Australian hedge fund seeder Scout Global Funds has joined IMQ as co-seed of Romanesco Capital Management’s systematic trading strategy, the Persistence Fund.

Scout aims to identify and invest in ‘best of breed’ emerging managers worldwide. The firm’s mandate is to allocate to well-researched, innovative and disciplined strategies with smaller assets under management, as these emerging managers often offer a compelling investment case.

Scout’s backing of the Romanesco Fund alongside IMQ provides the new fund with another endorsement and connects it with a complementary group of investor candidates.

Persistence’s portfolio is broadly diversified across 45 liquid futures markets comprising currencies, bonds, equity indices and commodities that are implemented across the different geographical regions on a 24-hour basis with the help of a proprietary developed automated execution algorithm. The algorithmic models look for break-outs from trading ranges and aim to reduce exposure after spikes in volatility.

The trading models can be long, short or flat in each market. As such, Persistence is more selective than most funds in deciding when to be exposed to particular markets.

IMQ’s CEO and Founder, Jeroen Tielman, commented:  “We welcome this development as another step in our ambition to develop a collaborative, global network with institutional investors and like-minded seeders.”

Added Scout director, Oliver Alliker: “We are very pleased to be working with IMQ on a co-seeding of the Romanesco Persistence Program.

“Scout shares the view with IMQ that an exposure to emerging managers can provide investors with added diversification and non correlation.  With the opportunity for strong performance if the processes are in place to conduct detailed due diligence and adequately monitor managers.

“Like IMQ, we have identified Romanesco as a strong prospect. The strength of its short-term asymmetrical strategies are shown by its excellent risk adjusted returns over a difficult period for many of the more established systematic traders,” Mr Alliker said.