Zurich announces partnership with Celeste FM
Zurich Investments and Celeste Funds Management have announced a partnership to distribute Celeste’s Australian Small Companies Fund to the Australian market.
Celeste was selected following a search by Zurich for a smaller companies manager and said it liked the firm’s strong track record and dedicated investment team as well as its strong retail footprint.
Zurich also appointed the firm to take over the management of the existing Zurich Investments Small Companies Fund.
Matthew Drennan, head of savings and investment at Zurich, said: “Celeste Funds Management is a proven manager of Australian smaller companies and an excellent addition to the suite of Zurich Investments strategic partnerships.
“We are excited to welcome the Celeste team as our newest strategic partner managed by Frank Villante and Paul Biddle.”
Villante, chief investment officer at Celeste, said “The Celeste team looks forward to developing a mutually beneficial strategic partnership with Zurich Investments. We believe we can deliver above benchmark returns, from the application of our investment process for the benefit of the client base.”
The Celeste Australian Small Companies Fund returned 6.2 per cent over one year to 31 July, 2019, according to FE Analytics, versus returns of 5.8 per cent by the ACS Equity- Australian Small and Mid Cap sector.
AUTHOR
Laura Dew
Recommended for you
The merger with L1 Capital will “inject new life” into Platinum, Morningstar believes, but is unlikely to boost Platinum’s declining funds under management.
More than half of the top 20 most popular shares bought by advised investors during the first half of 2025 were ETFs, according to AUSIEX data.
At least two-thirds of ETF flows are understood to be driven by intermediaries, according to Global X, as net flows into Australian ETFs spike 97 per cent in the first half of 2025.
Inflows for the first half of 2025 for GQG Partners stand at US$8 billion, but the firm has flagged fund underperformance could be a headwind for future flows.
