e-fundresearch.com: What is the current size of the fund?
Christel Rendu de Lint: USD 1.35 bn (as at end of January 2014)
e-fundresearch.com: Do you also manage other funds or mandates?
Christel Rendu de Lint: Yes we do. We manage a full range of solutions geared towards generating performance in spite of a low interest rate environment: apart from the high yield fund, we have launched an unconstrained bond fund with flexible interest rate exposure. We also manage corporate investment grade funds and dynamic funds – the latter being an alternative to cash.
e-fundresearch.com: What is the total amount of assets you manage currently?
Christel Rendu de Lint: We manage USD 12.6 bn in total (as at end of January 2013)
e-fundresearch.com: How long have you been in the business as a fund manager?
Christel Rendu de Lint: I have been a fund manager since 2003. Before that, I worked at the IMF and with the UK Treasury.
e-fundresearch.com: What are the main steps in your investment process and in which area is your competitive edge to add value to investors?
Christel Rendu de Lint: Whereas most high-yield bond fund managers adopt an exclusively bottom-up approach which favours bond selection, we opt for a top-down investment policy.
Furthermore, we use CDS, which enables high diversification, an ultra-low interest rate exposure and almost perfect liquidity, especially compared with traditional high-yield bonds, given that a traditional high-yield bond fund’s liquidity is penalised by transaction costs in excess of 1.5%.
These two different aspects of our DNA make this fund unique, and enable us to be 1st of our peers today, with a performance in 2013 of 16.7%.
e-fundresearch.com: Which benchmark is most relevant and how should investors compare the fund vs. benchmarks or peer groups?
Christel Rendu de Lint: This fund cannot be compared to a specific high yield bond benchmark. Investors should look at UBAM – Global High Yield Solution in comparison to their own high yield benchmarks or peer groups as the fund is a genuine alternative to traditional high yield bond funds. The fund was awarded a Lipper Award Best US high yield fund over 3 years. Internally, we use a reference performance indicator for risk monitoring and the fund has managed to minimized drawdowns and generated strong returns in bull market phases.
e-fundresearch.com: Which performance did you achieve for the fund YTD and over the past five calendar years in absolute terms and relative to relevant benchmark or other reference indices?
Christel Rendu de Lint: YTD: +0.5%, Annualised since the lauch: 10.3%
e-fundresearch.com: Thank you!
