San Francisco-based asset manager Matthews Asia has struck a fund distribution deal with third-party marketer Picton to market the firm’s strategies to investors in Latin America.

Chile-based Picton will distribute and promote 10 of Matthews’ funds to pension funds and institutional investors in Chile, Peru and Colombia, according to a joint announcement from both groups.

‘This partnership reinforces Matthews Asia’s commitment to strengthen relationships with institutional investors in Chile, Colombia and Peru and to deliver best-in-class Asian investment solutions that support the region’s long-term investment needs,’ said Jonathan Schuman, global head of sales and client services at Matthews Asia.

As part of the agreement, Picton will provide due diligence, product information and analysis to institutional investors and act as a ‘liaison point’ between them and Matthews Asia, the announcement added.

The fund distributor will market both the asset manager’s Ucits and US-domiciled funds with an intial focus on the strategies already approved by Chile’s pension fund risk regulator, the Comision Clasificadora de Riesgo (CCR), according to Patricio Mebus, head of mutual funds distribution at Picton.

The Matthews Asia funds already included on the CCR’s approved list are:

• Matthews Asia Dividend;
• Matthews Asia Growth;
• Matthews Asia Innovators;
• Matthews China;
• Matthews India;
• Matthews Japan;
• Matthews Korea;
• Matthews Pacific Tiger;
• Asia ex Japan Dividend;
• and China Small Companies.

‘We look forward to a strong relationship driven by Matthews Asia’s investment capabilities and strong track record and our broad and deep knowledge of institutions in the region,’ said Mebus.

Matthews Asia is an independent asset manager with offices in London, Hong Kong, Shanghai and Singapore, alongside its headquarters in San Francisco. The $30.2bn firm specializes in Asian equities and fixed income sectors for institutional, intermediary and retail investors.

The firm previously had a distribution agreement in Latin America with Santiago-based fund firm HMC Partners. Its strategies are now marketed solely by Picton.

Picton distributes the funds of global asset managers to high-net worth and institutional investors throughout Latin America through a number of similar agreements with

In August of last year, Picton signed an agreement with US manager Federated Hermes to distribute the $629bn firm’s strategies to institutional investors in the region.

The firm also has agreements in place with Morgan Stanley, Barings, Sparx and Kotak and has offices in Peru, Colombia and Chile.