Details of how to invest in the new China investment fund managed by “superstar” fund manager Anthony Bolton have been announced by Fidelity.
The offer period for Bolton’s eagerly awaited China Special Situations investment trust will open on February 26 and close on April 5. The trust, which will begin trading - subject to approval - on April 19, will be eligible to ISA investors.
Applications may be made via the Fidelity ISA for either - or both - of the current and next tax years.
The fund, which is targeting an initial capital raising of around £630 million, will invest in a diversified portfolio consisting primarily of securities issued by companies listed in China or Hong Kong and Chinese companies listed elsewhere.
Fidelity says the structure of the fund - as a closed-end investment company (an investment trust) will enable Bolton to limit the size of the fund, controlling the money flowing into the fund and stopping it becoming unmanageable.
Fidelity’s Proposed Timetable for launch is:
26 February: Prospectus publication date; Public Offer opens; investors able to apply for shares
26 March: Closing date for paper applications for Fidelity
ISA and SharePlan
5 April: Public Offer closes; Fidelity ISA online applications close
19 April: Admission to LSE and dealing commences in the new shares
Anthony Bolton is best known for his stewardship of the Fidelity Special Situations Fund, which he managed from its launch in December 1979 until the end of 2007.
Over this twenty-eight year period, the fund achieved an annualised return of 19.5 per cent (compared to 13.5 per cent for the FTSE All-Share Index). During his tenure, £10,000 invested in the fund at launch grew in value to £1,432,000.
"History shows that many developing economies go through acceleration in their growth once GDP per head reaches a critical level, a phenomenon called the 'S' curve effect,” said Anthony Bolton, Manager of the Fidelity China Special Situations portfolio.
“The most interesting aspect of China's development is its position on this curve. It is in the investment ‘sweet spot’ where incomes per head of population rise steadily and levels of consumption increase at an accelerating rate for a period of time.
“Exactly the same process took place in Taiwan and Korea 20 or 30 years ago and in Japan before that. The difference this time is the scale on which the transformation is happening. Never before has this kind of development happened in a country of over 1.3 billion people."
Full details of the Offer and Placing will be included in the prospectus, which is expected to be published by the Company on 26 February but investors can register interest now online at www.fidelity.co.uk to ensure they receive an information pack as soon as it becomes available.
