MAIA Asset Management, the boutique set up by ex-Investec Wealth & Investment fund managers, has launched five risk-rated model portfolios.

he West Midlands-based firm was established last year by Laurence Boyle and Rebecca Williams, who took up the roles of chief investment officer and head of research respectively. The duo previously managed the £204 million Investec Assetmaster fund range, which was sold to City Financial in August 2015.

The new range, which targets private clients and independent financial advisers, is made up of:

MAIA Absolute Return – which focuses on capital preservation and targets cash plus returns MAIA Balanced – a balanced portfolio with a bias to equity investments MAIA Balanced Income – a balanced portfolio with a bias to equity income investments MAIA Growth – an equity-focused portfolio targeting medium-term returns MAIA Adventurous – heavily invested in equity and embraces a global thematic approach The underlying fund costs range from 0.69% to 0.99% for active portfolios and 0.27% to 0.37% for smart beta versions. The portfolios also carry a management charge of 0.5% plus VAT and a 0.2% custodian fee.

MAIA is backed by the Opus Group – a business offering professional advisory services to private and corporate clients. Ben Rees, managing director of Opus, joined MAIA as an investment director initially, later taking up the mantle of managing director.

He focuses on relationships with other regulated firms, its partners, introducers and clients.

As part of the deal, MAIA oversees the management of £75 million of Opus’ client assets.

Rees has 13 years’ experience in the industry, having started his career at Barclays Wealth and then Barclays Financial Planning, before establishing Opus Investment Management in 2008.

Content and original article written by Joshua Thurston of Wealth Manager. Full Link here.