Investment Philosophy

"We do not invest in funds – we invest in fund managers”

Since 1994, Sauren has relied on a unique investment philosophy focusing on the fund manager. In numerous personal meetings with fund managers every year and the experience from over 8,000 meetings, Sauren analyses promising investment opportunities for the future.

At first glance, finding the right fund is easy. Past performance is easy enough to quantify. To understand how success is achieved and whether it can be replicated over time requires a fundamental analysis of the decisive factor governing future performance – the fund manager and their investment philosophy.

Since 1994, Sauren has focused on the unique investment philosophy: "We invest in fund managers – not funds". In 300 interviews each year with fund managers, we analyse fund managers' personalities and skills, using the experience we have gained from over 8,000 such meetings. Is our success the result of careful analysis and strategies? Or has the fund manager merely benefited from a favourable environment? These meetings and the qualitative analysis of their philosophy and strategy result in a comprehensive profile, with a detailed evaluation of the fund manager’s qualities.

Ongoing monitoring and interpretation of the environment for volume also plays a central role. (The smaller the fund, the more flexible the manager can be in their decisions.) In addition, where the managed assets are small, investment ideas can be implemented without impacting the investment universe. A small fund allows experienced fund managers to generate substantial excess return compared with the market index.

With Sauren ESG Scoring, which focuses on the fund managers' decision-making and investment processes, a unique systematic assessment for the consideration of sustainability aspects has also been established.

The Sauren Group has successfully implemented this investment philosophy in managing for more than 25 years. The impressive long term performance and numerous awards show that people-based analysis pays off across all investment segments and strategies.

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