McTrust eyes Kenya, Nigeria markets

Mctrust, the latest and 39th collective investment scheme licensed by Ghana's Securities and Exchange Commission, will explore the Kenyan and Nigerian markets to grow returns for investors as prices fall on the Ghana Stock Exchange.

The unit trust launched last week will also invest in money markets and other long-term investments, Portfolio Manager Hilary Lomotey said in an interview.

"We have a very solid research team who will see other opportunities in other markets as they present themselves," Lomotey said.

"We've seen some very good opportunities in the Nigerian market. We will take opportunities in the Kenyan market once we see them," he added.

The Ghana Stock Exchange Composite Index has risen about 4 percent so far this year, compared with 79 per cent in 2013. Energy crisis and depreciation of the local currency dampened manufacturing activity while foreign investors were put off by the cedi's weakness against the dollar.

With the stability of the cedi for the past two months, Mctrust will take advantage of the low priced stocks on the Ghana bourse with the expectation that prices will increase next year as the cedi becomes more stable, Lomotey said.

Ghana's cedi, which lost about 26 percent of its value to the dollar this year, began to stabilize after the government raised 1 billion in Eurobonds and also started talks with the International Monetary Fund for a balance of payment support. The country is expecting about $800 million from the IMF by next year, according to Minister of Finance Seth Terkper.

Ghana currently has 22 mutual funds and 17 unit trusts, Adu Anane Antwi, director general of Securities and Exchange Commission said. The collective investment schemes had 445 million cedis under management as of June 30 2014, representing a growth of 48 percent from 2013, he said.

Mctrust's initial public offering opened October 29 and lasts till November 17, Managing Director Kwesi Livingstone said. At 0.1 cedis a unit, the open ended fund seeks to sell 1 million shares during this period, he said.

As at October 29, the unit trust sold 107,000 shares, exceeding the 100,000 minimum required to make the offer successful, Lomotey said.

"We'll invest in high growth equity market stocks," said Lomotey. "We'll blend our portfolio very well to withstand any volatilities."