EFG-Hermes Named ‘Best MENA Asset Manager Of The Year’

EFG-Hermes (HRHO.CA), the leading investment bank in the Arab world, is named “Best MENA Asset Manager of the Year” with a total of five wins on the 2012 Zawya MENA Funds Ranking Awards, including three first place finishes for Egypt-based funds and one for a Qatari fund.

The recognition underscores the division’s continued ability to innovate and outperform the market despite challenging conditions.

The Al Massy Fund, which has consistently received awards for outperforming its peers, was named “Best Egypt Balanced Fund,” while the EFG Hermes’ Egypt Fund won “Best Egypt Equity Fund.” The Al Baraka Bank Egypt Fund was named “Best Egypt Equity Islamic Fund,” and the Al Waseela Fund was named, for the first time, “Best Qatar Equity Fund of 2012.”

The prestigious awards on the Zawya ranking are a further testament to the proven track record of strong performance and innovation by the Asset Management Division and add to an impressive list of honours already earned for overall performance in 2012.

“Last year was operationally challenging on many fronts but we managed to top the rankings across all categories with our Egypt-based Money Market, Equity, Balanced and Islamic Funds,” said Nabil Moussa, Head of Asset Management in Egypt. “The diversity of our product offering, as well as the expertise of our outstanding team, has been key to our success over the past year.”

In 2012, the division was named “Egypt Asset Manager of the Year” for the second time in three years at the MENA Fund Manager Performance Awards, which also gave recognition to the Crédit Agricole III Fund as “Money Market Fund of the Year” and the Al Massy Fund as “Balanced Fund of the Year.”

“Over the past 18 months we have worked diligently to revamp the investment process and investment structure within the division, an effort we feel has been proven worthwhile given the high recognition and praise we have received both regionally and locally as we continue to pioneer the industry,” said Kashif Siddiqui, Head of EFG Hermes Asset Management and co-CEO of the Investment Bank.

The performance of EFG Hermes’ funds in the first quarter of 2013 continued to be exemplary, with Money Market Funds achieving the first place ranking with an average return of 10.53% vs. a market average of 10.26%. Equity and Islamic Equity Funds have also topped the Egyptian market in the first quarter of 2013. Equity funds were ranked 2nd through 6th, outperforming the market average by 2.14%, while Islamic Funds achieved the top two positions, outperforming the market average by 1.56%.

“The fixed income team has proven their ability to consistently deliver and outperform the market. I believe our edge lies in our in-depth knowledge of the local market and our ability to identify local market opportunities even during challenging times,” said Khalil El Bawab, Managing Director of the Egypt Fixed Income Division at EFG Hermes Asset Management. “We are now in an excellent position to capture new opportunities as the market begins to recover.”

Led by industry veterans across 3 countries, EFG Hermes Asset Management, the largest on-the-ground team in the region, controlled AUM of more than USD 3.4 billion at the end of 4Q2012. The division provides the most diverse product line in the Arab world with multiple top-ranked funds, and serves a broad range of regional and global institutional, foundation / pension / insurance, and sovereign wealth fund clients. The team manages 17 country-specific and 9 regionally dedicated funds.

The Zawya MENA Funds Ranking – announced by Thomson Reuters – is an independent ranking system and the “MENA Asset Manager of the Year” award is decided through a competitive voting process.