Richard Pease backing Playtech11 Aug 2017 13:42
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The big interview: Richard Pease
Interview
25 Jul 2017
Richard Pease has an enviable track record of investing in European shares – and the market is now back in fashion
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COMMENT
The big interview: Richard Pease
‘In 30 years of managing European equities, Pease has outperformed the market in 26 of them’
Ben Rossi
Q
Richard Pease has a certain charisma, and an ease of manner that is either deeply persuasive or rather irritating depending on whether it is backed up by real achievement.
And for Pease, it is. In a 30-year career managing European equities, he has outperformed the market in 26 of them.
His style is to appear exceptionally relaxed and at ease in order to place the other party at ease. But his eyes give him away, shrewd and observant; the atmosphere may be relaxed, but he misses nothing.
Pease worked for New Star, Gartmore and Henderson as a European equities manager, before taking the plunge and helping to found CRUX Asset Management.
His style is quite unconstrained, and he defines special situations as ‘the freedom to do the right thing’. Therefore, while he does plough a furrow amongst companies that might be described as ‘controversial’ due to the wider market holding negative perceptions, he does not invest in the absolute bombed-out companies that are the hunting ground of ‘deep value’ fund managers.
Of course, as an investor in European equities, Pease is well used to getting questions about the political and economic environment. He has previously stated that his track record indicates he can operate in the teeth of the most ferocious market gales. He now adds that many of the companies in which he invests have come through the tough economic times of recent years and shown they can thrive. About a third of the revenues in the CRUX European Special Situations fund are in dollars, about a third in euros, and a third are rest of the world. He feels that this makes the fund more global in outlook than is implied by its name.
The veteran fund manager commented that, historically, he tends to avoid IPOs as they often come to the market ‘priced somewhat aggressively’. However, he commented that such has been the wave of new companies coming to the market that a number of opportunities have emerged.
Two of the IPOs in which he invested are Balta Group and Evry. Pease commented, ‘Both of these stocks are not particularly cyclical. Balta sells soft furnishings, and consumers always want those. Around a third of the rugs sold in IKEA are from Balta. The management are good, with a strong track record and a stake in the company.’
Of Evry he commented, ‘This is a software company, and again it is a high-quality business that is
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