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EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: Cathay Conning Asset Mangement's CEO Spells Out Convictions On Asia
Chrissy Coleman
6 March 2013
Cathay Conning Asset Management may be a new kid on the Asian block, having just received its licence last February but this firm looks beyond its one year of age, already overseeing $1 billion in assets under management. The firm is a recent joint venture between Taiwan's Cathay Financial and US-based Conning Asset Management, which between them have approximately $260 billion in global AuM – a more than comfortable platform to work from. The asset manger's speedy start has happened under the guidance of chief executive, Mark Konyn. He joined in April 2012, bringing with him over 14 years of leadership experience from RCM, (owned by Allianz Global Investors) where he lead the Asia-Pacific investment business in Hong Kong, Japan and Australia. WealthBriefingAsia spoke with Konyn in an exclusive interview to find out what Cathay Conning has to offer, highlighting its conviction for Asian, especially Chinese, equities. A taste of Asia Currently, Konyn and his team of 18 are “slowly incubating” the firm’s strategies and “building up our track record”. He spoke of three distinct strategies, each focusing on a different aspect of investing in Asia. The first is an Asia high dividend strategy which Konyn said appeals to long term investors looking for broad-based exposure in the region, excluding Japan. It tends to cover 70-80 names, focusing on companies that can “sustain themselves through cycles and deliver shareholder value”. Konyn and his team pinpoint such champions according to three criteria, companies that practice: “efficient deployment of capital (able to pay high dividends), good governance (broadly speaking), and related to the other two – a reasonable amount of respect to minority shareholders.” The winning formula will enable investors to “achieve that objective of good performance through the cycle, avoid the pitfalls, and give you that broad coverage in terms of beta, with some upside performance and alpha on top,” he said. “At the moment we’re finding opportunities that adhere to one or two, or indeed all three of these criteria , “ Konyn said, adding that certain banks and manufacturers are examples of such promising cyclical companies that are holding his attention. Seeking alpha The second strategy looks at Asia in terms of market capitalisation and sees Konyn take a gamble in the mid and small cap sector. “This one , we started building operations in June, we started funding our portfolios at the beginning of September. We’re only just up and running.” Watch this space.