AXA Investment Managers (AXA IM) today launched the AXA WF Metaverse fund that aims to invest in companies which play a part in the convergence of the digital and physical world.

The new fund is managed by Pauline Llandric, alongside AXA IM’s wider global thematics team, and will be prat of its thematic fund range, particularly its existing Robotech and Digital Economy strategies.

The strategy is ESG-integrated and has been categorised as Article 8 according to the EU Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR).

AXA Investment Managers (AXA IM) today announces the launch of the AXA WF Metaverse fund that aims to invest in companies which play a part in the convergence of the digital and physical world. Making up part of AXA IM’s thematic equity fund range, it will invest in rising Metaverse growth opportunities in a rapidly evolving economy.

The global strategy will be an actively managed, multi-cap equity fund investing in long-term growth opportunities presented by the Metaverse in both developed and emerging markets, leveraging AXA IM’s longstanding expertise in managing strategies based on disruptive technologies.

The strategy will invest across four key sub themes to provide exposure to long-term trends which allow diversification to suit changing market conditions, as outlined below:

• Gaming – Largely recognised as the first building block of the Metaverse and provides an immersive way to explore endless worlds, create personalised experiences and have simultaneous interactions with a large number of players. 
• Socialising – The Metaverse is enabled by platforms providing content creation, ongoing maintenance of live experiences, user interface and social interactions. 
• Working – The world of industry is expected to be a large part of the Metaverse market, as increasingly sophisticated capabilities enable specialists to design and simulate powerful 3D real-time simulations, or ‘digital twins’. For office workers, the Metaverse also brings exciting opportunities for a more collaborative and immersive working environment.
• Enabling – Enablers will be key to determine the pace of development for Metaverse and emcompass sectors such as semiconductors, technological infrastructure, cybersecurity and payment. 

Pauline Llandric, lead manager of the AXA WF Metaverse fund, said: “We are at the early stages of a long-term trend which is growing rapidly and believe there is a broad range of global companies and opportunities in this space. Revolutionary, cutting edge advances in technology have changed how we live, socialise, work and do business. The Metaverse is the confluence of the virtual and physical worlds, where more technology is layered on to everyday life associated with the evolution of the internet connecting people, places and things.”