Columbia Threadneedle launches global equity fund

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Columbia Threadneedle launches global equity fund

Columbia Threadneedle is to launch a version of its Global Focus fund that will be available to UK advisers.

The fund will mirror the investment process of the existing Threadneedle Global Focus fund, which is registered for investors outside of the UK.

Both the existing and the new fund will be run by David Dudding.  

The fund will invest in large cap companies listed on global equity markets, and will have a bias towards what the fund house labels "quality" stocks.

Mr Dudding said: "We believe that well governed companies can sustain high returns for longer periods than the market assumes.

"We look for quality growth companies with high returns on invested capital that can be sustained over time.

"We identify economic moats; how likely companies are to keep competitors at bay for an extended period, and apply Michael Porter's Five Forces framework to assess the sustainability of those competitive advantages.

"The advantage of having this global approach is that if we think about a particular industry, we are not limited to own the leading business in a particular region: we can own the leading business in the world."

Porter's Five Forces is a tool created by Harvard Business School professor Michael Porter to analyse an industry's attractiveness and likely profitability.

Since its publication in 1979, it has become one of the most popular and highly regarded business strategy tools.

Darius McDermott, managing director at Chelsea Financial Services, said he likes this fund a lot.

He said: "We know Dave Dudding very well and his process. He has run the Sicav, which is around 24 per cent ahead of the sector average over the last five years.

"He looks for good companies with high returns on capital and this has worked very well for a long time on the European fund he runs, The fees are in line with good active managers."

The new fund will not change Mr Dudding's responsibilities as manager of the £2.6bn Threadneedle European Select fund.

david.thorpe@ft.com