Toronto-based Mavrix Funds Ltd. has launched its new Mavrix Global Fund. Portfolio manager to the fund is Pictet International Management Limited, Swiss-owned, but based in the U.K.

“Pictet’s investment team covers all asset classes and we’re thrilled to be working with them,” says Paul Taylor, executive vice president and COO of Mavrix Funds.

The portfolio composition of the new fund, which is in the Global Equity asset class, will be 50 global equities. The investment style, which is one of the features the portfolio managers are most proud of, is described as proactive and opportunistic style management — the fund will not be restricted to labels.

“We are not constrained by labels. If the stock looks good we’ll buy it. There is a certain amount of creative tension involved in choosing stocks but at the end of the day we’re choosing the best,” says Sam Perry, senior portfolio manager in London at Pictet. Two other senior portfolio managers will assist Perry, they are Mark Boulton and Aristotelis Vatis, both in London.

Using an integrated approach to its investment methodology, Pictet will be combining top-down and bottom-up components.

“We start with a world view, what it’s going to be doing over the next six months. Then we use discipline, we don’t get over excited about stocks. We buy a stock because we believe in it, we don’t buy it just because it’s big,” he says.

Two stocks that are currently in favour with the fund manager include Placer Dome, a mining stock, and Macquarie Infrastructure Group, a utilities stock. However, Perry says the company is not embarrassed by the fact that the portfolio turnover rate is extremely high at 200%.

“Once a stock has reached its valuation, there’s no point holding on to it any longer. If there’s money on the table, we’ll take it,” he says.

The new Mavrix Global fund is available through the advisory channel. The minimum investment is $500. The fund is RSP available as foreign content only. More information can be found at www.mavrixfunds.com.