Van Eck Global is launching the Van Eck Multi-Manager Alternatives Fund, an open-end mutual fund designed to give investors exposure to a variety of investment strategies, including abs
Van Eck Global is launching the Van Eck Multi-Manager Alternatives Fund, an open-end mutual fund designed to give investors exposure to a variety of investment strategies, including absolute return strategies.
Van Eck has been managing a similar strategy for over six years as an investment option for variable life and variable annuity insurance contracts.
Harvey Hirsch, senior vice president of marketing at Van Eck, says the global financial crisis has made it increasingly clear that a well-allocated portfolio should include exposure to more alternative, hedge-style strategies. The firm anticipates that the new fund will appeal to both individual and institutional investors who want access to the potential benefits of alternative investing but with lower costs and greater transparency and liquidity as compared to an investment in a private hedge fund.
‘This fund may give investors access to sophisticated asset management strategies in a single portfolio, providing diversification, hedging potential, and in some cases, it may capitalize on market dislocations as they develop globally,’ says Hirsch.
Though interest in alternative strategies has grown significantly over the past decade, the asset class has generally been inaccessible to the average retail investor. High net worth requirements, a general lack of transparency, and concerns over liquidity and long lock-up periods have kept many investors on the sidelines. The new Van Eck fund offers daily liquidity, no net worth restrictions, a high degree of transparency and daily net asset valuation.
The fund’s multi-manager approach allows for a diversified mix of sub-advisers, open- and closed-end funds and exchange-traded funds as its underlying investments. It seeks to achieve consistent absolute (positive) returns in various market cycles. The fund can employ both arbitrage and directional long/short strategies, among others.
