FSSA Greater China Growth
FSSA Greater China Growth is run by Martin Lau, a senior member of the famed FSSA Investment Managers team, and co-manager Helen Chen. Based in Hong Kong, the managers look for well-managed businesses with good corporate governance across Hong Kong, China and Taiwan. Martin has consistently delivered positive performance and demand for the fund was so fierce that it was closed to new investments for four years. It reopened to new investments in February 2016.
Previously First State Greater China Growth fund.
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Martin Lau is a Managing Partner at FSSA Investment Managers, based in Hong Kong. With over 20 years of investment experience, Martin has been with the firm for more than 15 years, starting as Director of Greater China Equities in 2002. He is the lead portfolio manager for various funds focused on Greater China and the Asia Pacific region. In addition to managing funds, Martin oversees FSSA Investment Managers' team of research analysts and portfolio managers. Prior to joining FSSA, Martin was a fund manager at Invesco Asia, specializing in Hong Kong, China, and Taiwan. He holds both BA and MSE degrees from the University of Cambridge and is a CFA charterholder.
Helen Chen is a Portfolio Manager at FSSA Investment Managers, part of First Sentier Investors. She joined the firm in 2012 and specializes in Greater China equity markets. Helen is the lead manager for the FSSA China Focus strategy and the FSSA China All Cap strategy. She holds a Bachelor of Economics in Finance from Peking University and is a CFA charterholder.
Martin Lau is a Managing Partner at FSSA Investment Managers, based in Hong Kong. With over 20 years of investment experience, Martin has been with the firm for more than 15 years, starting as Director of Greater China Equities in 2002. He is the lead portfolio manager for various funds focused on Greater China and the Asia Pacific region. In addition to managing funds, Martin oversees FSSA Investment Managers' team of research analysts and portfolio managers. Prior to joining FSSA, Martin was a fund manager at Invesco Asia, specializing in Hong Kong, China, and Taiwan. He holds both BA and MSE degrees from the University of Cambridge and is a CFA charterholder.
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Company Description
FSSA Investment Managers is an investment management team within First Sentier Investors, managing a range of Asia Pacific and Global Emerging Market equity strategies on behalf of clients globally. FSSA was awarded the Elite Provider for Equities rating in 2021.First Sentier Investors is a global asset management group focused on providing high-quality, long-term investment capabilities to clients. It brings together autonomous teams of active, specialist investors who share a common commitment to responsible investment principles.
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Quote from the Fund Manager
Even more so in today’s environment, where market volatility and uncertainty abound, the most important criterion for successful long-term investing is a focus on quality – quality of management, quality of franchise and quality of financials.
Martin Lau
Lead Manager
Investment process
The team has an absolute return mindset and invests in quality companies for the long term. It looks for sensible company management and businesses that have both sustainable and predictable growth. The team also has a strong valuation discipline and typically gets most of the fund’s outperformance in falling markets, although the fund can also perform well in rising markets.
Risk
This is a high-risk fund investing in a volatile region. It can invest a small amount in Chinese A-shares. It does, however, also have the flexibility to invest in 'Greater China', notably Taiwan, which is a more defensive market and an area that is used by the team when they are less positive on the shorter-term prospects for Chinese equities. This means the fund tends to be less volatile than most of its peers.
ESG
ESG - Integrated
FSSA takes a different approach to ESG. It believes that “sustainability is not just a label, but a set of values by which we operate”. Its approach places an emphasis on stewardship and the belief that quality managers and good governance should ensure that environmental and social concerns are rightfully addressed. To this end the company places a real emphasis on management engagement and, by asking in-depth questions, and taking a more holistic approach, fund managers build a thorough understanding of the company, its people and its culture. They conduct around 1,500 company meetings per year and also engage with NGOs and organisations such as the WWF. FSSA has an exclusion policy, preventing managers from investing in certain obvious red-flag companies, such as those involved in tobacco, defence and gambling. Other companies that fall outside the exclusion list, but which may still be involved in activities which may not be ESG-compliant, such as a fossil fuel company which is actively transitioning to renewable energy, are heavily debated and scrutinised by the team. Managers also look at third-party ESG ratings but only use them as one part of their research methodology, rather than as a deciding factor, given the nuances of investing in emerging markets.
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