CFS expands managed accounts offering

Colonial First State (CFS) has added new options to the CFS Edge platform and Accelerate Series.

T .Rowe Price, CBRE Investment Management, ClearBridge, and Lazard Asset Management can now be found on CFS Edge.

This takes the total number of managed accounts to more than 150. Some $14 billion is housed across the Edge and FirstChoice platforms.

CFS also expanded the Accelerate Series menu with the addition of new portfolio managers AZ Sestante, InvestSense, and Mercer. It also has 21 new managed accounts.

The Accelerate Series is a full-service managed account solution and was made available on the Edge platform in September last year, slated to blend low-cost solutions with sophisticated investment options in a single account, allowing them to service different client segments from a single platform.

CFS executive director of managed accounts Frances Taylor said advisers and their clients can benefit from true diversification by spreading risk across different countries, sectors, and asset classes.

Further, CFS group executive, distribution Bryce Quirk added CFS Edge was designed with managed accounts at its core.

"These new options give advisers and their clients easy direct access to global markets while benefiting from the efficiency of a managed account structure," he said.

"Our successful track record in the global equity SMA space has demonstrated the value we bring to investors, and we welcome the opportunity to make our strategies more accessible," T.Rowe Price head of intermediary distribution for Australia Jonathon Ross said.

"As a leading global asset manager, T. Rowe Price is pleased to extend our investment capabilities to more Australian investors through CFS Edge's managed account platform."