New Macquarie fund hangs on ATO decision
Macquarie Bank will roll out a new closed end hedge fund product to retail investors providing it can receive the thumbs up from the Australian Tax Office (ATO).
The product, dubbed the Apollo fund, will be made up of a portfolio of 15 hedge funds. Project and structured finance senior manager Graeme Conway says while the fund will not generate high returns it will aim for stable returns with lower risk.
"We are looking at an absolute return with mid level risk achieved through diversification," Conway says.
The fund will be a closed end product for a period of five year and pay returns annually on a minimum $10,000 investment.
Conway says the investments will be fully funded and capital protected until maturity and is a mark that Macquarie fully believes in the viability of this type of product.
Investors will also be able to loan the minimum amount from the group at 10.5 per cent which Conway says is cheap rate for an loan into a fully protected investment.
Interest on the loan can also be pre-payed and since the product has tax considerations, Macquarie has applied for a product ruling.
It has said that if it receives a negative response over the fund from the ATO it would no longer offer the product but would proceed in all other circumstances.
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