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Bad Homburg, December 13, 2022 - FERI OptoFlex is celebrating its tenth anniversary these days. The innovative investment approach of collecting volatility premiums in the U.S. equity market via exchange-traded options has proven its worth and offers protection against equity market risks even in the current difficult conditions. "For this market environment, we have a relatively stable performance. Through adjustments in trading, efficient processes and direct access to the U.S. derivatives market, we have also been able to contribute to stabilization," explains portfolio manager Daniel Lucke.
The stock market year 2022 has so far been rather unusual for the OptoFlex, as the downward movement on the markets has taken place in several waves. This pattern differs from past crises, which were characterized by rapid drawdowns with equally rapid recoveries. During the "Corona Crash" in the first quarter of 2020, for example, OptoFlex showed that the fund not only had the potential to hedge tail risks in such phases, but even to generate significantly positive returns, contrary to the general market trend. The outlook for the OptoFlex strategy is likely to improve further in the coming 2023. "It is likely that volatility premiums will remain high in the near term, as uncertainty continues to prevail in the markets. Added to this is the rise in interest rates. Under these conditions, we are likely to achieve a clearly positive return again in the medium term. That is why we are sticking to our strategy unchanged," says OptoFlex manager Lucke.
With the launch of OptoFlex 10 years ago, FERI set new standards in the field of alternative investments for professional investors. The investment concept aims at the forecast-free and risk-reduced collection of the volatility premium. Over the years, OptoFlex and other FERI volatility funds have received numerous awards and regularly achieved top rankings. Most recently, OptoFlex was awarded the title of "Best Performing Fund over 7 Years" in the "Volatility Arbitrage" category by The Hedge Fund Journal, winning the UCITS Hedge Awards 2022. Since its initial launch, OptoFlex has performed at 3.47 percent p.a., and to date the fund has collected more than 2 billion euros. The volume of all volatility strategies managed by FERI is around 3.5 billion euros. The team behind OptoFlex comprises a total of four FERI investment professionals - portfolio managers Daniel Lucke, Florian Astheimer, Erik Wille and quant analyst Dr. Albina Unger.