HSBC Global Asset Management has announced it intends to launch a 200 per cent levered UCITS version of its EUR623 million flagship absolute return fund; HSBC Global Macro. Conveniently titled HSBC GIF Global Macro II, the Lux-domiciled fund will be managed by Jim Dunsford and Guillaume Rabault who also manage the flagship fund. In terms of investment approach the portfolio will be both market neutral (profiting from valuation differences) and directional. A wide range of asset classes will be targeted using global cash, equities, bonds and currencies and will seek to profit from cross-asset opportunities using a variety of derivatives instruments including equity and bond futures, currency forwards and credit default swaps. In terms of performance, the fund hopes to achieve annualized returns of Eurolibor plus 1.2 per cent. Volatility will be 15 per cent; twice that of the flagship. Charles Robinson (pictured), Head of Alternative Distribution at HSBC, told Hedgeweek via email: “We launched Global Macro II to serve our clients' demands. Moreover, we did the same thing for the same reasons with our flagship fund several years ago - so we had the added confidence in the commercial logic of tailoring our capabilities to different risk/return objectives.” Robinson also points out that the fund is not geared in the conventional sense, rather it will be doubling up all of its positions. “We have no prime broker for example between us as the manager and our clients' capital,” said Robinson. “Rather, the new portfolio simply amplifies our risk/return profile by duplicating our active risk budget.”