Vanguard, the US-based funds firm, has made two appointments to its London office, the firm said in a statement.

Joy Yang has been named as head of the equities team, having previously worked at Scudder, BGI, AXA Rosenburg and Scottish Widows. Nick Pierce joins as head of fixed income operations, having previously worked at BGI and Gartmore.

The London office has grown rapidly and the appointments are part of ongoing efforts to meet the growing demand for financial services in the UK and across Europe, said Jeff Molitor, chief investment officer Europe.

Vanguard hired Neil Cowell earlier this month as head of retail sales covering Europe. He previously worked at Standard Life in a senior distribution role. He now leads the team responsible for developing Vanguard’s relationships with fee-based advisors and wealth managers and reports to Nick Blake, head of sales.