Rockefeller Asset Management, the asset management arm of Rockefeller Capital Management, today announced it has launched its fifth equity UCITS fund, the Rockefeller US Small Cap Equity ESG UCITS with an initial seed investment of $42m.
This expands the firm's available suite of ESG-focused investment solutions available to non-US investors, which currently includes both U.S. and Global Large Cap ESG equity strategies as well as a Climate Solutions strategy, all available to the European market through the Rockefeller Capital Management UCITS ICAV platform.
The Fund's strategy combines the portfolio management team's approach of investing in quality small cap companies with durable business models and enduring growth with Rockefeller Asset Management's ESG Improvers philosophy, which seeks to identify companies that are improving their ESG footprint and utilizes shareholder engagement in an effort to generate uncorrelated alpha over the long term. The Fund promotes environmental and social characteristics pursuant to Article 8 of the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation ("SFDR").
As a firm, Rockefeller Asset Management has a 34-year history managing small cap strategies and four decades of ESG leadership. The strategy is currently managed by Lead Portfolio Manager for U.S. Small and SMid Cap Strategies, Jason Kotik, CFA, and Associate Portfolio Manager, Tim Skiendzielewski, CFA. Kotik and Skiendzielewski have over 40 years of combined experience in small cap investing and prior to joining Rockefeller, worked together for over a decade managing several U.S. Small Cap strategies at abrdn.
"The launch of the Rockefeller US Small Cap Equity ESG UCITS will extend our ability to provide our expertise to an additional investor base outside of the United States," said Casey Clark, President and Chief Investment Officer of Rockefeller Asset Management.
"We are pleased to have launched this fund, which we believe will provide European investors with access to a quality-focused U.S. small cap solution," said Chip Montgomery, president of Rockefeller Asset Management International. "Leveraging our decade plus track record in this strategy, we believe this ESG integrated, Article 8 compliant, small cap vehicle, driven by our seasoned portfolio management team, will be a truly differentiated offering in the region and demonstrates Rockefeller Asset Management's ongoing commitment to European investors."
"We believe Rockefeller's ESG Improvers philosophy and engagement approach can have a particularly meaningful impact on small cap returns and is a great complement to our quality-based investment philosophy," added Kotik.
The Rockefeller US Small Cap Equity ESG UCITS is available to institutional and retail investors in certain European markets, featuring a founders' share class with favorable economics and terms for select early-stage investors, and is available for passporting into many European countries.
