Currency headwinds weigh on P2PGI’s NAV return

P2P GLOBAL Investments (P2PGI) saw its net asset value (NAV) return decline in January, which it blamed on “adverse foreign exchange movements”.

The alternative finance-focused investment fund reported a NAV return of 0.45 per cent in January, down from 0.75 per cent in December.

In its January factsheet, P2PGI’s investment manager blamed the lower January NAV return on “adverse foreign exchange movements which reduced the return by 1.44 per cent on an annualised basis (0.12 per cent on January 2019 monthly NAV return), driven by the higher than expected intra-month strengthening of sterling.”

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The NAV was also affected by share buybacks, which contributed 0.07 per cent on the monthly return.

However, the investment manager said that January’s NAV performance was “in line with target” and reflected the ongoing repositioning of the investment trust’s portfolio.

Last month, P2PGI announced that it was transitioning its portfolio towards specialist lending assets. This shift was marked by a new origination relationship with a real estate platform in the US in December 2018.

In January 2019, 50 per cent of the trust’s continuing portfolio was invested in real estate loans, up from 49 per cent the previous month.

By the end of January, the continuing portfolio had increased to 86 per cent, up from 84 per cent the previous month, and the run-off portfolio had been reduced to 14 per cent.

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