Aviva Investors, the global asset management business of Aviva plc, has strengthened its multi-asset fund range with the launch of the MAF (Multi Asset Fund) Core range.
- Launch of MAF Core - five risk-targeted multi-asset funds investing across asset classes globally. Existing Multi-Asset Range rebranded to MAF Plus
- The new funds use ESG-optimised strategies utilising Aviva Investors’ proprietary ESG scoring system
- The new range seeks to deliver value for money with a fixed Ongoing Charges Figure (OCF) of 0.15%
- Performance benchmark and target added to both fund ranges to make it as easy as possible for investors to assess value for money
The MAF Core range invests globally in a selection of asset classes, including equities and bonds. It utilises more index investments than Aviva Investors’ existing Multi Asset Funds, but still benefits from a degree of active asset allocation and security selection. There are five funds in the range, which reflect different risk profiles across a broad investment spectrum from defensive to adventurous. MAF Core will have a longer-term strategic management style, which will include annual and quarterly asset allocation reviews. MAF Plus will have a tactical focus with day-to-day active asset allocation. Both fund ranges will benefit from robust risk analysis.
The new fund range will be managed by Multi-Asset Portfolio Managers Guillaume Paillat and Sotirios Nakos, who report to Sunil Krishnan, Head of Multi-Asset Funds. The team benefits from the support and analysis of Aviva Investors’ wider multi-asset team of 55 investment professionals.
Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) considerations are built into the investment process and philosophy for both fund ranges. MAF Core will use passive ESG-optimised strategies, which utilise Aviva Investors’ proprietary ESG scoring system, while MAF Plus has access to active ESG-integrated funds and thematic impact funds that look to address climate change. Both fund ranges benefit from active ownership - voting and engagement. In 2019, Aviva Investors was named as one of only five global investment managers in a field of 75 to receive an “A” rating by ShareAction for its approach to ESG investing.
Both the MAF Core and MAF Plus ranges will benefit from the addition of a performance benchmark and performance target to make it as easy as possible for clients to assess value for money. The performance benchmark will be a simple combination of global equities and bonds, weighted to the match the risk profile of each fund. For MAF Plus, the performance target will be 1.30% pa on average versus the performance benchmark, while MAF Core will target 0.30% versus benchmark. The difference in performance targets is reflective of MAF Plus having more active capability.
Sunil Krishnan, Head of Multi Asset Funds at Aviva Investors, said:
“Investors today are clearer than ever that they want to invest with ESG principles in mind, but it has not always been possible to invest sustainably while keeping costs down. We set ourselves the challenge of creating a multi-asset proposition that allows investors to do both and we believe that the new MAF Core range achieves just that.
“In addition, by adding both a performance benchmark and performance target, for both MAF Core and Plus, we can show investors exactly what they’re getting for their money.”
