Lazard debuts listed private markets fund
Lazard Asset Management has launched a listed private markets fund which will give retail investors access to private credit, as well as private equity, infrastructure, and real estate.
The Lazard Listed Private Markets Fund will be run by Lazard’s discounted assets team, which has managed the firm’s existing global, international and emerging markets discounted asset strategies for more than 30 years.
It will invest in listed companies on major global exchanges whose long-term performance is linked to private markets. This will include investment trusts, closed end funds, business development companies and REITs, as well as private market asset managers.
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The fund aims to deliver long-term capital growth with income as a secondary component of total returns. It will have between 25 and 35 holdings. The fund will have daily liquidity, making it more accessible for retail investors.
“The discounted assets universe has provided a source of attractive opportunities for Lazard’s clients for decades,” said Andrew Lister, director and portfolio manager responsible for the Lazard Listed Private Markets Fund.
“The launch of the Lazard Listed Private Markets Fund reflects a natural extension of our existing strategies and is a solution for investors seeking diversified exposure across private markets, with the benefits of regular liquidity.
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“The global universe of opportunities in which this new fund will invest is hugely inefficient, lending itself to a highly attractive approach employed by an experienced and engaged investment team.”
The fund’s investment strategy will focus on identifying companies that trade at a discount to their long-term intrinsic value.
Lazard will also seek to generate additional value through “constructive engagement with the boards and management of underlying companies”, the firm added.
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