There are lots of funds that invest in technology, there are lots of investors who are looking at smart cities, but there is a dearth of funds that focus on this particular area. Maybe this is set to change with a new fund from Pictet. Companies, and their CTOs, who are looking at this area, of ways to dovetail their own technology plans with smart cities, would benefit from seeing how funds are embracing this opportunity and the areas they are focusing on. In a recent report, Barclays expands on the appeal of smart cities to investors, but when it talks about actual funds that concentrate on this major opportunity in the making, the list feels short. When you scan Google, looking for funds that specialise in smart cities, the search results are even less relevant than normal. Pictet may be changing that. It has revealed its UCITS-compliant Pictet-SmartCity fund, which it says: “Aims to capture the strong growth potential of companies finding smarter solutions to the challenges posed by rapidly increasing urbanisation.” >See also: Creating a smart city needs collaboration and open infrastructure It describes the fund “as a global thematic equities strategy that aims to exploit the powerful trends driving urbanisation.” It says that “its objective is long-term capital growth by investing in companies around the world that are helping to develop the cities of tomorrow.” Maybe, if we could fast forward the clock all the way to tomorrow, we would have a better feel for which cities fall into that category. Fortunately, Pictet did give us more details on what that means: It said that the companies it invests in will be active mainly, but not exclusively, in the following areas: >Seen also: The collaborative city: How the private sector can advance smart cities Up to now, investing in smart cities via funds was usually less precisely targeted than the approach taken by Pictet. Barclays, for example, when it looked at smart city investment, talked about the Baillie Gifford Global Discovery fund, which it says “holds Tesla in its top ten holdings, and almost a third of the fund is invested in technology stocks.” It also cites The Artemis Global Growth fund which “also has exposure to a number of automotive and technology companies,” and Polar Capital Technology Trust which “also holds a number of the key players in the sector, including an 8.2% in Alphabet (the holding company for Google), which has a stake in Uber.” VIDEO It all feels rather hit or miss, not so much smart cities per se, but just tech – an example perhaps of how, up to now, investing specifically into companies that are enabling smart cities has largely been the preserve of specialist private investment vehicles. But the speed with which asset managers embrace smart cities in important. Companies, and their CTOs, who are looking at this area, of ways to dovetail their own technology plans with smart cities, would benefit from seeing how funds are embracing this opportunity and the areas they are focusing on. >See also: The UK’s current smart city developments examined Pictet itself said that the fund will target three types of companies: The manager of the strategy is Ivo Weinöhrl, CFA, Senior Investment Manager, who is supported by Lucia Macaccaro, Investment Manager. The team will adopt “the same active management process applied to all Pictet AM’s thematic strategies; high conviction portfolios composed of companies with high exposure to the theme.” “Cities are having to adapt to manage rapidly growing populations while seeking to reduce their environmental impact. This is creating abundant investment opportunities for our clients” said Ivo Weinöhrl. “We believe that the new addition to the thematic franchise will offer an original investment proposition, underpinned by the powerful long-term trends of demographic change, economic growth, sustainability and technological progress.” >See also: Smart city conferences in 2018 Nominations are now open for the Women in IT Awards Ireland and Women in IT Awards Silicon Valley. Nominate yourself, a colleague or someone in your network now! The Women in IT Awards Series – organised by Information Age – aims to tackle this issue and redress the gender imbalance, by showcasing the achievements of women in the sector and identifying new role models
Asset management company Pictet has launched the Pictet-SmartCity fund to back companies finding smart solutions to problems faced by increasing urbanisation. The firms it backs will cover transportation and mobility, infrastructure, property and sustainable resources and those building, running and living in the city. The company said it was taking a more precisely targeted approach than smart city investments in the past. Its fund is Undertakings for Collective Investments in Transferrable Securities (UCITS) compliant.