The firm said the product is "an attractive investment option for those seeking to improve portfolio diversification, protect from unexpected inflation and participate in the current bullish long-term outlook for the asset class," according to a May 3 press release.
"For many reasons, interest in commodities exposure continues to grow among institutional investors," said Maureen Mitchell, GEAM's president of institutional sales & marketing. "We have actively managed commodities ourselves for the GE Pension since 2006, and we're excited to now bring these capabilities to the marketplace, where there is demand for managers with a consistent investment process and a focus on rigorous risk management."
Portfolio managers Nick Koutsoftas and Ben Ross will run the fund. Geoff Fila, an analyst at the Stamford, Conn.-based firm, will also work on the product.
GEAM said the strategy is benchmarked against the Dow Jones UBS Total Return Commodity Index, and incorporates fully collateralized long and short futures positions in the underlying commodities.
As of March 31, the firm had $120 billion in total assets.
