For immediate release – Beirut, April 6, 2017. Always keen to offer high-quality financial advisory services in order to address investors’ particular needs, Banque Libano-Française (BLF) gathered more than 120 clients in a conference under the theme “Opportunities for your capital to grow” followed by a cocktail reception at Sursock Museum, in the presence of Walid Raphaël, Chairman and General Manager, Raya Raphaël Nahas, General Manager, and members of the Management of the Bank.
Walid Raphaël stated in his opening remarks: “In this very turbulent time, it is becoming more and more difficult to take investment decisions and manage wealth. Since the financial crisis of 2008, many private banking clients who have suffered from the collapse of the financial markets have stayed put and have missed the great rally on equity markets. Most of the Lebanese have preferred the safety of bank deposits with high and predictable return. However, some clients are always looking to the merit of diversification while enhancing the return of their portfolio. This is when our advisory services can play their role and help you choosing investment opportunities that fit your profile and meet your expectations.”
Introducing the Private Banking at BLF, Assistant General Manager and Global Head of Private Banking and Wealth Management, Charles Salem, emphasized on “the dedication of BLF private bankers to provide clients with integrated banking services and wealth management solutions, offering them a wide expertise in asset allocation, investment advisory, asset management and capital markets”.
Jamil Koudim, Head of Asset Management, discussed the goal, strategy and performance of the LF Total Return Bond Fund which objective is primarily “the preservation of capital with an aim to generate an optimal risk-adjusted return by maximizing capital appreciation while maintaining low/stable volatility”. LF Total Return Bond Fund is suitable for investors who want to enhance their risk-adjusted return and have a global credit exposure with a focus on Europe, the United States, the Middle East and North Africa.
Alia Moubayed, Director of Geo-economics and Strategy International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), then discussed in a detailed presentation: “The MENA region will benefit from growth pick-up, but its outlook will increasingly depend on reforms implementation amid a low price environment and competitive landscape for capital mobilization”.
Banque Libano Française has recently launched a new fund, the open-ended Lebanon Income Fund (USD) domiciled in the Cayman Islands. The Fund is focused on the Lebanese debt markets and invests mostly in Lebanese Republic Eurobonds but also invests in BDL Certificates of Deposit, T-Bills in LBP, notes in both USD and local currency and debt instruments issued by local institutions. Lebanon Income Fund (USD) aims to provide a fixed income stream while enhancing returns through a dynamic and prudent portfolio management approach. It offers individuals and institutions enhanced returns compared to static return found in other investment vehicles. Subscribers to the Fund benefit from active trading, access to opportunistic prices and to certain instruments which are otherwise inaccessible to individual investors.
The Lebanon Income Fund is suitable for high net worth individuals, insurance companies, corporations as well as retail investors and is available for investment on a monthly basis.