Pioneer Investments will introduce three additional funds to Hong Kong retail investors, bringing its total offering to 33. Following on from launches in Europe and the US, the three: Pioneer Funds - global high yield; Pioneer Funds- Euro strategic bond and Pioneer Funds- European quant equity have each been approved by the SFC for retail investments.
"The introduction of these new funds gives us a full compliment," explains Edmund Lacis, Pioneer's senior vice president and Asia regional head, international sales and distribution. "Most of the fixed income spectrum is now covered, as is a fair amount of equity."
The funds will be distributed to Hong Kong retail investors mostly through private banks that include ABN AMRO, CSFB, ING, and Merrill Lynch, independent financial advisors and in unit-linked form through Winerthur.
The global high yield fund invests in a combination of US high yield and investment grade bonds, US convertible debt, emerging market bonds, and international high yield bonds. The vast majority of the fund will be invested in debt that is rated high yield and is expected to produce returns of 6% on a dollar basis.
Originally launched in Europe in June, the Euro strategic bond fund is a fixed income product adjusted to suit the interest rate cycle and targets absolute returns in Euros. Pioneer describes the fund as providing the flexibility to invest in all fixed income components, and is specifically designed to respond either aggressively and conservatively, depending on fluctuations in rates.
The stock driven European quant equity fund will use sector specific models to select stocks and will use a quantitative bottom-up approach to investing in European equities. It will strive to identify under-valued companies.
With the rollout for Hong Kong finalized, Pioneer also plans to target the retail investor bases in Singapore and Taiwan. The funds have already been filed in Singapore and if approved will increase Pioneer's product offering in the City state to 65.
Rollout in Taiwan may take longer as the authorities require a two-year history to create a lux fund. However, with this piece of legislation due to disappear shortly and given the six-month histories of the funds, Lacis claims that the investment firm will look closely at the island's investor base to judge its appeal.
