By combining global, high-conviction credit selection with defensive trades, we aim to generate strong capital returns and an attractive level of income.
We exploit opportunities across the ratings spectrum in the US, Europe and emerging markets.
We strive to shield our return-seeking positions using an array of trades with the potential to reduce losses.
We seek robust capital returns and an attractive, consistent yield.
Global, high-conviction, long-only positions balanced by defensive trades helps to achieve a high level income.
A skilled, integrated team whose principal members have worked together since 2004.
Propriety analytical tools and engagement help us ESG risks and deliver sustainable returns.
Exposure to the team’s best long-only credit investments, combined with strategies that defend against market volatility, should generate positive absolute returns through the cycle. In seeking to achieve this, the fund is split into two Multi-Strategy Credit buckets:
Identifying outperforming credit investments requires a broad mandate. The team researches the US, Europe and the emerging markets to exploit differences in the valuation and return prospects of securities.
Crucially, this universe enables them to avoid chronically overvalued sectors and access better liquidity.
Finding a good credit name, however, is not enough. The team believes that security selection is equally as important as issuer selection, given the varying risks and return potential of different securities within each issuer’s capital structure. Exploiting such relative value is core to generating positive returns.
Defensive trades, which include outright short, curve and capital structure trades, aim to defend the portfolio’s performance in down markets.
Fraser Lundie
CFA, Head of Hermes Credit and Lead Portfolio Manager
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Fraser joined the international business of Federated Hermes in February 2010 and is Head of Credit and lead manager on the range of credit strategies. Prior to this, he was at Fortis Investments, where he was responsible for European high yield credit. Fraser graduated from the University of Aberdeen with an MA (Hons) in Economics; he earned an MSc in Investment Analysis from the University of Stirling and is a CFA charterholder. In 2017, Fraser joined the board of CFA UK, a member society of the CFA Institute. He was featured in the Financial News’ ‘40 Under 40 Rising Stars of Asset Management’, an editorial selection of the brightest up-and-coming men and women in the industry, and in 2015 Fraser was named as one of the top 10 star fund managers of tomorrow by the Daily Telegraph. In 2016, Citywire Americas named Fraser number one in their global high yield manager review, and InvestmentEurope and Investment Week both named the Hermes Multi Strategy Credit Fund top global bond fund at their respective 2017 Fund Manager of the Year Awards.
Andrey Kuznetsov
CFA, Senior Portfolio Manager
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Andrey joined the international business of Federated Hermes in January 2013 and is co-portfolio manager on the range of credit strategies. He joined from C-Quadrat Asset Management, where he managed the multi-strategy credit fund and generated investment ideas for a range of absolute return credit funds. Andrey holds an undergraduate degree in Economics from State University – Higher School of Economics in Moscow, where he majored in Financial Engineering and Mandarin Chinese, and a graduate degree from London Business School. Prior to moving to London he worked in various roles in Russia and China. In 2019, Andrey was named in the Financial News’ ‘Top 25 Rising Stars under 40 in European Asset Management’ and has been selected to join the leadership team of Next Generation Fixed Income Portfolio Managers network, a CFA UK initiative to bring together the leading portfolio managers in the UK. Andrey is a native Russian speaker and CFA charterholder.
