Mirae Asset bolsters Asia team, products
South Korea’s Mirae Asset Global Investments has boosted institutional coverage in Asia Pacific and is set to launch two mutual funds and a hedge fund in a drive to expand its footprint, AsianInvestor has learned.
Rhee Jung-Ho, chief executive at the $76 billion fund house, stressed that the firm’s aim was to become a global player, given it already has distribution and investment teams in Asia Pacific, Europe, the US and Latin America.
“Our focus is on growing assets through expanding geographically, strengthening our relationships with clients and investment consultants, as well as widening our product offering,” Rhee explained.
He revealed that Mirae Asset Global Investments was about to announce it had hired Marko Tutavac from Fidelity as head of consultant relationships based in Hong Kong, and Chris Wildman from AMP Capital as head of Australia sales in Sydney.
Both joined last month and report to Ashley Dale, Mirae Asset’s chief marketing officer and head of international business development.
Rhee noted the firm had gained ground in wholesale distribution in Europe and Asia and now wanted to further grow its institutional business, which was reflected in the new hires.
Tutavac is tasked with cultivating the firm’s relationship with global investment consultants and ratings agencies in Asia.
He was hired from Fidelity Worldwide Investment, where he was associate director for institutional business for Asia ex-Japan. He has more than 15 years’ institutional sales and marketing experience across Asia, Europe and the US.
Wildman is responsible for driving the distribution of Mirae Asset’s funds, particularly in the institutional marketplace. He was hired from AMP Capital, where most recently he was an institutional business executive.
Mirae Asset now has 10 staff in its global sales team (excluding Tutavac). In April this year it appointed Eldora Wong as sales director for the institutional distribution of Sicav funds in Asia.
In terms of its Asian retail business, Rhee said Mirae Asset had its eyes firmly set on China because of its scale. As a consequence it is readying two funds to target the Hong Kong-China mutual recognition scheme, which was launched on July 1.
It is poised to launch the Mirae Asset Asia Great Consumer Equity Fund and Mirae Asset Asia Sector Leader Equity Fund with a view to gaining track record and applying to distribute them in China via mutual recognition next year.
Rhee said the firm would be keen to have its exchange-traded funds distributed in mainland China via MRF if the rules were to allow it in future.
Further, he confirmed that Mirae Asset was planning to launch an Asia Macro strategy this month aime at professional investors through its hedge-fund affiliate MAPS Capital Management. MAPS was launched in 2012 and provides alternative investment strategies to sophisticated clients.
As at end-July Mirae Asset Global Investments had $76 billion in AUM, with 64% from institutional clients, 24% from wholesale channels and 12% from ETFs. Its Ucits fund range has seen AUM triple in past two years to $2 billion, largely driven by flows from institutions and wholesale in Europe.