AI Hedge Awards 2017

18 Acquisition International - Hedge Fund Awards 2017 Apple Tree Capital Best Independent Asset Management Advisor - Cayman Islands & Best Global Emerging Markets Fund (3 Years): Violet Emerging Markets Fund Apple Tree Capital AppleTree Capital is an independent financial advisor specializing in emerging markets and absolute return strategies. Co-Founder Dimitris Apistoulas discusses the firm’s award winning funds and the strategies driving them to success. Company: AppleTree Capital Email: [email protected] Web: appletree-capital.com HF170079 Established in 2010, AppleTree is an award winning alternative investment manager launched in May 2010 by Michael Nicoletos and Dimitris Apistoulas. The firm’s mission is to deliver exceptional value to its investors by strictly adhering to its philosophy of transparency, liquidity, and risk management. From 2012 onwards its flagship investment product, the award winning Violet Emerging Markets Fund, has outperformed all market and peer indices. The fund is a long-short Emerging Markets Equities Fund focused on Emerging/Developing Europe. The portfolio consists only of listed, liquid equities, bonds and listed derivatives. Since its launch in May of 2010, Violet has significantly outperformed its benchmark, the MSCI EMEA. Within the course of the past 4 years, Violet has returned a net return in excess for 40% vs a -30% drop of its benchmark during the same period. Taking a proactive approach to investing and remaining at the forefront of the latest market developments is crucial to this success, as Dimitris is keen to emphasise. “When it comes to our investing strategy, we at AppleTree Capital have a unique approach. We challenge ourselves and our convictions, constantly, to ensure that all angles are covered. Financial markets are full of “noise”. Therefore, our main effort is to distinguish the real market-moving news that have a real effect in our portfolio vs the usual noise which can only cause intra-day or very short term price fluctuations. “This is achieved by always aiming to remain at the forefront of Emerging Markets developments by employing a comprehensive data gathering process that allows us to pool information from a number of different sources: we use a network of established relationships with local professionals, who provide a first-hand experience of the political and financial developments on ground; we frequently attend road shows and make company visits to speak directly to companies management ourselves; we do extensive in-house research to identify valuation miss-pricings; we review exhaustively company releases and quarterly results, as well as use a diversified array of 3rd party research. Finally, all team members engage in robust monitoring of daily news and macro-level trends, utilizing the latest technology, local feeds, and social media (Bloomberg, Twitter, etc.). “This constant flow of information, as well as our team’s dedication to synthesizing and constantly re- evaluating new developments, provides us with a thorough understanding of all major developments, challenges, and macro trends in the EMEA region. Every morning, before we begin with our daily routine in the office, the fund Managers begin by debating a very radical and contrarian position in the form of a reduction ad absurdum argument: they assume that the existing portfolio is not optimal. They challenge and debate everything: from our macro/political view, to portfolio net exposure, individual positions and sizing. This debate takes place every morning, and does not settle until the managers are convinced that the strategic investment decisions taken are on the right track. While unconventional, this investment mentality has proven to be an excellent modus operandi to revise our assumptions, identify behavioural biases (both personal, but also across the industry), and affirm the strongest of our convictions. This profound process of daily re-affirmation of our fund’s strategy through productive debate lies at the core of our investment philosophy.” In order to provide the very best returns to clients the firm aims to avoid excessive market volatility by effectively managing risk, as Dimitris outlines. “In terms of risk management, we have all the traditional tools in place (such as exposure limits, “When it comes to our investing strategy, we at AppleTree Capital have a unique approach . We challenge ourselves and our convictions, constantly, to ensure that all angles are covered .”