Cofunds has broadened its range of European and absolute funds by making the SYZ Asset Management's Oyster strategies available on its platform.
The range from SYZ Asset Management, the investment division of Swiss bank SYZ Group, include the Oyster Continental European Selection and Oyster Absolute Return funds.
According to Ian Penrose, head of UK distribution for SYZ Asset Management, the move marks the firm's commitment to building a presence in the UK, particularly through advisers and other intermediaries.
He said: “This is a key milestone in our UK distribution drive and shows our deepening commitment to the market.
"Working with a platform such as Cofunds will enable us to reach a large and expanding audience of advisers, intermediaries and institutions.”
All the funds have sterling share classes and are registered for UK distribution. The majority have a management fee of 1 per cent, except Oyster Absolute Return which has a fee of 0.5 per cent and Oyster European Corporate Bonds, which has a fee of 0.6 per cent.
The funds are:
- Oyster Continental European Selection
- Oyster Absolute Return
- Oyster Emerging Opportunities
- Oyster European Corporate Bonds
- Oyster European Opportunities
- Oyster US Selection
Over the past few years, the asset manager has bolstered its London-based investment teams with hires such as Mike Clements as head of European equities and Hartwig Kos as co-head of its multi-asset division.
Cofunds, which has £77.5bn of assets on the platform, representing approximately 760,000 investors, is to change ownership to Aegon, after current owner Legal & General agreed to sell it in a £140m deal.
Speaking of the SYZ additions, Andy Coleman, director of distribution at Cofunds, said: “We strive constantly to meet the varying needs and investment objectives of our clients by providing access to a range of investment products.
"This further enhances the fund universe available to our clients.”
