Manager focus: Ian Williams
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Charteris Treasury Portfolio Managers launched a gold fund earlier this month for Ian Williams, its chief executive officer. The fund can invest in exchange traded certificates (ETCs), exchange traded funds (ETFs), gold bullion or shares in gold mining companies.
It is structured as an onshore non-Ucits retail scheme (Nurs) Oeic.
Williams says the fund is completely unleveraged, with no powers to go short or hedge gold assets in any way. “The only reason someone would buy this fund is because they want exposure to a rising gold fund. They don’t want me hedging out gold exposure when that is what they have decided to invest in,” he says.
“We made a conscious decision that this fund will give exposure to gold and gold mining shares whether they are going up or down.”
“Most stocks we have been buying are Canadian, and we also have some US and some Australian stocks, but none in South Africa”
Williams can have 10% of the portfolio in ETFs or ETCs, although he says he prefers to invest in gold mining companies as they have greater upside potential. “Mining companies don’t lose the gold they have got, and there is a potential fillip in share prices if they tap into some gold,” he says. There is also the potential for takeover activity in the sector, he adds.
“Most stocks we have been buying are Canadian, and we also have some US and some Australian stocks, but none in South Africa. We are not buying South Africa for two reasons: they have been mining for many years and are finding less and less gold–there are problems with the energy supply, and they are finding lower grade gold–and then there are political problems on top,” Williams says. (article continues below)
When looking at ETFs, Williams says his choice depends on whether the fund is based on physical gold bars or gold futures. “When the oil price moved from $40 to $80 a barrel, you would have made $4 on a futures contract, but you would make $40 on the physical asset,” he says. The same principle is true for gold ETFs, he adds.
The Charteris Gold fund launched in March seeded with £1m, and has grown its assets to £6m in two weeks, Williams says.
