SVM Asset Management has announced the launch of its Absolute Alpha Fund, following approval from the Financial Services Authority (FSA).

The UCITS III fund gives investors the advantage of a long/short investment approach in a structure which is transparent and easy to access.

Managed by Colin Mclean, the fund will invest in UK equities, with a similar portfolio to the SVM Saltire fund which delivered positive returns of 19.7 per cent in 2008, compared to a fall of 29.9 per cent in the FTSE All Share Index.

Colin McLean, Managing Director, SVM Asset Management Limited, says, ‘We believe that trying to time markets or call the bottom of the market is doomed to failure and the key is bottom-up company analysis. The crisis has proved that experts have no monopoly on wisdom or information and there is a lot of information available beyond that provided by companies and city analysts. At SVM, we do not rely on these sources and avoid making investment decisions based on traditional measures such as earnings per share, which can be manipulated by company boards.

‘By concentrating on top line measures such as cash conversion and operating profit margin we can identify the companies with the fundamentals to do well despite the recession, and also those which might suffer as a result of deteriorating trading, balance sheet weakness or high valuation.’

The launch period for the SVM Absolute Alpha Fund runs until 7 April 2009, allowing investors to invest both their 2008-09 and 2009-10 ISA allowance, and will close to new investments when assets reach £200 million.

Further reading:

• The death of equities
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