Insynergy and GAM link to launch Ucits China long/short fund

Insynergy is to launch in mid-April the Ucits compliant long/short Absolute China Fund run by hedge fund manager Michael Lai from GAM.

Lai will identify top-down regional themes and overlay them with rigorous bottom-up company research and stock selection, an investment strategy that has delivered sound returns on the existing GAM Greater China Equity Hedge Fund. 

This fund has delivered a return of 156.98% from launch (July 31, 2006) to 29 January 2010, comparing favourably with a 49.96% return from the MSCI Zhong Hua Index.

The new fund is targeting a risk-adjusted absolute return over a market cycle in the region of 20%-25% a year.

The fund will invest primarily in securities issued by companies with either assets in or revenues derived from the China and Hong Kong and which are listed or traded on exchanges in China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, the US and Singapore or in a member state of the OECD.

The portfolio will typically hold 15-70 positions in total  with the long book holding 15-60 stocks and the short side between zero and 20 stocks. Lai will synthetically short stocks.

The fund has been limited to a maximum of $250 million of assets under management.

The fund is domiciled in Dublin with a minimum investment of £2,500. It will carry a management fee of 1/25% with a 20% performance fee with a hurdle rate of three-month Libor. The fund will have daily dealing.

Insynergy Funds is a variable capital investment company established in Ireland and regulated by the Irish Regulator.

“China presents an exciting growth opportunity on a five year plus outlook,” commented Spike Hughes, CEO and Founder of Insynergy. “We do expect to see volatility in the region and we have therefore opted for a long biased, long/short investment strategy,” he added.

GAM’s funds and strategies cover a broad range of asset classes, currencies and market conditions with around Sfr 52 billion ($50.7 billion at October 31, 2009) of assets under management.