Rathbone Unit Trust Management (Rathbones) has unveiled a range of four risk-targeted, sustainable investment funds.
The Rathbone Greenbank Multi-Asset Portfolios (RGMAPs) new sustainable multi-asset range is expected to be launched during the first half of the year and to sit in the IA Volatility Managed sector. The range will aim to harness the risk-adjusted fund performance record of Rathbones’ multi-asset team, and Greenbank’s two decades of experience in ethical, sustainable and impact research and investment.
RGMAPs will be managed by Rathbones’ multi-asset team, consisting of David Coombs, head of multi-asset investments, and Will McIntosh-Whyte, who will be responsible for the day-to-day investment of the portfolios.
The strategies will be supported by Rathbone Greenbank Investments (Greenbank), Rathbones’ specialist ethical, sustainable and impact research and investment team, as well as Rathbones’ fixed income and equity analysts.
To support the launch, Rathbones expects to hire an assistant into the team, an investment specialist, as well as additional analysts to support the research, ideas generation, and client communications associated with the funds.
The new range will invest directly around the globe, using a combination of government bonds, supra-national bonds, corporate bonds, listed company shares, structured products and derivatives.
The funds will be actively managed with a strong emphasis on managing financial, and environmental, social and governance (ESG) risk and will focus on investments with strong links to Greenbank’s sustainability framework, which includes energy and climate, and health and wellbeing. Greenbank can veto investments which do not meet the funds’ responsible investment policy, ensuring it is applied without bias or influence from the fund managers.
The new multi-asset range will complement Rathbones’ existing sustainable equity offering, the Rathbone Global Sustainability Fund, managed by David Harrison, which will offer advisers a higher risk solution invested 100 percent in equities. Its benchmark is the FTSE World Index.
The name of the Rathbone Global Sustainability Fund will be changed to the Rathbone Greenbank Global Sustainability Fund. There will be no change to the investment process or fund manager, and the recommended holding period remains five years.
The new range will employ the same negative and positive criteria as the Rathbone Global Sustainability Fund for its exposure across equities and corporate bonds.
The team, supported by the wider Rathbones’ Stewardship resource, will continue to actively undertake stewardship activities such as voting, engagement and monitoring on behalf of investors.
The minimum holding across all funds is £1000, with subsequent investments of a minimum of £500.
Mike Webb, chief executive, Rathbone Unit Trust Management, said: “These new multi-asset funds will be able to map into advisers’ investment processes across most client risk appetites, and with the industry-leading ethical and sustainable oversight of Greenbank as an authentic, independent arbiter. We believe that this strong collaboration ensures the integrity that our clients have come to expect of us.”
Will McIntosh-Whyte, fund manager, added: “These funds feel like a natural progression for us, given our in-house expertise. We are focused on providing very clear parameters around all the funds in order that clients can have confidence in choosing the most suitable option within our range and enabling them to invest in line with their sustainability objectives without foregoing financial disciplines”.
