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LONDON (Standard & Poor's) Aug. 19, 2008--Standard & Poor's Ratings Services
said today that it assigned its highest principal stability fund rating of
'AAAm' to the subfund of Robeco Liquidity Funds – Ethias Euro Liquidity Fund
Acc. The assignment of this rating coincides with the launch of the fund
today.
The rating is based on Standard & Poor's analysis of the fund's credit
quality, liquidity, market price exposure, and management.
Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V., forming part of the Robeco
group and fund sponsor of the Robeco Liquidity Funds – Ethias Euro Liquidity
Fund Acc, has established the fund in conjunction with a partnership with
Ethias Bank Belgium (not rated) to offer institutional investors a high level
of current income and daily liquidity, as is consistent with the preservation
of capital.
The assigned rating reflects the fund's extremely strong capacity to
maintain principal stability and to limit exposure to principal losses due to
credit, market, and/or liquidity risks.
The subfund will be managed by an experienced team of investment
professionals, at Paris-based Robeco Gestions SAS, which is responsible for
managing approximately €3.5 billion of money market assets, and is a division
of the asset management arm of Cooperatieve Centrale Raiffeisen-Boerenleenbank
B.A. (Rabobank Nederland) (AAA/Stable/A-1+).
The investment team operates under conservative investment practices and
strict internal controls to meet the fund's objectives. The Ethias Euro
Liquidity Fund Acc subfund will invest in a highly diversified portfolio of
high-quality, short-term securities and money market instruments including
commercial papers, certificates of deposit, and bank deposits.
The fund will maintain strong credit quality standards by investing all
assets in securities or with counterparties rated at least 'A-1' by Standard &
Poor's, or deemed to be of equivalent credit quality. To enhance the
portfolios' liquidity and diminish sensitivity to changing interest rates, a
weighted average maturity of 60 days or less will be maintained. The Ethias
Euro Liquidity Fund Acc subfund offers an accumulating net asset value per
share and will be managed so as to maintain a 'AAAm' principal stability fund
rating. Standard & Poor's will review pertinent fund information and portfolio
reports on a weekly basis as part of its surveillance process.
Created on April 3, 2006, Robeco Liquidity Funds has been established as
an open-ended investment fund in the legal form of an investment company with
variable capital (SICAV, or "société d'investissement à capital variable") in
accordance with part I of the Luxembourg law dated Dec. 20, 2002, relating to
undertakings for collective investments. Robeco Luxembourg S.A. has been
designated to act as investment manager and administrator, while distribution
will be undertaking by Ethias Bank Belgium. Rotterdam-based Robeco
Institutional Asset Management B.V. will perform the duties of investment
adviser for the subfund; and RBC Dexia Investor Services Ltd.
(AA-/Stable/A-1+), a joint venture equally owned by Royal Bank of Canada
(AA-/Stable/A-1+) and Dexia Banque Internationale à Luxembourg
(AA/Negative/A-1+), will act as custodian and administration agent.
Ratings information is available to subscribers of RatingsDirect, the
real-time Web-based source for Standard & Poor's credit ratings, research, and
risk analysis, at www.ratingsdirect.com. It can also be found on Standard &
Poor's public Web site at www.standardandpoors.com; select your preferred
country or region, then Ratings in the left navigation bar, followed by Credit
Ratings Search. Alternatively, call one of the following Standard & Poor's
numbers: Client Support Europe (44) 20-7176-7176; London Press Office (44)
20-7176-3605; Paris (33) 1-4420-6708; Frankfurt (49) 69-33-999-225; Stockholm
(46) 8-440-5914; or Moscow (7) 495-783-4017.
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