Barclays Wealth reissues Emerging Markets Optimiser

Barclays Wealth is launching the fourth issue of its mould-breaking Emerging Markets Optimiser, as investors continue to seek alternative ways to access high growth but volatile investment areas.

A pioneering investment in the retail space, the Optimiser - which offers protected exposure to emerging markets - has proved very popular since its initial launch in February 2008, attracting more than £50m into its first three tranches.

The latest issue, which opens today, retains the Eastern European option introduced in June, offering a return based on the performance of two indices: the RDX, which comprises Russian shares quoted on the London Stock Exchange, and the CECE Traded Index, which is representative of the shares in the Polish, Hungarian and Czech stock markets.

As with the more broadly focused Global option - linked to the iShares MSCI Emerging Markets Index Fund, an ETF providing exposure to 22 developing markets including the BRIC countries, South Korea and South Africa - the Eastern European option employs a risk-adjusting strategy to determine a daily participation level to the performance of the underlying markets. When perceived market risk is high, typically during periods of high volatility, the participation falls, and when risk is deemed lower, participation levels increase.

Both options have five-year terms, at the end of which investors receive the investment return plus their initial capital.

Colin Dickie, director, Barclays Wealth, says: "When launched many said that the risk adjusting mechanism was too difficult to understand but there is clear evidence that this unique feature is starting to find its mark. With three issues behind us, we are seeing increasing numbers of IFAs starting to use this product, which we believe is a genuine alternative to traditional fund based investments."