“The [product] seeks to invest in companies that believe in creating constructive change and transformation, which can in turn lead to positive returns for investors even amid a slowing global economy and volatile market conditions,” said Dharmo Soejanto, senior director, external fund managers unit, UOB AM in a media statement.
The fund will invest in companies from both developed and emerging markets in a range of industries, including the healthcare, finance, software and services, transport, manufacturing and retail sectors.
UOB AM believes it can identify opportunities from trends such as “advances in mobile, machine learning and automation technology”.
“Innovation is a key business driver for many companies looking to outperform the competition and stock market as it can drive growth independent of the global economic and market cycles,” said Soejanto.
The fund has been available in Thailand since November last year. As of 31 May 2019, the fund, managed by UOB AM Thailand had THB133m ($4.256m) in assets under management and has an 8.89% return year-to-date, which is 2.11% higher than its benchmark MSCI All Country World Index, according to the statement.
The Singapore fund will be managed by UOB AM and sub-managed by Wellington Management Singapore.
UOB AM manages 53 unit trusts in Singapore and has total assets under management of S$32.1bn(US$23.5bn).
An increasing number of managers have been launching themed funds in Asia. The latest products are from Natixis IM and Amundi. But private banks such as Citi and DBS have said they prefer broad themes as opposed to those products focused on specific areas or sectors.
