Investor Dialogue: Andrew Ferguson

What is your background?
I joined APAC Resources in early 2010. I began my career as a mining engineer. I then started New City Investment Managers with my friend and mentor, Richard Lockwood, in London. NCIM was the first natural resources high-yield fund set up in London. It was subsequently taken over by asset-management group CQS and I moved to Hong Kong to become chief investment officer for CQS.

Why did you leave CQS?
I left CQS in 2009 because they asked me to return to London. I felt the future of the industries I was focused on [mining and natural resources] was in Asia and I wanted to make this my base, rather than be one of the many expats who comes and goes. Staying was the best affirmation of my commitment and faith in the region.

What is the background of APAC?
APAC has been around for quite some time but it has only been since 2007 that it has focused on resource investments. In that time, it has built a portfolio of holdings of which Mount Gibson and Metals X are the two largest positions.

What does APAC seek to do?
We are a global investor in natural resources companies with a commodity division in Shanghai. We have both a strategic, long-term portfolio and a trading portfolio. We have a large pool of permanent capital, which lends itself well to the long-term nature of investments in resources companies. In the commodity trading business, our team in Shanghai sell Australian iron ore to Chinese steel mills. We are looking to expand on the range of commodities and our client base.

What is the current ownership structure of APAC?
Our major shareholder is COL Capital, which owns a 27.15% stake. The chairlady of COL, Shirley Chong, is also the chairlady of APAC. We also have Fushan International Energy Group, which owns 13.81%, Sun Hung Kai Strategy, which owns 8.49%, Penta, which owns 4.97%, and CCB International Asset Management, which owns 4.91%.