KUALA LUMPUR: ValueCAP Sdn Bhd’s wholly-owned subsidiary i-VCAP management Sdn Bhd has launched its fourth exchange traded fund (ETF), the MyETF Thomson Reuters Asia Pacific ex-Japan Islamic Agribusiness (MyETF-Agri).
Chief Executive Officer and Director Mahdzir Othman said the fund, which is en route to main board listing on Dec 3, 2015, would concentrate on 30 agribusiness stocks in 10 countries namely Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Thailand, Australia, Taiwan and New Zealand.
“The MyETF Agri has exposure on 30 agribusiness stocks in these 10 countries and these stocks remain stable even during economic deceleration, they are able to sustain their earnings margins,” he said at a press conference yesterday.
Mahdzir said 30.1 per cent of the stocks are from Malaysia, which has a solid shariah-compliant structure, although the percentage could change from time to time.
The other stocks are from the Philippines (5.1 per cent), South Korea (8.7 per cent), Hong Kong (15.1 per cent), Indonesia (6.8 per cent), Thailand (1.9 per cent), Australia (18.4 per cent) and Taiwan (13.7 per cent).
The open-ended fund has an approved size of 500 million units, and investors can subscribe at RM1 per unit with a minimal subscription of 100 units.
Mahdzir noted that the introduction of MyETF-Agri is expected to further spark awareness among Malaysian investors on ETF as an asset class.
“The awareness among institutional investors is higher as fund managers understand about ETF, as it is already broadly known outside Malaysia, but for retail investors, more effort needs to be put in place,” he added.
Investment products such as ETFs are especially appealing within the current market environment as they can provide fair net investment returns because investors are not burdened by high charges and fees. — Bernama