The new product, issued by Thailand’s One Asset Management, is the first exchange-traded fund (ETF) listed under the Asean fund passporting scheme. It is also the first product from Thailand that has been made available for retail sale through the scheme.
The Asean CIS is a cross-border fund passporting framework that connects the fund markets of Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand. The initiative allows fund managers operating in the three countries to distribute fund products to retail investors across borders. Each fund needs to be approved by its home country and by the host country where it is to be sold.
The framework was launched in August 2014, almost a year before the Hong Kong and China’s mutual recognition of funds (MRF). So far, only six funds have been approved for retail sale from both home and host countries under the scheme, according to records from the MAS, Securities Commission Malaysia and Thailand’s Securities and Exchange Commission.
|
Asset management company |
Fund |
Home country |
Host country |
|
CIMB-Principal Asset Management |
CIMB-Principal ASEAN Total Return Fund |
Malaysia |
Singapore |
|
CIMB-Principal Asset Management |
CIMB-Principal Malaysia Equity Fund |
Malaysia |
Singapore |
|
CIMB-Principal Asset Management |
CIMB-Principal Asia Pacific Dynamic Income Fund |
Malaysia |
Singapore |
|
CIMB-Principal Asset Management |
CIMB Islamic Dali Equity Theme Fund |
Malaysia |
Singapore |
|
CIMB-Principal Asset Management |
CIMB-Principal Asia Pacific Dynamic Growth Fund |
Malaysia |
N/A |
|
CIMB-Principal Asset Management |
CIMB-Principal Asia Pacific Dynamic Mixed Asset Fund |
Malaysia |
N/A |
|
Maybank Asset Management |
Maybank Bosera Greater China ASEAN Equity-I Fund |
Malaysia |
N/A |
|
Nikko Asset Management Asia |
Singapore Dividend Equity Fund |
Singapore |
Malaysia |
|
Nikko Asset Management Asia |
Nikko AM China Equity Fund |
Singapore |
N/A |
|
One Asset Management |
One Stoxx ASEAN Select Dividend Index Fund |
Thailand |
Singapore |
|
Phillip Capital Management |
Phillip Income Fund |
Singapore |
N/A |
|
Phillip Capital Management |
Phillip Singapore Real Estate Income Fund |
Singapore |
N/A |
Source: MAS, SC Malaysia and Thailand’s SEC
One AM is Thailand’s largest ETF issuer, SGX said. The CIS-approved One Stoxx ETF is one of its four ETFs, according to the firm’s website. There are 15 ETFs listed on Thailand’s stock exchange.
The One Stoxx ETF tracks the Stoxx Asean Select Dividend 30 Index. It employs a smart-beta strategy to uncover the top 30 companies from six Asean countries based on dividend yield, excluding those with low tradability and poor dividend sustainability, according to the statement. There is a balanced number of constituents from each country — Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam — to avoid any one country dominating the index, it added.
“This is a timely listing that provides investors with a convenient and low-cost access to the growing popularity of smart-beta investment strategies,” Sutat Chew, head of equities and fixed income at SGX, said in the statement.
In Singapore, there are around 80 ETFs listed on its bourse, offering exposure to various asset classes such as equities, fixed income, commodities and money market, across different geographical markets, according to the statement.
