The US Securities and Exchange Commission has approved Australia-based Blue Sky Alternative Investments’ application to form a limited liability company in the United States.
Blue Sky national relationships manager Vaughan Henry said the approval opened the US market to Blue Sky, which operates a hedge fund, as well as private equity, water rights and real estate funds.
“It’s the legal framework that allows us to market our products in the US,” Henry told InvestorDaily.
Blue Sky is slated to start trading on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) on 24 January under the ASX code BLA.
In Australia, Henry said Blue Sky funds were on the approved product lists (APL) of nine dealer groups and platforms were the next cab off the rank.
“We’re expecting that by the end of February we’ll be on three if not more platforms. That helps the adviser. It removes a roadblock from using the product,” he said, adding Blue Sky was finalising agreements with the platform providers.
He said one platform would be a major vehicle, another would be mid-sized that operated in the independent financial adviser space, and a third would be small.
Also from February, Blue Sky will price its Apeiron Global Macro Trust daily, rather than monthly.
The hedge fund is managed by David Hobart, who has returned 78.7 per cent since inception in 2006, or an annualised 10.5 per cent, according to the fund’s fact sheet.
“If we can give [advisers] daily liquidity on their APL and their platform, with the performance that David’s had in that fund in the last five years, it’s a standout solution for them,” Henry said.
Brisbane-based Blue Sky has about $180 million under management. When it unveiled its $7.5-million initial public offering late last year, it included in its prospectus plans to expand its investor base offshore.
