Fund manager Threadneedle has launched the Threadneedle (Lux) Absolute Emerging Market Macro Fund.

The fund is for investors who want to tap into opportunities in emerging market debt and currencies, whilst benefiting from the increased flexibility of a Ucits III structure.  

The lead manager on the fund will be Richard House, head of emerging market debt at Threadneedle. House has 15 years’ experience in emerging markets investment and three years’ hedge fund experience. 

The fund will aim to achieve a positive absolute return of 7.5 to 12.5 per cent on an annualised basis on a long term investment horizon and will be independent of any benchmark limitation.
 
House, who is based in London, will be supported by Threadneedle’s emerging market debt team in identifying the most attractive macro opportunities in global emerging markets; equities will be excluded from the portfolio.

Agnes Belaisch, who is head of emerging market strategy at Threadneedle, will be deputy manager on the fund. 

House says: “The new Threadneedle (Lux) Absolute Emerging Market Macro Fund allows us to exploit the many macro based opportunities that exist across the emerging market universe without the constraints of any index. Within the fund, we have the flexibility to express our highest conviction macro views via sovereign credit, rates and FX, both on an absolute and relative basis. Using processes and resources that we have successfully employed over the years in our Threadneedle Emerging Currencies Crescendo Hedge Fund, we aim to deliver absolute returns to a broader range of investors under Ucits III.”
 
The portfolio will principally invest either directly in debt and currencies of emerging market countries (including but not limited to domestic, sovereign and quasi-sovereign debt, issued in local or foreign currencies), or indirectly in such debt and currencies through derivatives (including but not limited to credit default swaps, interest rate swaps and current futures, options and forwards.)
 
The portfolio may further invest in debt securities and currencies of non-emerging market countries, deposits, cash and near cash.