Wilson HTM-owned boutique backer Pinnacle is planning to establish new distribution arrangements with United States-based fund managers, as these managers have found it harder to raise money locally.
"We expect to bring more top quality overseas based managers to Australia," Pinnacle Investment Management managing director Ian Macoun said.
"We find a lot of overseas managers had not thought of Australia before. But now the world has become much more a global market, and it is also not as lucrative back home anymore," Macoun said.
"It also offers them some diversification by generating revenues in a different currency."
Pinnacle has already a distribution arrangement with global equities fund manager Capital International, and Macoun hopes to secure more of these contracts.
"Our proposition to them is to partner with a local player who knows the market and has access to distribution. If you come to Australia you need to do it properly," he said.
"We are looking at both US and European managers, but the US ones are particular interesting to me," Macoun said.
Pinnacle aims to have only one manager in each asset class category, but Macoun said Pinnacle still had a few gaps to fill, particularly in alternatives.
"Super funds are looking to diversify their holdings. There are some voices that say the portion of Australian equities in portfolios will reduce a bit."
Macoun saw potential in categories such as global macro, or currency.
In the alternative space, Pinnacle already has boutique quant manager Plato. The fund has recently attracted new mandates, after suffering a difficult period during the crisis.
"During the GFC all quants hit a wall, but we think quant is on the verge of a resurgence. Some of the smarter clients say: 'we need to be there for the resurgence.'"
Plato runs a 130/30 Australian equities fund and also opened an enhanced passive fund six months ago.
Macoun said the enhanced passive fund was particularly good for investors focussed on after-tax results.
The fund has only just opened and attracted a few tens of millions, Macoun said.
Pinnacle's overall funds under management have grown to more than $10 billion at the end of March this year.
