The latest news in investment offerings, financial products and other services relative to wealth advisors and their clients.

T Rowe Price
US-headquartered asset manager T Rowe Price yesterday announced that it has partnered with Manulife Hong Kong to offer its flagship income fund to the insurer’s customers.

T Rowe Price's fixed income expertise will be made available through Manulife Hong Kong's investment-linked assurance schemes (ILAS). The T Rowe Price Funds SICAV – Diversified Income Bond Fund aims to address demand for stable and attractive income potential, the firm said.

The fund is actively managed, holding a diversified portfolio of debt securities from issuers around the world, including emerging markets. The portfolio covers more than 15 fixed income sectors.

T Rowe Price has been offering its product offerings to Hong Kong retail investors with a total of 29 funds which have obtained authorisation from the Securities and Futures Commission.

MSCI
MSCI, which provides investment indices, has launched MSCI Private Capital Indexes, which captures returns and other data from global markets, a rising area of interest for wealth managers and other investors.

Covering private equity, private credit, private real estate, private infrastructure, and private natural resources, these 130 Indexes complement MSCI’s more than 80 existing real asset fund and property indexes.

“Investors need tools that will help them cut through the complexity of private markets and take advantage of new investment opportunities,” Henry Fernandez, chairman and CEO of MSCI, said. “Our private capital indexes allow investors to gain clarity across their investments through high quality validated data and industry leading index construction.”

DBS
DBS customers can now invest in the new, exclusive DBS CIO Target Maturity Fund 2027, which is a globally diversified bond portfolio made up of more than 50 investment grade corporate bonds and low-risk government bonds.

The fund, structured as a Singapore-based Variable Capital Company (VCC), is managed by BlackRock. Besides DBS clients, those who are customers of the Post Office Savings Bank can also get access to the fund.

The fund, which is designed potentially to offer higher total returns than cash or money market funds over a three-year period, holds bonds which mature in 2027.

The fund is another example of DBS using Singapore’s VCC structure, the firm said. In 2023 it launched the DBS Multi Family Office Foundry VCC. 

“Amid the fast-changing investment landscape with potential rate cuts, investors are looking to have a high-quality and diversified portfolio while enjoying a higher income,” Dennis Quah, head of Singapore Wealth at BlackRock, said.

Investors pay an annual management fee of up to 0.6 per cent per annum to access a professionally managed bond portfolio which is optimised to maximise returns with a minimum S$/$1,000 lump sum investment.