New Neuberger Berman UK fund also launched as Dublin VCC
A new long/short fund targeting the UK market has also been launched as a Dublin VCC (Variable Capital Company) to facilitate access for investors beyond the UK, Neuberger Berman has confirmed.
The minimum for the fund is €2.5m, but it is undertsood that when accessed through platforms this minimum is normally waived and available for around the €1,000 mark or via regular savings. The standard platform rate is 124bps, but there are examples of discounts up to 50% on this fee level, and there is no performance fee.
The TM Neuberger Berman Absolute Alpha Fund does not aim to be consistently market neutral and can take on a positive or negative directional bias through its net exposure. This is expected to be between 65% net long to -20% net short. It is based on an existing equity long/short strategy managed by Steve Eisman, which was launched on 1 November 2016. Eisman and his team will managed the new fund. He is known for having benefited from being on the right side of trades in the period leading up to the sub-prime mortgage crisis and subsequent financial crisis in the US, and was portrayed in the Hollywood movie The Big Short.
The new fund is part of a range intended to provide UK investors with access to the full range of investment expertise at Neuberger Berman, including equities, fixed income, alternatives and multi-asset. As a UK onshore range, it is intended to facilitate delivery of strategies that meed bespoke needs of the broader UK financial advisory space. Thus, the range will not purely replicate the group's existing Irish Ucits platform - which is estimated at some $30bn of assets.
