Silk Invest, a specialist asset management firm, has acquired Danfonds Frontier Fund SPC, a Cayman based hedge fund, in an all equity deal.

Silk Invest, a specialist asset management firm, has acquired Danfonds Frontier Fund SPC, a Cayman based hedge fund, in an all equity deal.

Danfonds Frontier Fund SPC will be renamed Silk Invest Frontier Fund SPC and Danfonds Investment Management (Cayman) will be renamed Silk Invest (Cayman).

Zin Bekkali, chief executive of Silk Invest, says: 'The deal is a uniquely structured combination of talents that complements our new African and Middle Eastern fund platform.'

Following the transaction, Daniel Broby, chief executive of Danfonds, will become the chief investment officer of Silk Invest.

The new team will launch two Luxembourg Ucits funds, African Lions and Arab Falcons, in the first quarter of 2009.

The Silk Invest Frontier Fund will be relaunched in the second quarter of 2009 after finalizing the new offering memorandum and the various counterparty agreements.

Broby says the deal 'is perfectly timed from an investor perspective'.

'There is now immense opportunity in frontier markets as a result of the dramatic declines caused by the credit crisis; to which these economies are partially immune,' he adds.

Dr Heinz Hockmann,  chairman of Silk Invest, says: 'The synergies between the Silk African Lions Fund, the Silk Arab Falcons Fund and the Danfonds Frontier Fund were immediately obvious. Our aim was always to become the most credible frontier markets specialist. With this deal we can demonstrate to our investors, more than ever, that we have an unrivalled frontier markets team, managing a unique investment offering across different asset classes.'