The Threadneedle Global Corporate Bond Fund aims to generate a total return from income and capital appreciation both through direct investments and, indirectly, though derivatives across the global market.
Launched yesterday, the Luxembourg-domiciled fund, has a minimum investment of £2000 and a management fee of 1.3%.
In a bid to generate higher returns than those achieved through issuer selection alone, the company said the fund has a “three-pronged investment process” that combines issuer selection with "top down industry and asset allocation insights".
It will utilise the global fixed income platform of Threadneedle Investments and Columbia Management,Threadneedle said, and will be underpinned by a global research capability with a focus on bottom-up fundamental credit research.
The fund is currently pending regulatory approval for distribution across the United Kingdom, Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Singapore, Spain, Switzerland and Sweden.
It is managed by Alasdair Ross, who joined Threadneedle in 2003 and is also the manager of the Threadneedle European Corporate Bond Fund.
Ross will be supported by 15 investment grade analysts based in London, Boston, Minneapolis and Singapore.
Of the fund, Ross said: “In a low-yield environment, exposure to corporate credit can provide an effective way for investors to preserve capital and generate income whilst diversifying their portfolio away from the volatility of equity markets.”
He added that the fund aims to generate an above-market return through the active management of issuer selection, industry exposure and fixed income allocation.
Head of fixed income, Jim Cielinkski, added: “With a global corporate bond strategy, we see tremendous potential to generate alpha for our clients with less geographic constraints than regional portfolios.”
The news follows the company’s launch of two Asia-managed funds for the Singapore market last month: The Threadneedle (Lux) Asian Focus Fund and Threadneedle (Lux) Asia Contrarian Equity Fund
