six management teams of Mackenzie Universal Select Managers Canada Fund and Mackenzie Universal Select Managers Canada Capital Class.

On August 1, Sanders and Becker will assume co-management of the Mackenzie Universal U.S. Large Cap Growth Fund (currently Janus American Equity Fund). Becker and Sanders work closely as co-managers of Waddell & Reed’s large-cap growth team. Together, they are responsible for the large-cap U.S. equity component of the Mackenzie Universal Select Managers Fund, Mackenzie Universal Select Managers Capital Class and Mackenzie Universal Select Managers USA Capital Class.

Sanders is a fifteen year industry veteran who also manages the W&R Target Growth Portfolio in the U.S.

Becker has been with Waddell & Reed since 1989 and has led the W&R Large Cap Growth Fund since its inception in June 2000, and the Waddell & Reed Advisors Vanguard Fund since July 1997.

A strong equity-focused team at Waddell & Reed supports Sanders and Becker. The firm is recognized as a mutual fund leader in the United States and has been ranked among the top-ten mutual fund companies by performance over ten years by Barron’s in its annual rankings. Waddell & Reed has been in operation for 65 years and manages more than US $29.1 billion in assets for 661,700 U.S. clients.

Sanders and Becker will replace Marc Pinto of Janus. Pinto was appointed to the Mackenzie funds April 1, 2003 following Janus’ announcement that senior vice president and portfolio manager, Warren Lammert, was stepping down from his responsibilities to pursue new investment management opportunities and personal charitable pursuits.

Ainsworth will replace Helen Young Hayes, Janus executive vice president and portfolio manager. In an unrelated announcement, Young Hayes recently announced her early retirement.