The Accessor Funds brand is no more. Today Forward Management [see profile] confirmed that it renamed the Accessor Funds as Forward Funds, integrating them into its family.
Forward first unveiled a deal to buy Accessor two years ago. Thanks to that and several other acquisitions (including Kensington and Broadmark), Forward now boasts 32 funds with more than $5.6 billion in assets.
Company Press Release
San Francisco, 26 May, 2010 -- Forward Management, LLC (Forward) has
announced that Accessor Funds are renamed as the Forward Funds. The
announcement completes the transition associated with Forward’s merger
and acquisition activity begun in 2008, resulting in an expanded
family of 32 funds unified under the Forward name, and accounting for
more than $5.6 billion in assets under management. Supplementing its
core plus satellite fund line-up with alternative strategies was the
main thrust behind Forward’s acquisitions. It now includes seven
actively managed alternative strategy funds designed for both retail
and institutional investors.
The expanded Forward Funds family offers investors a wide selection of
asset classes for building diverse portfolios seamlessly. Forward’s
complete line-up also includes asset allocation, core domestic
equity, international equity, fixed income, real estate, emerging and
frontier markets strategies and a money market fund. The funds are
managed by the company’s internal asset management team and through
sub-advisor agreements.
“Investors today demand a broad choice of tools to build
solution-based portfolios and Forward has looked for ways to meet that
demand,” said J. Alan Reid, Jr., CEO of Forward Management. “The main
focus of our search for acquisitions and partnerships has been to add
to our fund line-up alternative strategies, which have emerged as key
building blocks of investment portfolios in a changed investment
climate. Now that we have completed bringing these new funds into our
family, I am pleased that the shareholders of Forward Funds, as well
as those formerly under the Accessor and Kensington names have
seamless access to all strategies,” he added.
The rebranding of Accessor Funds to the Forward name comes after the
June 2008 announcement of the Forward agreement to acquire
Seattle-based Accessor Funds. The Accessor Funds expanded Forward’s
fund offerings in asset allocation strategies, as well as in
alternatives strategies with the Strategic Alternatives Fund and
Frontier Markets Fund, which was launched after the acquisition.
Accessor was one of the unique providers of investment strategies to
bank trust departments, and the acquisition has opened that
distribution channel to all Forward Funds.
Forward’s most recent strategic investment in New York- based
Broadmark Asset Management and the launch of the Forward Tactical
Growth Fund epitomizes the firm’s leadership in the alternative asset
class. Launched in September of 2009 and sub-advised by Broadmark,
the Tactical Growth Fund provides investors with an access to a
long/short tactical strategy that strives to participate in the upside
of the market while limiting the downside.
In February 2009, as a result of Kensington Funds acquisition, Forward
also added four real estate focused funds and Kensington’s portfolio
management team with a dedicated expertise in specialty and
alternative real estate strategies, including a Global Infrastructure
Fund.
The Accessor acquisition, combined with the acquisition in August of
2008 of the San Francisco-based retail division of Berkeley Capital
Management, LLC also established internal asset management
capabilities at Forward and further expanded its Separately Managed
Accounts operation.
About Forward Management, LLC
Forward Management, LLC, based in San Francisco, is the investment
advisor to the Forward Funds, a family of 32 mutual funds. The firm
also markets a range of separately managed account strategies. Forward
offers institutional money managers, financial advisors and individual
investors access to industry leading investment managers, investment
products and services. The firm specializes in identifying managers
who have long track records of managing assets in specific investment
disciplines and asset classes. More information on Forward Management
and the Forward Funds can be found at www.forwardmgmt.com.
You should consider the investment objectives, risks, charges and
expenses of the Forward Funds carefully before investing. A prospectus
with this and other information may be obtained by calling (800)
999-6809 or by downloading one from www.forwardfunds.com. It should be
read carefully before investing.
An investment in the U.S. Government Money Fund is not insured or
guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other
government agency. Although the Fund seeks to preserve the value of
your investment at $1.00 per share, it is possible to lose money by
investing in this Fund.
Investing in foreign securities, especially emerging markets, will
involve additional risks including exchange rate fluctuations, social
and political instability, less liquidity, greater volatility and less
regulation. Funds that concentrate in a particular industry will
involve a greater degree of risk than a fund with a more diversified
portfolio. Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) funds will be subject
to a higher degree of market risk because of concentration in a
specific industry, sector or geographic sector. Risks also include
declines in the value of real estate, general and economic conditions.
The Global Infrastructure Fund concentrates its investments in
infrastructure-related entities and therefore has greater exposure to
the potential adverse economic, regulatory, political and other
changes affecting such entities. The Frontier Markets, Global
Infrastructure and Strategic Alternatives are non-diversified funds.
An investor will indirectly bear the expenses of the funds’ underlying
investments. The underlying investments of the Frontier Markets,
Strategic Alternatives and Tactical Growth Funds (such as Exchange
Traded Funds (ETFs), futures and options on securities, securities
indexes and shares of ETFs) involve heightened risks related to
liquidity, increased volatility and unfavorable fluctuations in
currency values. The underlying international and real estate
investments will also be subject to economic or political instability
in the U.S. and other countries, credit risk and interest rate
fluctuations. Investors will indirectly bear the expenses of the Funds
underlying investments. The Funds use of short selling and derivatives
involves additional risks and transaction costs, and creates leverage,
which can increase the volatility of the Fund. When investing in
bonds, you are subject, but not limited to, the same interest rate,
inflation and credit risks associated with the underlying bonds owned
by the Fund. Mortgage-backed securities are subject to prepayment and
extension risk and therefore react differently to changes in interest
rates than other bonds. Small movements in interest rates may quickly
and significantly reduce the value of certain mortgage-backed
securities.
There are risks involved with investing, including loss of principal.
Past performance does not guarantee future results, share prices will
fluctuate, and you may have a gain or loss when you redeem shares.
The Forward Tactical Growth Fund was launched on September 14, 2009,
and has a limited operating history.
Forward Funds are distributed by ALPS Distributors, Inc.
J. Alan Reid, Jr. is a registered representative of ALPS Distributors,
Inc.
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