RHB Asset Management (RHBAM) and Convoy Asset Management (CAM) have launched the RHB-OSK Asean Navigator Fund, Hong Kong’s only authorized fund focusing on Asean small and mid-cap companies to the city’s investors.

 

Eliza Ong, the Managing Director/ Regional Head of RHB OSK Group Asset Management said the fund will allow RHB Group Asset Management to tap on a huge investor base in North Asia as Convoy has a dominant position in Hong Kong as well as China.

 

Ong said the fund is unique to the group as it leverages on RHB investment bank’s small cap research team based across Asean under an arrangement formed between its asset management and research institute. The research team publishes the small cap jewels book regionally that annually lists stock investment ideas.



The fund is poised to leverage on the region’s second fastest growing economy in Asia, after China, Ong added. It aims to achieve long-term capital appreciation by investing primarily in equities and equity related securities of Asean small and mid-cap companies which possess strong balance sheet, strong operations, free cash flow, long term competitive advantage and scalable business model. These are companies that are seen as having businesses in the Asean countries or have at least 50% revenue derived from them.

 

Kelvin Ng, chief representative of RHB OSK Asset Management explained that the fund’s portfolio will be structured with at least 70% of its net asset value (NAV) invested primarily in equities and equity related securities of small and medium sized Asean companies. Up to 30% of its NAV will be invested in equities and equity related securities in the Asian markets apart from those in the Asean countries, or in fixed income securities, money market instruments and deposits with financial institutions. In line with its investment strategy, the fund will also invest up to 10% of its NAV in collective investment schemes, investing primarily in the Asean countries.

 

The open-ended fund is targeted at Hong Kong investors with an appetite for high growth investment and is looking at riding the Asean 2015 wave. The minimum initial investment is US45,000. The fund will be marketed exclusively by Convoy for a period of one year from the launch date of October 6 2014.