Ingim launches its first equities fund in Dubai

Reflecting confidence in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) growth story, ING Investment Management (Ingim) yesterday launched its first equities fund in Dubai. The fund will be open to investors from November 13.

"It is an opportune time in the Middle East from investment point of view. In spite of global financial events, we are in a strong position to capitalise on lower equity valuations," said Grant Bailey, Chief Executive Officer of Ingim in the Middle East.

Bailey said Ingim believes in the fundamentals of the region and that government spending was driving growth further. The fundamentals of the Mena region were attracting interest from around the globe as investors continue to review their options in light of global economic changes.

The new fund will take advantage of investment opportunities arising from these changes and the growth opportunities that will continue into the long term, he added.

The fund will focus on long-term capital growth opportunities in the emerging markets of the Mena.

It will benefit from the strong proprietary research undertaken by the Ingim equity team: a team based in Dubai, with extensive regional expertise backed by strong global risk and compliance procedures and processes.

Yazan M Abdeen, Fund Manager, Equities, Ingim, said the fund will invest in a concentrated portfolio of companies from across the Mena region.

Abdeen said the investment would be done on a "bottom up" basis looking at the value that each company can make to the portfolio rather than being tied to company selections based on country or sector specific considerations.

Pieter Hendricks, Head of Distribution, Middle East, said: "We see a lot of interest from investors."

Domiciled in Luxembourg and distributed as part of Ingim's extensive global network, the fund is accessible to corporate, institutional and high net worth individual investors worldwide.

This wide investor base translates to a deeper pool of liquidity and further opportunities for scale. Ingim is confident the fund will grow to $500 million (Dh1.8 billion) over time as international investors increasingly re-weight portfolios towards the Middle East.