The asset management arm of the NLB Group, the largest financial services provider in Slovenia, NLB Skladi has sparked renewed interest from domestic investors seeking to hedge against inflation in a low-returns environment. With interest rates on most savings and deposit accounts still hovering just north of 0%, savers of all sizes have flocked to NLB Skladi in search of alternative investment vehicles.
The asset manager has not disappointed. The firm has set up a number of mutual funds – both fixed and variable income – which it designed and manages in-house with the exception of the popular Japan Fund for which NLB Skladi engaged outside expertise. The firm has been particularly successful in attracting clients from NLB Bank account holders. The upside is considerable, given that around 75% of Slovenian savings are kept passively in deposit accounts.
Founded in 2004, NLB Skladi is one of the country’s youngest asset managers. Even so, the firm has established a solid track record, repeatedly outperforming both local and regional benchmarks. Whilst containing only about 2% of the firm’s total assets under management, the Slovenian Equity Fund has proved exceptionally popular with small investors. As such, the fund has become NLB Skladi’s flagship product that has allowed the firm to draw in new savers and promote its other funds.
The CFI.co judges panel notes that NLB Skladi has invested considerable resources to build a winning team of analysts and fund managers in order to maintain its leading edge. The judges declare SNL Skladi winner of the 2017 Best Value Investment Products and Services Slovenia Award.