Man Group signalled on Thursday that it intends to scoop up smaller rivals as Stanley Fink, its long-time leader, announced his retirement from the FTSE 100 hedge fund company.

The news of Mr Fink’s departure came as Man revealed a 60 per cent jump in full-year profits and a strong performance of its hedge funds in defiance of tumultuous market conditions and the woes of some competitors. The group’s shares jumped nearly 5 per cent to 617½p in reaction to the better-than-expected results.