The latest in funds and investment news from across the world.

Markel CATCo Investment Management has confirmed that Rick Montgomerie and Charlie Vaughan, the portfolio managers for its Aquilo Fund, will leave to create an investment manager and fund - Chard Re Investment Management.

Elizabeth Simmons, the fund's underwriter, will also leave to join Chard Re, which is intended to launch on 1 January 2020, Markel said in a statement late last week. 

Markel said that it wants to be a seed investor in Chard Re - subject to the fund reaching a specified level of invested capital and finalising definitive agreements - and take a 12.5-17 per cent ownership.

The parties intend to transfer the assets and liabilities of the Aquilo Fund (existing business and side pockets) to Chard Re, pending investor and regulatory approval. Chard Re will manage the Aquilo Fund run-off.

Markel CATCo launched Aquilo in 2014 as a fully-fronted reinsurance offering distinct from the main retrocessional Insurance Linked Securities offering.
 
Earlier this year, Markel CATCo announced that it will cease accepting new investments in Markel CATCo Reinsurance Fund Ltd, it will not write any new business in future through Markel CATCo Re Ltd, and it will place its existing portfolio in run-off.

Markel CATCo is based in Hamilton, Bermuda and is authorised and regulated by the Bermuda Monetary Authority.

Union Bancaire Privée
Union Bancaire Privée, the Geneva-based private bank, is launching a new strategy on its alternative UCITS platform. Launched in partnership with New York-based alternative investment manager Shannon River Capital Management, U Access (IRL) Shannon River UCITS is a technology-focused long/short fund. 

The new fund will allocate capital from a variety of sectors, focusing on areas where disruptive technological changes have taken place, such as intellectual property, software, media, entertainment, equipment, connectivity and logistics. 

Managing the fund is Spencer Waxman, founder and chief investment officer at Shannon River. He created Shannon River in 2003. At the end of September 2019, Shannon River had close to $550 million under management.

RWC
RWC Partners has renamed its Defensive Convertibles Fund to the RWC Sustainable Convertibles Fund. The change, which will take effect from 30 October, has been made to reflect the fund’s quality focus and awareness of environmental, social and governance issues.

Managed by RWC’s head of convertibles Davide Basile and co-manager Justin Craib-Cox, CFA, the RWC Sustainable Convertibles Fund aims to provide investors with a low-volatility solution which, while participating in equity market upside, will also provide capital preservation.

The unconstrained fund is not benchmarked to an index, which enables Basile and Craib-Cox to run a conviction portfolio focused on bottom-up fundamentals.

The portfolio integrates the team’s ESG process and policy which helps to inform the managers more effectively about the fundamental characteristics of issuers.