The fund combines the expertise of the group’s fund managers and its latest quant investing technology

by ASILA JALIL / Pic by TMR FILE PIX

MAYBANK Asset Management Sdn Bhd (Maybank AM) plans to raise RM200 million for its first Shariah-compliant mixed assets fund, Maybank Asia Mixed Assets-I Fund.

The fund combines the expertise of the group’s fund managers and its latest quant investing technology to deliver optimum outcome to investors.

Maybank Islamic Asset Management Sdn Bhd CEO Ahmed Muzni Mohamed said the technology will enable investors to access markets in Asia to achieve optimal portfolio diversification with better returns.

“We aim to raise RM200 million for the fund, and hopefully by the end of the year, we should be able to achieve RM500 million assets under management from the fund,” he said during the virtual launch of the fund yesterday.

The fund will feed into the Maybank Asian growth and Income-I Fund, which is managed by Maybank Asset Management Singapore Pte Ltd.

Ahmed Muzni said quant investing reduces the influence of human emotions and emphasises mathematical and statistical analysis to determine the value of a stock, bond or other assets.

“It can pick up trends quickly and capitalise on market inefficiencies based on quantitative data.

“With this fund, investors can now get the best of both worlds in terms of portfolio diversification and potential higher and consistent return,” Ahmed Muzni said.

The base currency of the fund is ringgit and it is offered in two currency classes namely ringgit class and US dollar class, with a minimum investment amount of RM1,000 or US$1,000.

Maybank AM fund manager and lead data scientist Mark Chua said the company stands to benefit from higher expected returns for being one the early movers to launch quantitative strategies in Asia.

“We expect more investors to incorporate data science and quantitative analytics into their investment processes and use it to respond better and faster,” he said yesterday.

He also said now is an opportune time to invest in the region as valuations in Asia are much more attractive compared to those in the US.

He added that stocks that have suffered due to heightened regulation are expected to outperform in the medium term.

He further said rising inflation in the region is not expected to impact Asian equities negatively as inflationary pressures would ease moving forward.

Chua said higher inflation in Asia is expected over the next few months off the low base of 2020.

However, inflation should gradually moderate as producers ramp up supply and the base effect fades.

“Yes, we do see some crises rising, some commodity prices going up but this is normal and we would usually see price rises after a recession.

“For example, after the Global Financial Crisis, there was an increase in prices and after a couple of years, they came down,” he said.

Chua said Covid-19 had affected the supply chain and it would take some time to reactivate them, resulting in high prices in the meantime.

He added that the increased vaccination rate in the region would provide further clarity on economic recovery for Asian market.