Alex Hoctor-Duncan, head of EMEA retail at BlackRock said, the volatility and valuation headwinds currently evident for both equities and fixed income, mean investors need new tools.
“This fund could be an effective diversifier for investors with different target outcomes, including asset allocators looking to build versatile portfolios for their clients,” he said.
Run by the firm’s facto-based strategies group, led by chief investment officer Ked Hogan, the fund invests in a number of style strategies including value, momentum, quality, volatility and carry.
According to Hogan, the firm has been managing money to style factors for years, it currently manages approximately $125bn (£87.8bn, €113.5bn) in factor-based and smart beta strategies across equities, fixed income, commodities, and alternatives.
“This fund reflects our firm’s best thinking in this area, applying insights across a wide range of liquid asset classes in the pursuit of consistent absolute returns.”
The fund has an estimated OCF of 1.38% and a minimum investment of $100,000.