Both of the two new offerings, the EFG Hermes Frontier Equity Fund and the EFG Hermes MENA Equity Fund are managed from Dubai and domiciled in Ireland, with HSBC as custodian.
The EFG Hermes MENA Equity Fund is a Ucits version of the firm’s flagship MEDA Fund, which has been running since December 2011.
The EFG Hermes Frontier Equity Fund has a remit to invest across all frontier markets, but is currently focused on South and East Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East. Markets in Southeast Europe and other regions will be included over time and as opportunities arise.
This fund is benchmark agnostic and will comprise 15-25 holdings of high conviction investment ideas selected on their individual underlying merits.
Amr Seif, head of asset management at EFG Hermes, said: “This is our first entry into frontier markets and also offers a vehicle to accommodate a large pool of European assets. We will use our rigorous investment process used in MENA markets in the extended frontier universe.”
He added that that fund would look at opportunities that benefit from growing domestic demand, driven by shifting demographics and an emerging middle class.
EFG Hermes has 48 people in asset management teams based in Cairo, Dubai and Saudi Arabia, with total assets under management of $2.6bn (€2.3bn, £1.78bn). The three offices manage 18 country-specific and nine regional funds, plus other portfolios.
The investment banking group has a presence in Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, and with more than 800 employees and a client base ranging across the Middle East and North Africa to Europe, Africa and the US.
