KB Asset Management "KB Dollar Asia Bond Fund Surpasses 50 Billion KRW in Assets Under Management"

[Asia Economy Reporter Kum Boryeong] KB Asset Management's 'KB Dollar-denominated Asia Bond Fund' has surpassed 50 billion KRW in assets under management.

KB Asset Management announced on the 20th that the KB Dollar-denominated Asia Bond Fund, launched in June last year, attracted over 30 billion KRW last year and more than 20 billion KRW this year.

This is analyzed to be due to a strong preference for safe assets amid volatile market conditions combined with the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19). A KB Asset Management official explained, "In the context of economic recession and low interest rates, investors' needs for 'stable yet slightly higher returns than interest rates' have been reflected," adding, "While more than 3 trillion KRW flowed out of overseas equity funds last year, 4.4 trillion KRW flowed into overseas bond funds."

The KB Dollar-denominated Asia Bond Fund is a fund of funds investing in 'Lo Funds-Asia Value Bond,' managed by the global asset manager Lombard Odier. It primarily selects and invests in dollar-denominated corporate bonds issued by high-quality companies in the Asia region. The recent six-month return was 5.49%, which is 3.3 percentage points higher than the Asia bond category average of 2.19%. As of the end of last month, this Lombard Odier fund has delivered steady performance since its inception in January 2013, with returns of 62% overall, 16% in the past year, 26% over three years, and 44% over five years. It has also been rated top-tier by global fund rating agencies such as Morningstar, Lipper Leaders, and CITYWIRE.

Park Inho, Head of Retail Division at KB Asset Management, stated, "As the economic recession continues and COVID-19 spreads, individual investors' interest in bond products is increasing," and explained, "In a low interest rate environment, dollar-denominated Asian bonds, which offer relatively higher interest and abundant liquidity, are emerging as attractive investment targets."