New Parex fund registered

The Latvian financial supervisory body, the Finance and Capital Commission, has registered a new open investment fund of Parex Investment Company and authorized the public issue of deposit certificates, said the commission.

Parex Investment Company board member Aija Klaseva said that the purpose of the new fund - Lat Liquidity Fund - was to offer an attractive alternative to short-term deposits while ensuring investment security.

She said initial value of a certificate of deposit in the LLF was 100 lats (158 euros), and the minimum investment was 10 certificates, or 1,000 lats.

The certificates are to be put on the market on March 24.

According to Klaseva, LLF assets will be invested in Baltic and European securities, including government and bank debt securities and money market instruments denominated in lats.

She said the average term for the fund's investment portfolio will not exceed 12 months, meaning that investment in the LLF will be more profitable than in non-term deposits.

"The fund is meant mostly for corporate clients," said the Parex Investment Company representative.

Latvia already has two money market funds - the Money Market Fund run by Hansa Fondi and Lat Reserve Fund run by Optimus Fondi.

Parex Investment Company is already managing three open- and one closed-end investment funds and also has received a license to manage assets of the state-funded pension scheme.

Also, Parex Bank received permission on March 14 to open a branch in Tallinn. Prior to that Parex Bank only had a representation office in the Estonian capital.

Parex Bank spokesman Viktors Zakis said that only after the bank finds an appropriate branch head and office space in Tallinn will it seek the Estonian central bank's approval for setting up its branch.