First fund in Malaysia to introduce a look back feature
Kuala Lumpur - September 21 - HLG Unit Trust Bhd (HLG UT) today unveiled its latest and most innovative fund to date, the HLG Star Portfolio Fund, increasing its portfolio of product offerings to 19 unit trust funds. The Fund is an innovative new product that ensures that investors can potentially secure sound returns while aiming to repay initial capital at maturity.
Equipped with an innovative ‘look back’ feature – a first in Malaysia – the Fund delivers at maturity, returns based on the higher return, chosen from the better performing of two differently weighted portfolios. The Fund will be available to the public, from September 22 2006 till November 5 2006.
The new Fund was jointly unveiled by Mr. Raymond Choong, President of Hong Leong Financial Group Bhd (formerly known as Hong Leong Credit Bhd) and Mr. Richard Lin, Executive Director and CEO of HLG Asset Management Sdn Bhd together with Mr. Teo Chang Seng, Acting CEO of HLG Unit Trust Bhd, at a ceremony today.
HLG Star Portfolio Fund is a fixed income and growth fund. The Fund has a tenor of 3 years and aims to repay initial capital at maturity. A minimum of 83% of HLG Star Portfolio Fund will be invested into 3-year Ringgit Malaysia denominated Zero-coupon Negotiable Instruments of Deposits (ZNID) issued by Malaysian banks. This investment strategy will enable the Fund to fulfill its aim of repaying investors their initial capital at maturity.
The HLG Star Portfolio Fund is also structured to benefit from global economic growth and the rising demand for raw materials. Up to 15% of this Fund will be invested into 4 major equity indices around the globe as well as 3 of the most sought-after commodities indices. The four major equity indices refer to the Dow Jones EURO STOXX 50, Standard & Poor’s 500, Hang Seng Index and Nikkei 225. Meanwhile, the commodities indices consist of the Crude Oil 1st Near Month Future, listed on the New York Mercantile Exchange, as well as the Aluminium Spot and Copper Spot indices, listed on the London Metals Exchange.
The investment into the said equity and commodities indices will be invested through an option linked to the performance of global equities and commodities indices through a foreign over-the-counter (OTC) option issued by Schroder & Co. Limited, the Option Counterparty. Schroder & Co. Limited has been contracted by HLG Unit Trust Bhd to provide the option with return in line with the investment objective of the Fund. Schroder & Co. Limited is a licensed bank in United Kingdom and is wholly owned by Schroders plc. Schroders plc which has long term debt ratings of "A" by Standard & Poor’s and "A+" by Fitch is an international financial group with activities in asset management and banking.
“This innovatively structured fund aims for repayment of initial capital at maturity plus a unique twin exposure to equities and commodities. It also offers the better return from two differently-weighted portfolios using a unique ‘look back’ feature,” said Richard Lin, Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer of HLG Asset Management Sdn. Bhd.
The HLG Star Portfolio Fund has a total approved fund size of 600 million units priced at RM 0.50 per unit during the Offer Period from September 22 2006 till November 5 2006. Minimum initial investment for HLG Star Portfolio Fund is RM 1,000 while the minimum additional investment is RM 1,000. The maximum investment amount for the Fund is capped at RM 20 million.
HLG Star Portfolio Fund is distributed through both HLG Unit Trust Bhd’s agency force as well as selected Institutional Unit Trust Agents (IUTA) namely, Hong Leong Bank Berhad, United Overseas Bank (Malaysia) Berhad, Standard Chartered Bank Malaysia Berhad, Affin Bank Berhad and CIMB Private Banking.
About HLG Unit Trust Bhd
Incorporated on October 5 1994, HLG Unit Trust Bhd is an established unit trust management company, and a member of the Hong Leong Group Malaysia. Its core business is the management of unit trust funds.
Here at HLG Unit Trust Bhd, everything we do reflects our tagline “Making Opportunities Work”. Making opportunities work is central to what we do. In the world of investment, it is all about being able to spot the right opportunities and at HLG Unit Trust Bhd, we strive to make them work for our investors.
The company already manages 18 unit trust funds to date, which are distributed nationwide through multiple channels. Direct and channel distribution activities are supported by the HLG Unit Trust Bhd’s strategic nationwide sales support infrastructure. This includes our headquarters in Kuala Lumpur and six sales support offices nationwide in Kuala Lumpur, Ipoh, Penang, Johor Bahru, Kuching and Kota Kinabalu.
As at August 31 2006, HLG Unit Trust Bhd has a combined total fund size of RM 1.89 billion.
About Hong Leong Group Malaysia
From its humble beginnings as a trading company in 1963, Hong Leong Group Malaysia has expanded steadily in tandem with the growth of the nation of Malaysia through entrepreneurship, investment foresight and innovation to its present size and position with core businesses rooted in key sectors. Based in Malaysia, the Group today controls 14 listed companies in various stock exchanges around the world with a total market capitalisation circa USD 11 billion and over 500 operating subsidiaries and associate companies. The Group's globally diversified core businesses are firmly rooted in the key sectors of financial services, manufacturing & distribution and property development & investment.