John Hancock recently announced the launch of John Hancock Worldwide Investors, PLC, a Dublin-domiciled UCITS platform designed to extend the reach of firm’s signature manager-of-managers approach. Effective this week, the firm will make available four of its highly rated investment strategies targeted at non-US residents and UCITS model programs of our U.S. distribution partners.
As part of its commitment to this strategic market, John Hancock Investments has hired industry veteran Angela Billick to lead the UCITS product platform. Mrs. Billick will leverage her nearly 20 years of international business development experience in UCITS to serve the needs of investors.
“We are pleased to be able to provide our industry-leading manager selection and oversight capabilities to a new market,” said Andrew G. Arnott, President and CEO. “Our new UCITS platform is a natural continuation of the rapid growth we have experienced in the United States and a reflection of the strong demand we have received from our US broker/dealer partner firms for offshore funds that mirror some of our most popular US mutual funds.”
John Hancock Worldwide Investors, PLC is making available four of the firm’s most sought-after strategies in a choice of five UCITS share classes. These initial strategies are managed by portfolio teams at Manulife Asset Management and GMO Europe LLC:
- John Hancock Strategic Income Opportunities Fund
- John Hancock High Yield Fund
- John Hancock U.S. Large Cap Equity Fund
- John Hancock Global Equity (Ex.-U.S.) Fund
“We believe these four strategies help address today’s investor need for new sources of income, along with proven equity strategies with a measure of downside protection,” said Leo M. Zerilli, CIMA, head of investments at John Hancock Investments. “These are not simply challenges for U.S. investors; these are global challenges.”
John Hancock Investments is a premier asset manager with a unique manager-of-managers approach, whereby the firm builds funds based on investor needs, then searches the globe for the best managers with proven track records to lead those funds. John Hancock Investments has more than 165 professionals specializing in manager research and oversight, vetting over 250 investment strategies annually and overseeing relationships with 72 portfolio teams at 27 elite firms worldwide.
More than half of the world’s mutual fund assets reside outside the United States. The UCITS market is estimated to consist of more than $8 trillion in assets, according to the European Fund and Asset Management Association.