Change of name for Royal London UK Special Situations Fund

Royal London Asset Management (RLAM) announces a change of name for the Royal London UK Special Situations Fund, a sub-fund of Royal London Equity Funds ICVC.

From 21 January 2011, the fund will be known as the Royal London UK Opportunities Fund. This change is being made to better reflect the fund's investment process. The reference to special situations will also be removed from the fund's investment objective.

There will be no change to the way the fund is managed as a result of this development. With a concentrated "best ideas" portfolio of 30-40 holdings drawn from across the market cap spectrum, manager Derek Mitchell's high conviction approach will continue to focus on identifying the key macro drivers for the UK economy. From here, he may take significant overweight or underweight sector positions relative to the fund's benchmark, the FTSE All-Share index, while placing particular emphasis on earnings momentum in individual stock selection.

In November 2010, RLAM also launched an income share class of the fund for institutional investors. This development was in direct response to client demand and has been met with significant interest.

Managed by AA Citywire rated Derek Mitchell since launch in July 2007, the £472.49m Royal London UK Special Situations Fund has achieved consistently strong returns, outperforming its IMA UK All Companies peer group by 4.76% and 16.21% over one and three years respectively.

Ian Goulsbra, RLAM's Head of Wholesale Relationships, commented: "We have seen significant interest in the fund from the investment community as a result of its excellent performance and Derek's undoubted fund management skills. We believe the change of name to Royal London UK Opportunities more closely reflects Derek's investment universe and we look forward to seeing further interest in his high conviction approach."

Derek Mitchell added: "The UK Special Situations Fund has always been an expression of my best ideas from across the UK equity market, delivered in a tightly focused, concentrated portfolio. I believe the changes being made will make it easier for investors to understand my investment objective."