IMQubator (IMQ) and Hong Kong-based Synergy Fund Management (SFM) – founded by Eliza Lau, former CEO and CIO of SAIL Advisors – have teamed up to source and seed the next generation of Asia-Pacific managers.

With a focus on China and Japan, the two companies have agreed to form a mutual business development advisory. Under the agreement, SFM will provide sourcing the talented managers and contribute its expertise on the dynamics of the ever-growing Asian emerging hedge fund universe, and IMQ will advise SFM on the business of seeding and accelerating hedge fund managers.

Jeroen Tielman (pictured), CEO and Founder of IMQ, and a 25-year veteran of the global institutional industry, says: “In essence, the premise of the mutual advisory is to explore the possibility of a joint activity in seeding and accelerating emerging hedge fund managers based in Asia. We believe Asia has myriad opportunities for establishing a seeding platform accommodating emerging manager talents; in particular we are expecting to see some quite exceptional emerging managers from China in the coming years.

“Many undiscovered talents are planning to launch new products in the coming years, as they find better investment opportunities in the Asia region. We are expecting to see a swathe of managers spinning out of larger asset management firms or proprietary desks during the coming 12 months.”

Eliza Lau, Founder and CIO of SFM, who has 25 years’ experience in the industry and was named in AsianInvestor Magazine’s Top 25 Women in Asian Asset Management in 2011, says: “Most importantly, both IMQ and SFM share the vision and recognize that Asia has a strongly developing hedge fund market and lots of potential in the coming year as volatility is likely to remain high across the globe.  SFM has a strong background with well connected network in Asia and our unique edge could provide advisory services to assist IMQ in understanding and opening up the investment opportunities in the Asian market.  We believe this advisorship will provide IMQ and SFM with a unique opportunity to contribute to the development of a relatively uncovered hedge fund manager market in the coming years. We’re looking forward to commencing the partnership.

“We see a broad spectrum of hedge fund strategies with Asian emerging manager candidates. As the China market orderly opening up the alternative investment platform in the coming years, we see greater opportunity and many good talents with strategies in the CTA and commodity trading space given the advanced and highly active commodity exchanges in China.

IMQubator is backed by APG, the asset manager for Dutch pensions giant Stichting Pensioenfonds ABP.  Synergy Fund Management was established in 2010 by Eliza Lau, together with her team who had previously worked together in the fund of hedge funds arm of Search Investment Group in Hong Kong.