Hong Kong-based Value Partners, one of Asia’s largest hedge fund managers with some USD7.7billion in assets under management is preparing to launch a UCITS-com
Hong Kong-based Value Partners, one of Asia’s largest hedge fund managers with some USD7.7billion in assets under management is preparing to launch a UCITS-compliant version of its USD1.7billion Classic fund, a Cayman-domiciled vehicle, hopefully as early as May subject to regulatory approval, reported Citywire Global. The fund is to be domiciled in Dublin and will aim to replicate performance of the Value Partners Classic Fund, which invests primarily in Chinese equities. Phillip Li, a fund manager at Value Partners, was quoted as saying: “Global investors are still at an evolutionary stage of investing into mainland China. I think in general clients are attracted to fund products that have a Chinese focus and exposure rather than any other strategy,” adding that he believed there was still potential for growth in the energy and consumer discretionary sectors in China. China is home to the third highest number of millionaires after the US and Japan and the growth of its middle class is accelerating at breakneck speed. However, whether people decide to invest in China will depend, at the moment, on whether they believe the country is experiencing a ‘hard landing’ or not: opinion on this seems to be divided. “You have to be careful in the consumption market,” said Li. “Many outlets have very low quality products or at times sold counterfeit goods. We invested in a company called Chow Sang Sang which is a luxury retail brand selling jewellery where the brand’s recognition from the Chinese consumer is particularly important.”
