With only seven investors, venture capital fund DePfa Romania Money Market Fund has come to manage assets worth $7.5 million, thus ranking second (in terms of assets) among the funds operating on the Romanian market.
The fund’s investors include Daniel Daianu (former Finance minister), Vasile Voloseniuc (former president of Bancorex in the ’90s), his son Catalin Voloseniuc, and Razvan Radu (current vice-president of Raiffeisen Bank).
However, the fund may lose its licence unless it reaches the minimal number of investors (50), by the end of June. The fund was launched eighteen months ago and the National Securities Commission (CNVM) last December extended the deadline by which the fund is supposed to reach the minimal number of investors.
“This time, the Commission’s decision stipulates that the fund will lose its licence unless it manages to gather 50 investors by June,” said Ciprian Ene, CNVM spokesperson.
“We now have more time for advertising. However, it is difficult to attract new investors because of the high value of the fund’s shares,” says Catalin Voloseniuc, president of DePfa Asset Management. One share is worth about 130 million ROL. The fund’s operations are regulated by legislation on venture capital funds, according to which the minimal value of one share must be 100 million ROL, because such funds generally target experienced investors. However, the fund has mainly invested in fixed income instruments (chiefly T-bills), which hold the minimal risk level.
According to Voloseniuc, the fund will reach the number of investors requested by law and DePfa Asset Management aims to push the value of assets up to 20 million dollars this year. The biggest investor in the fund is now the shareholder of the asset management company, Germany’s DePfa Investment Bank, which, according to Voloseniuc, owns more than 99% in the fund’s assets.
DePfa Romania Money Market is operating as an open-end investment fund, but will turn into a closed-end fund when the compulsory number of investors is reached. Also, its shares may be floated.
The fund last year posted 15.6% growth, as compared to the 14.1% inflation rate.
vlad.nicolaescu@zf.ro