PRESS RELEASE
The WAY Group | Press Release: 28th February 2011 | For immediate distribution
The WAY Hasley Global Momentum Fund ushers in new era in fund management dynamics...
- New fund based on a trend-following momentum process
- Low management fees through use of Exchange Traded Funds ("ETFs") and cash
- Investment decisions driven by academically researched rules
- Impressive back-tested results
WAY Group and Hasley Investment Management have joined forces with leading academics from London's prestigious Cass Business School3 to design and launch the new trend-following Global Momentum Fund on 28th February 2011.
The Fund - which is likely to pave the way for a new type of investment methodology in the UK retail market - is designed to offer exposure to 24 developed equity markets via low-cost Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs).
The Momentum Fund will compare indices with their moving averages on a monthly basis to determine whether investors should stay in a rising market - or move into cash to avoid market falls.
The Fund will invest in equally weighted baskets of developed world equities, but will move into cash if sell signals flash red.
"When an index goes through the moving average at the bottom, it comes out of equities, and when it's above, it stays in," said Professor Andrew Clare2 of Cass, originator of the 'rules-based approach', along with colleague Professor Steve Thomas1.
Back-testing for the Fund has determined that it should be able to match or beat a long-term buy-and-hold strategy, yet with two-thirds of the volatility.
"In a test from 2001 to 2010, the strategy achieved a compound annual return of 6.6 per cent with 9.6 per cent annualised volatility, compared with a 1.9 per cent compound annual return with 16.6 per cent volatility from the MSCI World index," added Professor Clare.
Investors have long struggled to find funds which consistently beat the index and this has led many toward buy-and hold (or passive) funds which can be bought at a more modest price. The difficulty here is that such funds will follow markets down as well as up and this fund will look to perceptively reduce this negative trait.
Eddie O' Gorman, of The WAY Group, said that the Fund is the first step in a series of launches likely to alter the UK investment landscape.
"There are some outstanding creative investment opportunities out there, and with this powerhouse of academic research as a dynamic driving force behind WAY/Hasley investment protocols, we believe investors will genuinely be provided with something fresh and beneficial to begin 2011."
References:
Data & Statistics: WAY Group Limited, Hasley Investment Management LLP
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Footnote:
- Professor Steve Thomas is a graduate of LSE and Southampton Universities in Economics and Econometrics and has published extensively in international research journals for over 25 years. He was recently ranked 11th in Europe for finance research since 1990. He has been a finance professor at the University of Wales and Southampton University prior to joining Cass, and a Visiting Professor at Queens University, Canada, and the ICMA Centre, Reading University, UK. In 1990 he was the Houblon-Norman Fellow at the Bank of England. For over 20 years he has been editor of Interactive Data's (formerly FT) credit rating publications; he has extensive experience in professional education and training in all areas of economics and finance for banks and related institutions and is an examiner for the Investment Management Certificate of UK SIP.
- Professor Andrew Clare is the Professor of Asset Management at Cass Business School and the Associate Dean responsible for Cass's MSc programme, which is the largest in Europe. He is also the co-founder and chairman of Fathom Consulting, a leading London-based economic and financial market consultancy. He was a Senior Research Manager in the Monetary Analysis wing of the Bank of England which supported the work of the Monetary Policy Committee. While at the Bank Andrew was responsible for equity market and derivatives research. Andrew also spent three years working as the Financial Economist for Legal and General Investment Management (LGIM), where he was responsible for the group's investment process and where he developed LGIM's initial Liability Driven Investment offering. He has published extensively in both academic and practitioner journals on a wide range of economic and financial market issues. In a recent survey Andrew was ranked as the world's ninth most prolific finance author of the past fifty years. Andrew has also recently been appointed to the investment committee of the GEC Marconi pension plan; this committee oversees the investments and investment strategy of this £3.2bn scheme.
- Located in the heart of London's financial district, Cass Business School is a leading provider of business and management education. Its MBA is recognised globally as a market leader, and Cass has the widest portfolio of Specialist Masters programmes (MSc) in Europe; its Undergraduate School is one of the best in the UK. It is ranked in the UK's top 10 business and management research schools.
Associated Links:
Website: Cass Business School (City University London)
Website: Hasley Investment Management LLP
General & Press Enquiries:
Paul Wilcox, Chairman, The WAY Group. Tel: 01202 890895 / 07970 891762
Eddie O'Gorman, Sales & Marketing Director, The WAY Group. Tel: 01202 890895 / 07976 277286
Roderick Collins, Hasley Investment Management LLP. Tel: 01264 773155 / 07799 065425
Please Note:
This document is not intended to constitute an offer or agreement to buy or sell investments and does not constitute a personal recommendation. The investments and services referred to in this document may not be suitable for every investor and if in doubt independent financial advice should be sought. No liability is accepted whatsoever for any loss howsoever arising from any information in this document subject to the rules of the Financial Services Authority or the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000. Share prices, values and income can go down as well as up and investors may get back less than their initial investment.
The WAY Group | Press Release: 28th February 2011 | For immediate distribution