Matterhorn Investor Relations: Matterhorn Investment Management

Winner: Best investor relations team

Matterhorn has transformed its investor relations since Scott Stevens joined the team as head of investor relations and marketing from F&C investments in June 2010.

Concentrating on investor relations has never been more pressing, Stevens argues, as during difficult periods such as the financial crisis "people just stop communicating and fill that void with dark thoughts".

It is therefore crucial to fill in any "grey areas" in investors' minds with facts, he says. Since the crisis investors are now asking different questions and demanding more information. Stevens is convinced the companies that can provide this information be able to attract and keep investors.

"Having historically gone through a period where business was reasonably easier to come by, [hedge funds] have got away with some pretty opaque practices. That mood has somewhat shifted right down to password-protected websites. In a bygone era people wouldn't have bothered showing research reports and videos to everyone, whereas my view was to create the most transparent hedge fund we could," Stevens affirms.

Matterhorn contacts its investors every quarter. That is the bare minimum of involvement. On top of this Matterhorn produces monthly newsletters of up to 20 pages and include photos taken by analysts, managers and others while on the road doing research in general and on-site visits.

Matterhorn Investment Management is an emerging market specialist, long/short equity fund manager. Investors are mainly pension funds, endowments, foundations, individuals, family offices and funds of funds. It offers pooled fund strategies as well as tailored products. Assets under management at December 31, 2010 were $631 million.

Stevens has been responsible for introducing a quarterly webinar interviewing fund managers and the investment team. This is then broadcast live, enabling investors to ask their questions directly. It is recorded and sent to those who could not listen in live.

In addition Matterhorn collates extensive country reports and writes on relevant industry topics such as shorting in emerging markets or inflation.

More recently, thought leadership evenings have been organised with speakers such as Harvard professor Bill Overholt discussing China. This, Stevens believes, was more popular than the average drinks evening. Post-crisis investors "are more willing to turn up to something that is educational and will enhance what they do".

One of the most exciting developments for investors, believes Stevens, is Matterhorn's innovative use of videos relayed for all to see via the popular medium of YouTube.

When analysts head abroad to conduct in-depth research into (typically remote) regions and local companies, they make videos along the way using their mobile phones. These are then edited back at Matterhorn's main office and displayed online, offering investors a fascinating peek into faraway lands.

One of these videos features an analyst's trip to India. It flicks from a pink-stained dusty sunset as his car races through the Indian countryside to retro-looking trains pulling away with passengers dangling alarmingly out of doorways to deluxe properties adorned with marble floors and infinity pools at one of India's high-end property developers.

Another features an analyst descending into an Argentine gold mine, booted, helmeted and clad in orange workers' overalls. In the dark his torch scales the walls, exposing the mine's inner tunnels, ladders and crevices.

So far Matterhorn has not sent out a survey to investors to gain feedback, although the company intends to do so shortly. In the meantime it receives a lot of ad hoc anecdotal feedback on the road and monitors the number of investors listening in to webinars with up to 100 people dialling in to some of those calls.

Although these videos may seem superfluous to an investor's needs, Stevens argues the opposite. He explains a lot of investors approach Matterhorn to get access to its emerging market expertise. Matterhorn in turn needs to demonstrate where fees are going. "These videos are just part and parcel of bringing [emerging markets] to life," he concludes.

All of these videos can be viewed online on Matterhorn's YouTube channel.