Aberd Asia Inc Company Research (AAIF)

Aberdeen Asian Income Fund (AAIF) was launched in 2005, and over the last 20 years has generated a solid 9.9% annualised NAV total return, which is ahead of the 9.0% per year MSCI AC Asia Pacific ex Japan Index total return. The company’s Singapore-based lead manager and senior investment director Isaac Thong and investment director Eric Chan provide an exposure to current and future leading, reasonably priced, dividend-paying companies across Asia. The region’s income credentials may be underappreciated; since the beginning of the century, more than 50% of Asian total returns have come from dividends. In early 2025, AAIF’s board announced a three-year continuation vote and an enhanced dividend policy based on quarter-end NAV rather than income. With a 17-year record of consecutive higher annual dividends, AAIF is just three years away from becoming a full, rather than a next-generation AIC dividend hero.