7IM eyes EU sovereign debt for unconstrained fund launch

Seven Investment Management (7IM) plans to launch an unconstrained fund which has the flexibility to invest in 100% cash or a range of assets including European sovereign debt.

The CF 7IM Unconstrained fund, which soft-launched last week into the Investment Management Association's 'unclassified' sector, is a non-Ucits retail scheme and can invest across asset classes as well as in shares, debt, active and passive funds.

The fund will be managed by Alex Scott and Camilla Ritchie, marking the first time 7IM has launched an internally managed fund.

The vehicle, seeded by Justin Urquhart Stewart (pictured) marketing director at the firm, and Tom Sheridan who is chief executive, will aim to deliver inflation plus 2% on a three-year rolling basis.

Urquhart Stewart said: ‘This is the first time we are running a fund ourselves and it can invest in anything, such as sovereign debt, standard equities and funds, both active and passive.

‘We may well look at European sovereign debt. That’s the sort of level of unconstrained investment we are looking at.’

He added: ‘Italy, for example. If we think the euro will survive, then there are returns on some Italian debt which are really interesting, as well as Italian index-linked securities.

‘So the breadth of this fund is interesting, which under a normal structure we couldn't’t do.’