Around US$500 million in fresh mandates have already flowed into CFSGAM from North American investors following the fund manager’s inclusion on
Russell Investments’ Global Listed Infrastructure multi-manager platform.
It is understood that CFSGAM has replaced Macquarie as an infrastructure manager on the platform.
Peter Meany, CFSGAM’s head of global listed infrastructure (pictured left), said the Russell appointment was a major boost to the fund’s distribution and would “open some doors” not just in North America but also in Europe.
“Institutions who are advised by Russell will now be very much more open to us as a manager, so I think there will be some opportunities there,” said Meany.
CFSGAM launched its infrastructure funds in 2007 and now manages around US$2 billion in globally listed infrastructure, with an uptick in institutional inflows more than doubling funds under management in the last 18 months.
The US$500 million in fresh funds represents 40 per cent of the new funds Russell has raised for its multi manager platform, Meany said.
Since inception, CFSGAM’s flagship infrastructure fund has outperformed its benchmark – the S&P Global Infrastructure Index – by 19 per cent and surpassed the MSCI World Index by 28 per cent.
Meany sees infrastructure continuing the “good run” it has had over the last 12 months, but warned of regulatory risk.
“We’ve always talked about the ability for infrastructure to deliver structural growth and inflation protection, and I think those two qualities will remain important this year,” he said.
“The areas where we are cautious are where there are political events coming up, such as elections in Italy and also Australia, because politics has had a big impact on this area in the past.”
