Fund merger – Schroder ISF Middle East Fund
Schroder Investment Management (Europe) S.A. ("Schroder") has announced that it will be closing its Schroder ISF Middle East Fund by way of merger on 21 February 2022.
BACKGROUND TO THE MERGER
Schroder has announced that it will be merging its Schroder ISF Middle East Fund ("the Merging Fund") into its Schroder ISF Frontier Markets Equity Fund ("the Proposed Receiving Fund") on the 21 February 2022. Schroder believes that due to the small size of the Merging Fund in relation to the larger size of the Proposed Receiving Fund, shareholders would benefit from the economies of scales the merger would bring while investing in a fund with a similar investment strategy and risk profile but with a broader investment universe.
THE ACTION WE HAVE TAKEN WITH IMMEDIATE EFFECT FOR OUR DEFINED FUND RANGE PRODUCT PLAN OWNERS
We do not feature the Proposed Receiving Fund in the range and, therefore, instead will switch impacted plan owners into the JPM Emerging Middle East Equity Fund ("the Alternative Receiving Fund). As this is more similar to the Merging Fund, it allows investors to continue to access the Middle East sector.
We are taking action ahead of the Merger Date as Schroder will be imposing a number of dealing cut-off dates for subscriptions and redemptions leading up to the Merger Date.
We have closed the Merging Fund to new business and switches in with immediate effect. Existing investors in the Merging Fund can continue to invest in the Merging Fund until 12 noon (UK time) on 28 January 2022, after which point holdings will be automatically switched, and any regular premium allocation redirected, into the Alternative Receiving fund.
We have written to plan owners, or their appointed investment adviser, impacted by the merger informing them of the action we have taken and their option for switching to a new fund if they prefer. Servicing financial advisers will receive a sample of the letter for their information. Samples of these letters can be found opposite.
| Merging Fund details | Receiving Fund details |
|---|---|
| Schroder ISF Middle East A Acc USD ISIN: LU0314587907 | JPM Emerging Middle East Equity A Acc USD ISIN: LU0210535208 |
| Schroder ISF Middle East A Acc EUR ISIN: LU0316459139 | JPM Emerging Middle East Equity A Acc EUR ISIN: LU0401356422 |
ACTION TO BE TAKEN FOR OPEN-ARCHITECTURE PLAN OWNERS
Portfolio bond investors with shares in the Merging Fund will automatically transfer into the Schroder ISF Frontier Markets Equity Fund on the 21 February 2022. If Plan owners do not wish to invest in this fund, they can complete a dealing instruction and send it to us before the Schroder dealing cut-off date (we would need this before 9am UK time on 14 February 2022) or, if registered for online dealing, complete a deal online in our Online Service Centre. Further details are available in the Schroder notification opposite.