Investment management company Prescient Investment Management has launched the Prescient Domestic Balanced Fund, seeded with an initial investment of R200-million.

The fund has a number of unique characteristics, including low-cost access to a variety of South African assets including equity, bonds, infrastructure, clean energy and both private and listed credit.

With a headline fee structure of 45 basis points, the fund is an actively managed product priced as a passively-managed offering.

The fund is designed to provide South African investors with an opportunity to access a diversified portfolio focused on domestic assets. The fund incorporates infrastructure, clean energy projects and credit opportunities alongside traditional equity and debt holdings.

“Our mission has always been to combine insights and proven, predictable processes to create consistent outcomes for our clients. One of the obvious challenges in the market is that the investment universe on the JSE has been shrinking and investors are seeking alternative ways to participate in the economic recovery in South Africa.

“This fund offers access not only to South African equities but a basket of assets that will benefit from South Africa’s economic recovery,” Prescient multi-asset portfolio head Rupert Hare said on January 27.

Prescient specialises in portfolio and risk management strategies where investment decisions are driven by data-driven insights and market expertise rather than external influences.

By including infrastructure, clean energy and private credit in its portfolio, the fund now supports national priorities for sustainable development and energy security, while allowing for exposure to sustainability-linked and environmental, social and governance mandates.

Additionally, its focus on South African private credit offers investors exposure to opportunities in sectors that drive economic inclusivity and growth.

“We are analysing over 170-million data points daily. This understanding of the macroeconomic conditions allows us to build expertise in local asset classes which allows us to build models to extract significant alpha for our clients and gives us a competitive advantage in launching a new domestic fund,” Hare said.