Vertex Capital looking to hedge its bets

At theMoney ManagementFund Manager Of The Year awards in May last year, Sydney-basedVertex Capital Managementtook out top honours in the new category of ‘Alternative Assets’, from finalistsPlatinum Asset ManagementandColonial First State.

For Vertex managing director, Kim Ivey, winning an award that is structured on performance, and not on “size, market share or marketing budgets” made the victory particularly sweet.

“From any fund manager’s perspective, performance is important, but especially from a boutique perspective. It’s a way to differentiate your fund and business from others in the marketplace,” Ivey says.

In that sense, he says the group had a very successful year in 2002, and again in 2003. The group’s gross annual performance over one year to November 30, 2003, was 12.64 per cent, while latest funds under management figures from Assirt sit at $19.26 million.

Looking forward, Ivey says the focus is on “growing the business sensibly, concentrating on what we think we do best and looking to improve what we have”.

The “we” in Vertex Capital Management also includes Craig Turnbull, formerly ofTowerfame, as well as Rebecca Jacques who joined last year from research houseAssirt.

What they do best, according to Ivey, is alternative investment products and innovative styles. The group’s flagship fund is the Relative Value Fund, which is available only to wholesale investors at present, but there are plans to make the fund available to the retail market.

Ivey says Vertex currently works with groups deemed to have appropriate distribution to “wholesale, sophisticated clients”, or that have influence with wholesale investors.

He has also flagged a new fund that the group hopes to distribute to wholesale investors this quarter, and says it does hold some relevance for retail also.

At the end of the day, Ivey says he and his staff really “enjoy what we do”.

“We’ve come from big organisations and enjoy the independence and control. It’s very different, and for some it can take a while to adjust. But if you have confidence in yourself and investors have confidence in you, it can be very fulfilling.”