SLI adds to emerging market debt team, launches new SICAV fund

Gary Robinson
06 October 2016

Tweet
Facebook
LinkedIn
Send to

Standard Life Investments has added to its team of five emerging market debt specialists team and launched a fourth SICAV strategy for both retail and institutional investors.

The global investment management arm of Edinburgh-based life and investments giant Standard Life, said in a statement today that it has made the appointment at the same time as launching a new Emerging Market Debt (EMD) Unconstrained SICAV strategy.

The launch is the fourth strategy in the suite of EMD products that the company offers to both retail and institutional investors.

Imran Ahmad joins the EMD team as investment director from JP Morgan Asset Management where, since January 2013, he held the role of currency portfolio manager. Reporting to Richard House, head of Emerging Markets Fixed Income at SLI, Ahmad will be based in London and will have primary responsibility for emerging market currency overlay strategies across the entire EMD suite of funds.

‘High conviction’

House said that he believes that Ahmad’s skill set will compliment the company’s “high conviction macro based investing” with the emerging market debt marketplace.

“The team which has over 77 years’ experience in the industry, works ‘hand-in-hand’ with the 40 strong fixed income and global emerging market equities teams, allowing us to seek out the best investment ideas and opportunities,” said House.

The new Emerging Market Debt (EMD) Unconstrained SICAV will be offered to both retail and institutional investors. SLI said that the SICAV was launched in response to demand from European investors for access to the increasingly popular asset class and will be co-managed by Richard House and Kieran Curtis.

70 countries

The SICAV has more than 70 countries in which it can invest covering hard and local currency sovereign debt and hard currency corporate debt. The investment approach will be “highly selective” in building a portfolio of best ideas from each segment of the asset class, irrespective of a benchmark weighting, building a diverse portfolio within a risk controlled framework, the statement added.