The GEM equity fund, a Dublin-domiciled Ucits fund, is an actively managed, value-oriented product that combines both quantitative and fundamental processes. It aims to achieve a consistent return of 5% on average over five years, according to a statement from the firm.
The manager is Kenny Tjan, investment director and country head at Value Partners in Singapore. Tjan, who joined the firm last year, was previously the chief investment officer at Metisq Capital, a boutique asset manager.
He is joined by Martha Reyes, Value Partners’ London-based head of emerging market research (ex-Asia), who was also from Metisq Capital, according to the statement.
The firm’s London office opened last year, a firm spokeswoman said. It is lead by Hendrik Von Ripperda-Cosyn, who is the London-based head of EMEA business development.
Like Tjan and Reyes, he was from Mestiq Capital, where he headed the firm’s EMEA institutional business. Both Von Ripperda-Cosyn and Reyes joined the firm in 2016.
The product will be registered for local distribution across Europe and the UK, the statement said, but did not elaborate. The GEM equity fund is also distributed in Asia and was launched together with the GEM Bond Fund in February this year.
The firm has been marketing several of its products overseas to professional and institutional investors in the UK and Europe. They include the Classic Equity Fund, the Global Emerging Markets Bond Fund and the Greater China Equity Fund, according to a spokeswoman from the firm.
In Switzerland, it sells four China funds and a Taiwan fund, according to FE data.
The firm is also launching a new product in Hong Kong next week, according to a separate announcement. The Value Partners Asian Income Fund was approved for sale by Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission in August, according to data from the regulator.
Forming partnerships
King Au, Value Partners’ Hong Kong-based CEO, said during Fund Forum Asia in April that the firm wanted to broaden its product capabilities.
“That’s why we recently launched a global emerging markets fixed income product [in February].” At the time, he said that the firm will be rolling out another GEM product.
“Some of the global emerging market products that are run from outside of Asia have a tendency to be underweight the region,” he said.
“They don’t understand China, they don’t understand India, they don’t understand the region as a whole. And yet, the region accounts for 60% of the benchmark. That’s one reason why we believe we have an opportunity and the catalyst to grow our product range.”
He also said that Value Partners is forming strategic partnerships abroad, citing the firm’s relationship with a boutique manager in India, which he did not name.
Just last month, Value Partners formed a strategic partnership with media company Forbes, which is branching into financial services.
As part of the intended partnership, Value Partners will act as the investment manager of Forbes-branded products, while Forbes will provide distribution support for the products in markets where it operates and has relevant licences.
Value Partners, which is listed on the main board of Hong Kong Stock Exchange, manages $16.5bn in assets. Besides Hong Kong, Singapore and London, it also has offices in Shanghai and Beijing.
