Correction : Annual Financial Report
Correction to announcement 'PRNUK-0512191948-8256'. The 'Decomposition of
Returns' table and the associated narrative explaining the table in the
investment managers' report have been updated to provide the respective data
for Argentina, which was previously omitted, and to also clarify the time
period of the data provided.
The have been no other changes to the announcement.
BlackRock Frontiers Investment Trust plc
(LEI: 5493003K5E043LHLO706)
Annual results announcement for the year ended 30 September 2019
OVERVIEW AND PERFORMANCE
PERFORMANCE RECORD
The Company’s financial statements are presented in US Dollars. The Company’s shares are listed on the London Stock Exchange and quoted in UK pounds sterling. The sterling amounts shown below are presented for convenience. The difference in performance measured in US Dollars and UK pounds sterling reflects the depreciation of the pound against the US Dollar over the period.
| 30 September 2019 | 30 September 2018 | ||
| US Dollar | |||
| Net assets (US$’000)1 | 400,820 | 356,495 | |
| Net asset value per ordinary share (cents) | 166.54 | 177.70 | |
| Ordinary share price (mid market)2 (cents) | 162.66 | 182.25 | |
| --------------- | -------------- | ||
| Sterling | |||
| Net assets (£’000)1,2 | 325,262 | 273,365 | |
| Net asset value per ordinary share2 (pence) | 135.15 | 136.26 | |
| Ordinary share price (mid-market) (pence) | 132.00 | 139.75 | |
| (Discount)/premium4 | (2.3%) | 2.6% | |
| --------------- | --------------- | ||
Performance |
Year ended 30 September 2019 % |
Year ended 30 September 2018 % |
Since inception3 % |
| US Dollar | |||
| Net asset value per share (with dividends reinvested)4 | -1.5 | -6.6 | +46.5 |
| Benchmark Index (NR)5,6 | +0.0 | +2.3 | +35.8 |
| MSCI Frontier Markets Index (NR)5,6 | +5.9 | -7.7 | +29.6 |
| MSCI Emerging Markets Index (NR)6 | -2.0 | -0.8 | +11.8 |
| Ordinary share price (with dividends reinvested)4 | -6.3 | -5.7 | +40.6 |
| -------------- | -------------- | -------------- | |
| Sterling | |||
| Net asset value per share (with dividends reinvested)4 | +4.2 | -4.0 | +84.9 |
| Benchmark Index (NR)5,6 | +5.8 | +5.3 | +71.8 |
| MSCI Frontier Markets Index (NR)5,6 | +12.0 | -5.1 | +64.0 |
| MSCI Emerging Markets Index (NR)6 | +3.7 | +2.0 | +41.5 |
| Ordinary share price (with dividends reinvested)4 | -0.9 | -3.1 | +77.1 |
| -------------- | -------------- | -------------- |
1 The change in net assets reflects shares issued in the year, proceeds from the C share issue, dividends paid and market movements.
2 Based on an exchange rate of US$1.2323 to £1 at 30 September 2019 and US$1.3041 to £1 at 30 September 2018.
3 The Company was incorporated on 15 October 2010 and its shares were admitted to trading on the London Stock Exchange on 17 December 2010.
4 Alternative Performance Measures, see Glossary in the Annual Report.
5 With effect from 1 April 2018, the Benchmark Index changed to the MSCI Emerging Markets Index ex Selected Countries + MSCI Frontier Markets Index +MSCI Saudi Arabia Index. Prior to 1 April 2018, the Benchmark Index was the MSCI Frontier Markets Index. The performance returns of the Benchmark Index during the prior year and since inception have been blended to reflect this change.
6 Net return (NR) indices calculate the reinvestment of dividends net of withholding taxes using the tax rates applicable to non-resident institutional investors.
Sources: BlackRock and Datastream.
CHAIRMAN’S STATEMENT
Dear Shareholder,
I am pleased to present to you the Annual Report and Financial Statements for the year ended 30 September 2019.
OVERVIEW
During the year to 30 September 2019, your Company’s Net Asset Value per share in decreased by 1.5%, underperforming the Benchmark Index which was flat over the same period. Frontier and emerging market volatility has been a feature during the twelve months under review, with fears of slowing global growth and US/China trade conflict negatively impacting both frontier and developed markets. More recently, the US/China trade tensions appear to have abated somewhat, with a deal to roll back the ‘tit for tat’ trade tariffs implemented earlier in the year agreed, in principle at least. (All performance figures are stated on a US Dollars with dividends reinvested).
A significant sell-off in frontier market assets occurred in Q4 2018. However, markets gained some ground back in Q1 2019. Country-specific political uncertainty also negatively impacted the performance of some of the portfolio’s larger exposures during the period; most notably in Argentina where the outcome of the Presidential elections saw the local market fall substantially. A more detailed commentary on the performance and positioning of the portfolio, the key contributors and detractors to overall investment performance during the period and the portfolio managers’ view on the outlook for Frontier Markets are given in their report which follows.
Over the longer term, your Company has generated a total return of +46.5% since launch in 2010, comparing favourably to an increase of 35.8% for the Benchmark Index over the same period. Returns are higher for sterling-based investors given the depreciation of the pound, with a sterling equivalent NAV total return of 84.9% since launch, compared with the return on the Benchmark Index in sterling terms of 71.8% over the same period.
REVENUE RETURN AND DIVIDENDS
The Company’s revenue return per share for the year amounted to 8.24 cents (2018: 10.13 cents). The Directors are recommending the payment of a final dividend of 4.75 cents per ordinary share (2018: 4.40 cents) in respect of the year ended 30 September 2019. Together with the interim dividend of 3.00 cents per share (2018: 3.00 cents), this represents a total of 7.75 cents per share (2018: 8.40 cents), an increase of 4.7% over total dividends (excluding special dividends) paid in the previous year. Subject to shareholder approval, this dividend will be paid on 7 February 2020 to shareholders on the register of members at close of business on 3 January 2020. The ex-dividend date will be 2 January 2020. The Company does not have a policy of actively targeting income; nevertheless, this return represents an attractive yield of 4.8%. The Company has grown its dividend every year since launch and we believe this is an attractive element of the total return generated for shareholders, particularly given the low returns being offered by traditional sources of income.
C SHARE ISSUE
Following shareholder approval in a General Meeting, the Company issued 44,927,580 C shares with a nominal value of 10 cents each at a price of £1.00 per share on 27 November 2018, the majority of which were issued in connection with the reconstruction of BlackRock Emerging Europe plc. The C shares were subsequently converted into 33,906,693 ordinary shares in January 2019 in accordance with the terms of the C share Prospectus and Circular. Upon conversion the investments which were attributable to the C Shares were merged with the Company’s existing portfolio of investments.
The new Ordinary Shares arising on conversion of the C Shares rank pari passu with the Ordinary Shares then in issue. The C share issue raised total gross proceeds of US$57,620,000 which consisted of cash and other assets transferred under the rollover option in connection with the scheme of reconstruction of BlackRock Emerging Europe plc and proceeds received from the placing and offer for subscription. These assets were invested in accordance with the Company’s existing investment policy. Please see note 12 in the Annual Report for further information.
SHARE CAPITAL
The Directors recognise the importance to investors of ensuring that the Company’s share price is as close to its underlying NAV as possible. Accordingly, the Directors monitor the share price closely and will consider the issue of shares at a premium or the repurchase at a discount to balance demand and supply in the market. As at 30 September 2019, the Company had 240,672,801 ordinary shares in issue. In addition to the Ordinary shares created upon conversion of the C share issue as described above, in response to sustained demand for the Company’s shares, a total of 6,150,000 new ordinary shares were issued during the year to 30 September 2019. No further new ordinary shares were issued during the period from 1 October 2019 up to the date of this report.
For the year under review, the Company’s ordinary shares have traded at an average premium to NAV of 0.8% and were trading at a premium of 0.5% on a cum-income basis at 4 December 2019, the latest practicable date prior to the issue of this report. The Directors have been granted the authority by shareholders to buy back up to 14.99% of the Company’s issued share capital (excluding any shares held in treasury) and also to issue or sell from treasury on a non pre-emptive basis up to 10% of the Company’s issued share capital. Both authorities expire on the conclusion of the forthcoming Annual general Meeting (‘AGM’) to be held on Tuesday, 4 February 2020 at which time resolutions will be put to shareholders seeking a renewal of these powers. Further information can be found in the Directors’ Report in the of the Annual Report.
BOARD COMPOSITION
The Board consists of six independent Non-executive Directors. The Board has a succession plan in place which ensures that a suitable balance of skills, knowledge, experience, independence and diversity is achieved to enable the Board to effectively discharge its duties. Having served on the Board since July 2011, Mr Murray will be retiring at the forthcoming AGM and will therefore cease to be a Director of the Company from its conclusion. On behalf of the Board, I would like to take this opportunity to thank Mr Murray for his invaluable contribution to the long-term success of the Company during his tenure. We wish him well for the future.
As part of its succession planning arrangements, the Board commenced a search during the year to identify a new Director to join the Board, assisted by a third-party recruitment firm. Following a detailed evaluation of each of the candidates, the Board selected Mrs Katrina Hart who was subsequently appointed with effect from 1 October 2019. Katrina brings a wealth of financial sector experience and expertise, both complementing and enhancing the skills and experience of the existing Board. Further information on Katrina and all of the Directors can be found in their biographies in the Annual Report.
The Directors have agreed to submit themselves to annual re-election and therefore all Directors, with the exception of Mr Murray, will retire and will stand for election or re-election at the forthcoming AGM.
CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Earlier this year, the Association of Investment Companies (AIC) published the 2019 Code of Corporate Governance (the AIC Code) which was endorsed by the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) as being appropriate for investment companies. The AIC Code applies to accounting periods beginning on or after 1 January 2019. The Board has determined that, effective from the Company’s new financial year, it will comply with the recommendations of the 2019 AIC Code. This in most material respects is the same as the FRC Code, save that there is greater flexibility regarding the tenure of office of the Chairman.
OUTLOOK
In a world where growth looks challenged and sources of yield are increasingly scarce, our investment universe stands out. Frontier markets remain the fastest growing countries in the world. As demonstrated by the dividends paid by the Company, our holdings generate an attractive yield. The markets have de-rated meaningfully over the last couple of years, enabling the managers to find companies with strong earnings growth profiles, trading on very attractive valuations. As such, the Board believes that frontier markets remain an attractive proposition for the medium to long-term investor.
The Board believes that the Company’s broadened investable universe provides the investment managers with the flexibility to adjust the portfolio’s geographic exposure to take advantage of opportunities across frontier markets.
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
The AGM of the Company will be held at BlackRock’s offices at 12 Throgmorton Avenue, London EC2N 2DL on Tuesday, 4 February 2020 at 12.00 noon. Details of the business of the meeting are set out in the Notice of Meeting in the Annual Report. The investment managers will make a presentation to shareholders on the Company’s progress and the outlook for frontier markets. My fellow Directors and I look forward to meeting shareholders at this year’s AGM and encourage you to attend.
AUDLEY TWISTON-DAVIES
Chairman
5 December 2019
INVESTMENT MANAGERS’ REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2019
PORTFOLIO & MARKET COMMENTARY
During the twelve months to 30 September 2019, the Company returned -1.5%* (on a US Dollar basis with dividends reinvested) versus its Benchmark Index which was flat and returned 0.0%**. The MSCI Frontier Market Index returned +5.9%, while the MSCI Emerging Markets Index returned -2.0% over the same period. Since inception the Company has returned +46.5%, compared to +35.8% return of its Benchmark Index and +29.6% return of the MSCI Frontier Market Index, while MSCI Emerging Markets Index has lagged returning +11.8%.
2019 was a somewhat frustrating year for the Company as frontier markets went not just broadly, but exactly nowhere, returning exactly 0.0% over the 12 months to the end of September. Whilst there were highs (Greece, Vietnam) and lows (Argentina, Malaysia) within that, the aggregate performance is still disappointing.
Fundamentally, investors expect that price performance will follow earnings growth and companies that are able to sustainably grow their earnings should see strong share price performance. BlackRock proprietary data shows how the earnings of the companies in our portfolio have grown over the past five years and how the overall value of our frontier markets portfolio has developed. Whilst the earnings have grown consistently at an average rate of around 10% p.a., this has not been the case for the portfolio’s value. There has been a substantial de-rating of these frontier markets’ earnings. We believe valuations are now at very attractive levels, around the cheapest that we have seen since we launched the Company.
* Source: BlackRock, as at 30 September 2019.
** Source: MSCI. With effect from 1 April 2018 the Benchmark Index changed to MSCI Emerging Markets ex Selected Countries + MSCI Frontier Markets Index + MSCI Saudi Arabia Index. Prior to 1 April 2018, the Benchmark Index was MSCI Frontier Markets Index. The performance of the Benchmark Index has been blended to reflect this change.
The figures shown relate to past performance. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of current or future results and should not be the sole factor of consideration when selecting a product or strategy.
The chart below shows the total rates of return in US dollars for the individual frontier markets for the 21 months to end September 2019, as well as a disaggregation of that performance into earnings growth, dividend, valuation multiple and currency. You can see clearly that whilst earnings growth has been strong in many markets, overall market performance has been held back by a general de-rating in valuation multiples.
Decomposition of Returns
| Country | PE | EPS | FX | Div | TRR |
| Romania | -4.3% | 34.2% | -10.7% | 7.4% | 36% |
| Qatar | -2.6% | 18.0% | 0.2% | 10.8% | 26% |
| Saudi | 22.4% | -4.4% | 0.0% | 7.4% | 24% |
| Egypt | -15.5% | 19.8% | 9.2% | 4.9% | 15% |
| Kazakhstan | -23.3% | 31.2% | 0.0% | 12.2% | 13% |
| Thailand | 0.4% | -7.2% | 6.4% | 5.1% | 4% |
| Colombia | -29.5% | 35.8% | 0.0% | 5.4% | 1% |
| Peru | -13.7% | 11.3% | 0.0% | 4.3% | 0% |
| Vietnam | -24.3% | 30.9% | -2.2% | 0.0% | -1% |
| UAE | -9.5% | -2.0% | 0.0% | 8.6% | -3% |
| Benchmark Index | -31.0% | 28.0% | -4.4% | 3.5% | -6% |
| Indonesia | -15.6% | 9.9% | -4.5% | 3.6% | -7% |
| Hungary | -17.5% | 25.6% | -15.7% | 4.5% | -8% |
| Czech | -9.8% | 4.5% | -10.1% | 6.9% | -9% |
| EM | -7.8% | -6.3% | 0.0% | 4.1% | -10% |
| Philippines | -21.7% | 16.3% | -3.8% | 1.8% | -10% |
| Malaysia | -4.5% | -8.8% | -3.4% | 4.8% | -11% |
| Greece | -23.0% | 11.1% | -9.3% | 2.9% | -20% |
| Poland | -2.6% | -10.6% | -13.1% | 3.4% | -21% |
| Chile | -25.6% | -5.2% | 0.0% | 2.6% | -27% |
| Nigeria | -37.4% | 1.8% | -0.6% | 7.0% | -29% |
| Turkey | -7.8% | -1.7% | -32.8% | 4.4% | -35% |
| Argentina | -71.5% | 14.1% | 0.0% | 1.2% | -66% |
Source: BlackRock.
Given the strong earnings profile that we have seen from portfolio holdings, dividends have consistently grown since the Company was launched and we believe the yield on the Company’s shares is currently attractive.
| Dividend progression since launch in US$ cents | ||
| Dividend | Special Dividend | |
| 2011 | 3.00 | |
| 2012 | 3.80 | |
| 2013 | 5.40 | |
| 2014 | 6.25 | |
| 2015 | 6.55 | |
| 2016 | 6.60 | |
| 2017 | 6.90 | |
| 2018 | 7.40 | 1.00 |
| 2019 | 7.75 | |
Source: BlackRock, as at end September 2019.
Gross yield. Yield cannot be guaranteed.
Company current yield 4.8%.
The figures shown relate to past performance. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of current or future results and should not be the sole factor of consideration when selecting a product or strategy.
The low correlation between frontier markets and all developed and emerging markets means that the inclusion of a Frontier Markets Fund within a portfolio can bring significant diversification benefits, as demonstrated by the chart below.
Low volatility since inception
| % | |
| Company NAV | 1.6 |
| BlackRock Frontiers Investment Trust Benchmark | 1.82 |
| S&P 500 | 1.89 |
| FTSE All-Share | 2.14 |
| MSCI EM | 2.37 |
Source: Bloomberg, MSCI, as at end September 2019. Volatility of weekly returns since 17 December 2010, inception date of the BlackRock Frontiers Investment Trust.
The figures shown relate to past performance. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of current or future results and should not be the sole factor of consideration when selecting a product or strategy.
REVIEW OF PERFORMANCE
Investments inGreece proved the benefits of a patient approach during the year. After falling nearly 40% during the first quarter of the year, our holding in National Bank of Greece subsequently rose more than 150% to become the largest single stock contributor to performance. The positive performance came as the bank showed substantial progress in reducing exposure to defaulted loans. We made a particularly timely switch between Alpha Bank and National Bank of Greece during the year recognising the substantial differentiation in provision coverage between the two banks, which was subsequently reflected in very differentiated share price performance.
Our patience was also repaid in Vietnam, where holdings in Mobile World (+32%) and FPT (+37%) both showed very strong performance after an unremarkable 2018 (both +9%). The Company has held both of these names for nearly 5 years. Mobile World has been a phenomenal success story. The company started life retailing mobile phones and has expanded from this into wider consumer electronics and for the last couple of years has entered the supermarket space. Whilst this remains a daunting challenge, the extent of white goods space in a country as underpenetrated as Vietnam is enviable. FPT a digital technology company, offers similar long-term growth potential.
Positions in Indonesia rose following the re-election of Joko Widodo as President. He is expected to continue to follow market friendly policies and continue the reform path initiated during his first administration. Our position in Semen Indonesia, a building materials manufacturer, (+23%) rose as the company announced a takeover of rival Holcim Indonesia, which is expected to have a substantial beneficial impact on future margins. Mitra Adiperkasa, a clothing and speciality retailer (+29%), rose as the company reported strong same store sales growth and improved margins through the year.
Frontier Markets is a volatile universe. This means that opportunities are frequently presented to an active manager to trade mis-priced stocks. The last year was no different in this respect. One such example included Thai Beverage (+31%), which we were able to buy at very attractive levels in Q4 2018. Having historically been able to take market share from multinational peers in Thailand, the company bought a majority stake in Sabeco, a previously state-owned Vietnamese brewer, with the intention of repeating this strategy. However, the stock sold off substantially post acquisition on market fears that the company had overpaid for the acquisition. As at September 2019, the stock was trading at almost exactly the same price as it had been two years previously in September 2017.
AirArabia (+30%) is another very similar example, where again the stock was trading at a similar price to two years ago as at the end of September 2019. Here, the sell-off was perhaps more justified as the company had to write off substantial portions of its investment book in connection with the downfall of Abraaj group, a Middle Eastern private equity group. Although raising some questions around management judgement, the write off had no impact on company operations, which have continued to show very strong growth as the company has taken market share across the Middle East.
The example of Argentina reinforces our belief in the importance of diversification. Our expectation was that Mr Macri had a good chance to win a second term in the Argentine elections. If he had been able to, we believe that this would have given Argentina the best hope of economic normalisation that we have seen in our lifetimes. However, this view proved icorrect, Mr Macri performed surprisingly poorly in the primary elections which correctly foresaw the outcome of the October elections, which were won by Alberto Fernandez, returning the country to Peronist rule. The Argentine market fell more than 50% on the day following this election. This was the 2nd largest USD single day fall that any country index anywhere in the world has seen over the last 60 years. Hence, our holdings in Energy company YPF (-39%) and Energy Utility Pampa Energia (-62%) detracted from returns.
Our position in telecommunications company, Telecom Malaysia (+26%), contributed well to returns as the stock bounced from a very low valuation. We have since exited the position. Overall performance in Malaysia was disappointing during the year. Our holding in British American Tobacco Malaysia(-49%) hurt returns, following disappointing earnings results which saw higher costs and a larger than expected decline in the legal tobacco market. An expected government crackdown on the illegal market has failed to impact on illicit volumes as expected.
Other disappointing stocks in the portfolio included Alior Bank in Poland, which fell 43% during the year as the company reported a substantial deterioration in its asset quality. We have subsequently exited the position as we believe that the company still has insufficient provisions on its balance sheet.
PORTFOLIO ACTIVITY
In general, individual stock turnover in the portfolio has been fairly low during the year. As patient, long term investors, we have maintained positions in conviction positions where we think valuations are fundamentally cheap. Given the volatility we see across our markets, we will add and reduce the size of positions with market moves, and we have continued this practice through the year, trimming winners and topping up losers.
We have substantially increased our holdings in the Philippines, moving from a net short position to a net long position over the year. In an increasingly growth challenged world, we think that the Philippines will continue to grow faster than its peers and that this will be supportive for valuations.
Every country that we invest in carries inherent risks. We believe that investing in a diversified portfolio is the best approach to frontier markets. We substantially reduced our holdings in Argentina post the primary elections in August, given our view that in order to roll over the dollar debt outstanding, the country will require a level of fiscal adjustment that will be very challenging for the new administration to meet. We exited most of our positions in Kuwait. The market rose substantially following the announcement in June that MSCI will upgrade Kuwait to emerging market status, subsequent to the exchange meeting certain conditions by November 2019. We believe that our holdings reached fair value and have exited National Bank of Kuwait and Mobile Telecommunications (Zain).
OUTLOOK
Whilst expectations for global growth look increasingly challenged, Frontier Markets continue to offer exposure to countries that we believe have high structural growth. We note that a lot of stocks in our universe are trading at extremely low valuations whilst offering very attractive dividend yields, which we view as a rewarding opportunity for long term patient investors.
SAM VECHT AND EMILY FLETCHER
BLACKROCK INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT (UK) LIMITED
5 December 2019
PORTFOLIO
Ten largest investments1
as at 30 September 2019
1
=2018 1st
Astra International2
Consumer Discretionary (Indonesia)
Portfolio value $ 13,925,000
Percentage of portfolio 3.5% (2018: 4.6)
is an Indonesian conglomerate. It owns Southeast Asia’s largest independent automotive group and is the leading provider of a full range of automobile and motorcycle products. Astra also has interests in financial services, heavy equipment, mining, construction and energy, agribusiness, infrastructure and logistics, information technology and property. It is also an active participant in the development of Indonesia’s strategic infrastructure, including toll roads, energy, transportation and logistics and sea ports.
2
+2018 n/a
Charoen Pokphand Food
Consumer Staples (Thailand)
Portfolio value $ 12,833,000
Percentage of portfolio 3.2% (2018: Nil)
is an agro-industrial and food conglomerate headquartered in Thailand. The company's core businesses are livestock and aquaculture. CPF operates in 17 countries and exports to over 30 countries in five continents, covering more than 3 billion people.
3
+ 2018 37th
Vincom Retail3
Real Estate (Vietnam)
Portfolio value $ 12,337,000
Percentage of portfolio 3.1% (2018: 1.5)
is a Vietnam-based company primarily engaged in the leasing of retail outlets in its shopping malls, comprising Vincom Center, Vincom Mega Mall, Vincom Plaza and Vincom+. The company’s business activities also include the development and operation of commercial buildings, residential properties and office spaces.
4
+ 2018 n/a
PTT Global Chemicals
Materials (Thailand)
Portfolio value $ 12,270,000
Percentage of portfolio 3.1% (2018: Nil)
is Thailand's largest petrochemical and refining company with combined olefins and aromatics capacity of 8.75 million tons per year plus a refining capacity of 280,000 barrels of crude oil and condensate per day.
5
+ 2018 41st
Eastern Tobacco
Consumer Staples (Egypt)
Portfolio value $ 11,870,000
Percentage of portfolio 2.9% (2018: 1.4)
is an Egypt-based company, which is engaged in manufacturing tobacco products. The company’s product portfolio includes cigarettes, cigars, pipe tobacco, and molasses tobacco, as well as other related products such as cigarettes’ filter rods and homogenized tobacco.
6
+ 2018 30th
LT Group
Industrials (Philippines)
Portfolio value $ 11,595,000
Percentage of portfolio 2.9% (2018: 1.8)
is a diversified investment company that is involved in beverages, tobacco, property development, and banking businesses in the Philippines, including Philippines National Bank.
7
+ 2018 14th
Mobile World3
Consumer Discretionary (Vietnam)
Portfolio value $ 10,738,000
Percentage of portfolio 2.7% (2018: 2.6)
is Vietnam’s top mobile phone retailer by revenue and net profit after tax with 2,200+ stores nationwide. MWG operates the following concepts: “thegioididong†mobile phone retail chain, “Dien May Xanh†consumer electronics retail chains, “Bach Hoa Xanh†grocery retail chain. In addition, MWG expanded to regional markets with the first mobile phone retail chain named “Bigphone†in Cambodia.
8
+ 2018 13th
Emaar Development
Real Estate (United Arab Emirates)
Portfolio value $ 10,606,000
Percentage of portfolio 2.6% (2018: 2.5)
is a real estate development company located in the United Arab Emirates. The company operates internationally, providing property development and management services. Emaar Properties Dubai is one of the largest real estate developers in the UAE and is known for various large-scale projects such as developing Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world.
9
+ 2018 11th
Orascom Construction
Industrials (Egypt)
Portfolio value $ 10,382,000
Percentage of portfolio 2.6% (2018: 2.7)
is an engineering, procurement and construction contractor based in Egypt. The company was Egypt's first multinational corporation and is now one of the region’s largest corporations focused on infrastructure, industrial and high-end commercial projects in the Middle East, North Africa, the United States, and the Pacific Rim for public and private clients.
10
+ 2018 n/a
Bank of the Philippine
Islands
Financials (Philippines)
Portfolio value $ 9,965,000
Percentage of portfolio 2.5% (2018: Nil)
is the first bank in the Philippines and in the Southeast Asian region. BPI is a universal bank and together with its subsidiaries and affiliates, it offers a wide range of financial products and solutions that serve both retail and corporate clients. The bank has a network of over 800 branches in the Philippines, Hong Kong and Europe, and close to 3,000 ATMs and CDMs (cash deposit machines).
1 Gross market exposure as a % of net assets. Percentages in brackets represent the portfolio holding at 30 September 2018.
2 Includes exposure gained via both contracts for difference and equity holdings.
3 Exposure gained via contracts for difference only.
PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS
as at 30 September 2019
Country allocation: Absolute weights (Gross market exposure as a % of net assets)1
| Indonesia | 13.1 |
| Thailand | 12.1 |
| Vietnam | 11.0 |
| Egypt | 10.2 |
| United Arab Emirates | 9.0 |
| Malaysia | 5.8 |
| Philippines | 5.6 |
| Qatar | 5.2 |
| Turkey | 5.2 |
| Kazakhstan | 5.2 |
| Saudi Arabia | 4.6 |
| Romania | 4.0 |
| Pakistan | 3.9 |
| Nigeria | 3.7 |
| Greece | 3.0 |
| Colombia | 2.3 |
| Pan-Africa | 2.3 |
| Ukraine | 2.2 |
| Chile | 1.9 |
| Argentina | 1.7 |
| Kenya | 1.1 |
| Poland | 0.8 |
| Morocco | 0.2 |
Source: BlackRock
Country allocation relative to the Benchmark Index (%)¹
| Egypt | 9.4 |
| Vietnam | 9.4 |
| United Arab Emirates | 5.2 |
| Kazakhstan | 5.1 |
| Pakistan | 3.8 |
| Romania | 3.5 |
| Nigeria | 3.1 |
| Indonesia | 2.5 |
| Ukraine | 2.2 |
| Turkey | 2.1 |
| Greece | 1.4 |
| Argentina | 0.7 |
| Kenya | 0.5 |
| Colombia | 0.1 |
| Philippines | 0.0 |
| Senegal | -0.1 |
| Tunisia | -0.1 |
| Sri Lanka | -0.1 |
| Jordan | -0.1 |
| Oman | -0.1 |
| Croatia | -0.2 |
| Qatar | -0.2 |
| Slovenia | -0.2 |
| Bangladesh | -0.2 |
| Mauritius | -0.2 |
| Lebanon | -0.2 |
| Bahrain | -0.6 |
| Morocco | -0.7 |
| Czech Republic | -0.8 |
| Hungary | -1.5 |
| Thailand | -1.5 |
| Peru | -2.0 |
| Kuwait | -3.1 |
| Chile | -3.2 |
| Malaysia | -3.6 |
| Poland | -3.9 |
| Saudi Arabia | -5.6 |
| Other | -6.7 |
1 Includes exposure gained through equity positions and long and short CFD positions.
Sources: BlackRock and Datastream.
Sector allocation: Absolute weights (Gross market exposure as a % of net assets)1
| Financials | 26.1 |
| Real Estate | 14.3 |
| Consumer Staples | 14.0 |
| Industrials | 13.5 |
| Consumer Discretionary | 13.4 |
| Materials | 10.1 |
| Energy | 10.0 |
| Health Care | 5.2 |
| Communication Services | 4.0 |
| Utilities | 1.8 |
| Information Technology | 1.7 |
Source: BlackRock.
Sector allocation relative to the Benchmark Index (%)1
| Consumer Discretionary | 9.3 |
| Real Estate | 9.2 |
| Industrials | 6.3 |
| Consumer Staples | 5.7 |
| Health Care | 2.9 |
| Energy | 2.5 |
| Information Technology | 1.4 |
| Materials | 0.2 |
| Utilities | -3.9 |
| Communication Services | -5.7 |
| Financials | -13.8 |
1 Includes exposure gained through equity positions and long and short CFD positions.
Sources: BlackRock and Datastream.
INVESTMENTS AS AT 30 SEPTEMBER 2019
Company |
Principal country of operation |
Sector |
Fair value and market exposure1 US$’000 |
Gross market exposure as a % of net assets3 |
| Equity portfolio | ||||
| Charoen Pokphand Food | Thailand | Consumer Staples | 12,833 | 3.2 |
| PTT Global Chemical | Thailand | Materials | 12,270 | 3.1 |
| Thai Beverage | Thailand | Consumer Staples | 9,859 | 2.4 |
| Total Access Communication | Thailand | Communication Services | 7,133 | 1.8 |
| Land & Houses Public Company | Thailand | Real Estate | 6,288 | 1.6 |
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| 48,383 | 12.1 | |||
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| Bank Mandiri | Indonesia | Financials | 9,065 | 2.3 |
| Semen Indonesia | Indonesia | Materials | 7,103 | 1.8 |
| Mitra Adiperkasa | Indonesia | Consumer Discretionary | 6,946 | 1.7 |
| PT Pakuwon Jati | Indonesia | Real Estate | 6,649 | 1.6 |
| Indo Tambangraya | Indonesia | Energy | 6,058 | 1.5 |
| Astra International | Indonesia | Consumer Discretionary | 5,447 | 1.4 |
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| 41,268 | 10.3 | |||
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| Eastern Tobacco | Egypt | Consumer Staples | 11,870 | 2.9 |
| Orascom Construction | Egypt | Industrials | 10,382 | 2.6 |
| Medinet Nasr | Egypt | Real Estate | 7,950 | 2.0 |
| EFG Hermes Holdings | Egypt | Financials | 7,070 | 1.8 |
| Integrated Diagnostics | Egypt | Health Care | 3,593 | 0.9 |
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| 40,865 | 10.2 | |||
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| Emaar Development | United Arab Emirates | Real Estate | 10,606 | 2.6 |
| Air Arabia | United Arab Emirates | Industrials | 9,522 | 2.4 |
| Emaar Properties | United Arab Emirates | Real Estate | 8,468 | 2.1 |
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| 28,596 | 7.1 | |||
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| LT Group | Philippines | Industrials | 11,595 | 2.9 |
| Bank of the Philippine Islands | Philippines | Financials | 9,965 | 2.5 |
| Bloomberry Resorts | Philippines | Consumer Discretionary | 787 | 0.2 |
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| 22,347 | 5.6 | |||
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| Sapura Energy | Malaysia | Energy | 7,108 | 1.8 |
| Genting | Malaysia | Consumer Discretionary | 7,070 | 1.8 |
| British American Tobacco | Malaysia | Consumer Staples | 6,614 | 1.6 |
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| 20,792 | 5.2 | |||
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| Koza Altin | Turkey | Materials | 9,435 | 2.4 |
| Turk Hava Yollari | Turkey | Industrials | 6,217 | 1.5 |
| Tupras | Turkey | Energy | 5,045 | 1.3 |
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| 20,697 | 5.2 | |||
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| Banca Transilvania | Romania | Financials | 8,471 | 2.1 |
| Erste Group Bank | Romania | Financials | 7,770 | 1.9 |
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| 16,241 | 4.0 | |||
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| Kazatomprom | Kazakhstan | Energy | 7,677 | 1.9 |
| Halyk Savings Bank | Kazakhstan | Financials | 7,548 | 1.9 |
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| 15,225 | 3.8 | |||
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| Zenith Bank | Nigeria | Financials | 9,027 | 2.2 |
| United Bank for Africa | Nigeria | Financials | 5,913 | 1.5 |
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| 14,940 | 3.7 | |||
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| Ecopetrol (including ADRs) | Colombia | Energy | 9,360 | 2.3 |
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| 9,360 | 2.3 | |||
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| Vivo Energy | Pan-Africa | Consumer Discretionary | 9,151 | 2.3 |
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| 9,151 | 2.3 | |||
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| MHP | Ukraine | Consumer Staples | 8,830 | 2.2 |
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| 8,830 | 2.2 | |||
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| YPF ADR | Argentina | Energy | 4,494 | 1.1 |
| Pampa Energia | Argentina | Utilities | 2,341 | 0.6 |
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| 6,835 | 1.7 | |||
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| Hub Power | Pakistan | Utilities | 4,261 | 1.0 |
| Lucky Cement | Pakistan | Materials | 1,872 | 0.5 |
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| 6,133 | 1.5 | |||
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| Equity Group | Kenya | Financials | 3,981 | 1.0 |
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| 3,981 | 1.0 | |||
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| Bank Pekao | Poland | Financials | 3,098 | 0.8 |
| Alior Bank | Poland | Financials | 62 | 0.0 |
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| 3,160 | 0.8 | |||
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| Latam Airlines Group | Chile | Industrials | 2,396 | 0.6 |
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| 2,396 | 0.6 | |||
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| National Bank of Greece | Greece | Financials | 2,308 | 0.6 |
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| 2,308 | 0.6 | |||
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| Douja Promotion Groupe Addoha | Morocco | Real Estate | 883 | 0.2 |
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| 883 | 0.2 | |||
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| Equity investments | 322,391 | 80.4 | ||
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| BlackRock’s Institutional Cash Series plc – US Dollar Liquid Environmentally Aware Fund (Cash Fund) | 71,191 | 17.8 | ||
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| Total equity investments (including Cash Fund) | 393,582 | 98.2 | ||
| --------------- | --------------- | |||
| Total investments excluding CFDs | 393,582 | 98.2 | ||
| ========= | ========= |
Company |
Principal country of operation |
Sector |
Fair value1 US$’000 |
Gross market exposure2 US$’000 |
Gross market exposure as a % of net assets3 |
| CFD portfolio | |||||
| Long positions | |||||
| Vincom Retail | Vietnam | Real Estate | 12,337 | 3.1 | |
| Mobile World | Vietnam | Consumer Discretionary | 10,738 | 2.7 | |
| FPT | Vietnam | Information Technology | 6,934 | 1.7 | |
| Quang Ngai Sugar | Vietnam | Consumer Staples | 6,918 | 1.7 | |
| Petrovietnam Fertilizer & Chemicals | Vietnam | Materials | 2,618 | 0.7 | |
| --------------- | --------------- | ||||
| 39,545 | 9.9 | ||||
| --------------- | --------------- | ||||
| National Medical Care | Saudi Arabia | Health Care | 9,364 | 2.4 | |
| United International Transport | Saudi Arabia | Industrials | 8,916 | 2.2 | |
| --------------- | --------------- | ||||
| 18,280 | 4.6 | ||||
| --------------- | --------------- | ||||
| Astra International | Indonesia | Consumer Discretionary | 8,478 | 2.1 | |
| Mitra Adiperkasa | Indonesia | Consumer Discretionary | 2,879 | 0.7 | |
| --------------- | --------------- | ||||
| 11,357 | 2.8 | ||||
| --------------- | --------------- | ||||
| MCB Bank | Pakistan | Financials | 8,123 | 2.0 | |
| Hub Power | Pakistan | Utilities | 781 | 0.2 | |
| Lucky Cement | Pakistan | Materials | 638 | 0.2 | |
| --------------- | --------------- | ||||
| 9,542 | 2.4 | ||||
| --------------- | --------------- | ||||
| Alpha Bank | Greece | Financials | 5,551 | 1.4 | |
| National Bank of Greece | Greece | Financials | 3,977 | 1.0 | |
| --------------- | --------------- | ||||
| 9,528 | 2.4 | ||||
| --------------- | --------------- | ||||
| Ooredoo | Qatar | Communication Services | 8,810 | 2.2 | |
| --------------- | --------------- | ||||
| 8,810 | 2.2 | ||||
| --------------- | --------------- | ||||
| NMC Health | United Arab Emirates | Health Care | 7,786 | 1.9 | |
| --------------- | --------------- | ||||
| 7,786 | 1.9 | ||||
| --------------- | --------------- | ||||
| Kaz Minerals | Kazakhstan | Materials | 5,737 | 1.4 | |
| --------------- | --------------- | ||||
| 5,737 | 1.4 | ||||
| --------------- | --------------- | ||||
| Latam Airlines Group | Chile | Industrials | 5,393 | 1.3 | |
| --------------- | --------------- | ||||
| 5,393 | 1.3 | ||||
| --------------- | --------------- | ||||
| UMW | Malaysia | Consumer Discretionary | 1,919 | 0.5 | |
| Sapura Energy | Malaysia | Energy | 473 | 0.1 | |
| --------------- | --------------- | ||||
| 2,392 | 0.6 | ||||
| --------------- | --------------- | ||||
| Equity Group | Kenya | Financials | 297 | 0.1 | |
| --------------- | --------------- | ||||
| 297 | 0.1 | ||||
| --------------- | --------------- | ||||
| Kuwait Food (Americana)4 | Kuwait | Consumer Discretionary | 3 | 0.0 | |
| --------------- | --------------- | ||||
| 3 | 0.0 | ||||
| --------------- | --------------- | ||||
| Total long CFD positions | 2,072 | 118,670 | 29.6 | ||
| --------------- | --------------- | --------------- | |||
| Total short CFD positions | 286 | (16,254) | (4.0) | ||
| --------------- | --------------- | --------------- | |||
| Total CFD portfolio | 2,358 | 102,416 | 25.6 | ||
| ========= | ========= | ========= |
FAIR VALUE AND GROSS MARKET EXPOSURE OF INVESTMENTS AS AT 30 SEPTEMBER 2019
Portfolio |
Fair value1 US$’000 |
Gross market exposure2 US$’000 |
Gross market exposure as a % of net assets3 |
|
| 2019 | 2018 | |||
| Equity investments and P–Notes | 322,391 | 322,391 | 80.4 | 69.4 |
| --------------- | --------------- | --------------- | --------------- | |
| Total long CFD positions | 2,072 | 118,670 | 29.6 | 38.4 |
| --------------- | --------------- | --------------- | --------------- | |
| Total short CFD positions | 286 | (16,254) | (4.0) | (7.7) |
| --------------- | --------------- | --------------- | --------------- | |
| Total gross exposure | 324,749 | 424,807 | 106.0 | 100.1 |
| --------------- | --------------- | --------------- | --------------- | |
| Cash Fund3 | 71,191 | 71,191 | 17.8 | 28.3 |
| --------------- | --------------- | --------------- | --------------- | |
| Total investments and derivatives | 395,940 | 495,998 | 123.8 | 128.4 |
| --------------- | --------------- | --------------- | --------------- | |
| Cash and cash equivalents1, 3 | 6,020 | (94,038) | (23.5) | (29.3) |
| --------------- | --------------- | --------------- | --------------- | |
| Other net current (liabilities)/assets | (1,121) | (1,121) | (0.3) | 0.9 |
| --------------- | --------------- | --------------- | --------------- | |
| Non-current liabilities | (19) | (19) | – | – |
| --------------- | --------------- | --------------- | --------------- | |
| Net assets | 400,820 | 400,820 | 100.0 | 100.0 |
| ========= | ========= | ========= | ========= | |
The Company was geared through the use of long and short CFD positions and gross and net gearing as at 30 September 2019 was 14.1% and 6.0% (2018: 15.5% and 0.1% respectively). Gross and net gearing are Alternative Performance Measures, see Glossary in the Annual Report.
1 Fair value is determined as follows:
– Listed investments are valued at bid prices where available, otherwise at latest market traded quoted prices.
– The sum of the fair value column for the CFD contracts totalling US$2,358,000 represents the fair valuation of all the CFD contracts, which is determined based on the difference between the notional transaction price and value of the underlying shares in the contract (in effect the unrealised gains/(losses) on the exposed positions). The cost of purchasing the securities held through long CFD positions directly in the market would have amounted to US$116,598,000 at the time of purchase, and subsequent market movement in prices have resulted in unrealised gains on the long CFD positions of US$2,072,000 resulting in the value of the total market exposure to the underlying securities increasing to US$118,670,000 as at 30 September 2019. The notional price of selling the securities to which exposure was gained via the short CFD positions would have been US$16,540,000 at the time of entering into the contract, and subsequent market movement in prices have resulted in unrealised gains on the short CFD positions of US$286,000 resulting in the value of the market exposure of these investments decreasing to US$16,254,000 at 30 September 2019. If the short positions had been closed on 30 September 2019 this would have resulted in a gain of US$286,000 for the Company.
– P–Notes are valued based on the quoted bid price of the underlying security to which they relate.
2 Market exposure in the case of equity investments is the same as fair value. In the case of CFDs it is the market value of the underlying shares to which the portfolio is exposed via the contract.
3 The gross market exposure column for cash and cash equivalents has been adjusted to assume the Company purchased/sold direct holdings rather than exposure being gained through CFDs.
4 Unquoted investment.
GOVERNANCE
STRATEGIC REPORT
The Directors present the Strategic Report of the Company for the year ended 30 September 2019.
PRINCIPAL ACTIVITY
The Company carries on business as an investment trust and its principal activity is portfolio investment.
INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE
The Company’s investment objective is to achieve long-term capital growth by investing in companies domiciled or listed in, or exercising the predominant part of their economic activity in, less developed countries. These countries (the “Frontiers Universeâ€) are any country which is neither part of the MSCI World Index of developed markets, nor one of the eight largest countries by market capitalisation in the MSCI Emerging Markets Index as at 1 April 2018: being Brazil, China, India, Korea, Mexico, Russia, South Africa and Taiwan (the “Selected Countriesâ€).
STRATEGY, BUSINESS MODEL AND INVESTMENT POLICY
Strategy
To achieve its objective, the Company invests globally in the securities of companies domiciled or listed in, or exercising the predominant part of their economic activity in, the Frontiers Universe.
Business model
The Company’s business model follows that of an externally managed investment trust, therefore the Company does not have any employees and outsources its activities to third-party service providers, including BlackRock Fund Managers Ltd (BFM) (‘The Manager’) which is the principal service provider.
The management of the investment portfolio and the administration of the Company have been contractually delegated to the Manager. The Manager has delegated certain investment management and other ancillary services to BlackRock Investment Management (UK) Limited (BIM (UK)) (‘the Investment Manager’). The contractual arrangements with, and assessment of, the Manager are summarised in the Annual Report. The Investment Manager, operating under guidelines determined by the Board, has direct responsibility for the decisions relating to the day-to-day running of the Company and is accountable to the Board for the investment, financial and operating performance of the Company. Other service providers include the Depositary and the Fund Accountant, The Bank of New York Mellon (International) Limited, and the Registrar, Computershare Investor Services PLC (Computershare). Details of the contractual terms with third-party service providers are set out in the Directors’ Report.
Investment policy
The Company will seek to maximise total return and will invest globally in the securities of companies domiciled or listed in, or exercising the predominant part of their economic activity in, the Frontiers Universe. Performance is measured against the Company’s Benchmark Index, which is a composite of the MSCI Emerging Markets Index ex Selected Countries + MSCI Frontier Markets Index + MSCI Saudi Arabia Index (net total return, USD). The Investment Manager is not constrained by the geographical weightings of the Benchmark Index and the Company’s portfolio may frequently be overweight or underweight to any particular country relative to the Benchmark Index. The Company will exit any investment as soon as reasonably practicable following the relevant company ceasing to be domiciled or listed in, or exercising the predominant part of its economic activity in, the Frontiers Universe.
In order to achieve the Company’s investment objective, the Investment Manager selects investments through a process of fundamental and geopolitical analysis, seeking long-term appreciation from mispriced value or growth. The Investment Manager employs both a top-down and bottom-up approach to investing. It is expected that the Company will have exposure to between 35 to 65 holdings.
Where possible, investment will generally be made directly in the stock markets of the Frontiers Universe. Where the Investment Manager determines it appropriate, investment may be made through collective investment schemes, although such investments are not likely to be significant. Investment in other closed-ended investment funds admitted to the Official List will not exceed more than 10 per cent., in aggregate, of the value of the Gross Assets (calculated at the time of any relevant investment). It is intended that the Company will generally be invested in equity investments; however, the Investment Manager may invest in equity-related investments, such as derivatives or convertibles, and, to a lesser extent, in bonds or other fixed-income securities, including high risk debt securities. These securities may be below investment grade.
Due to national and/or international regulation, excessive operational risk, prohibitive costs and/or the time period involved in establishing trading and custody accounts in certain countries in the Frontiers Universe, the Company may be unable to invest (whether directly or through nominees) in companies in certain countries in the Frontiers Universe or, in the opinion of the Company and/or the Investment Manager, it may not be advisable to do so. In such circumstances, or in countries where acceptable custodial and other arrangements are not in place to safeguard the Company’s investments, the Company intends to gain economic exposure to companies in such countries by investing indirectly through derivatives. Derivatives are financial instruments linked to the performance of another asset or security, such as promissory notes, contracts for difference, futures or traded options. Save as provided below, there is no restriction on the Company investing in derivatives in such circumstances or for efficient portfolio management purposes.
The Company may be geared through borrowings and/ or by entering into derivative transactions (taking both long and short positions) that have the effect of gearing the Company’s portfolio to enhance performance. The Company may also use borrowings for the settlement of transactions, to facilitate share repurchases (where applicable) and to meet on-going expenses.
The respective limits on gearing (whether through the use of derivatives, borrowings or a combination of both) are set out below:
• Maximum gearing through the use of derivatives or borrowings to gain exposure to long positions in securities: 140 per cent. of net assets
• Maximum exposure to short positions (for shorting purposes the Company may use indices or individual stocks): 10 per cent. of net assets
• Maximum gross exposure (total long exposure plus total short exposure): 150 per cent. of net assets
• Maximum net exposure (total long exposure minus total short exposure): 130 per cent. of net assets
In normal circumstances, the Company will typically have net exposure of between 95 per cent. and 120 per cent. of net assets.
When investing via derivatives, the Company will seek to mitigate and/or spread its counterparty risk exposure by collateralisation and/or contracting with a potential range of counterparty banks, as appropriate, each of which shall, at the time of entering into such derivatives, have a Standard & Poor’s credit rating of at least A- on its long-term senior unsecured debt.
The Company may invest up to 5 per cent. of its Gross Assets (at the time of such investment) in unquoted securities. The Company will invest so as not to hold more than 15 per cent. of its Gross Assets in any one stock or derivative position at the time of investment (excluding cash management activities).
No material change will be made to the investment policy without the approval of Shareholders by ordinary resolution.
A detailed analysis of the Company’s portfolio has been provided above.
INVESTMENT APPROACH AND PROCESS
Portfolio construction is a continuous process, with the Investment Manager analysing constantly the impact of new ideas and information on the portfolio as a whole. The approach is flexible, varying through market and economic cycles to create a portfolio appropriate to the focused and unconstrained strategy of the Company. The macroeconomic environment is factored into all portfolio decisions. In general, macroeconomic analysis is a more dominant factor in investment decision making when the outlook is negative. The macro process is comprised of three parts: political assessment, macroeconomic analysis and appraisal of the valuation of a country’s market, which can only take place with thorough analysis of stock specific opportunities.
The Investment Manager’s research team generates ideas from a diverse range of sources. These include frequent travel to the markets in which the Company invests and regular conversations with contacts that allow the Frontiers team to assess the entire eco-system around a company; namely competitors, suppliers, financiers, customers and regulators. The team leverages the internal research network sharing information between BlackRock’s investment teams using a proprietary research application and database, and develops insights from macroeconomic analysis. The Board believes that BlackRock’s research platform is a significant competitive advantage, both in terms of information specific to emerging and frontier market equities and through its global insights across asset classes. Access to companies is extremely good given BlackRock’s market presence, which makes it possible to develop a detailed knowledge of a company and its management.
The research process focuses on cash flow and future earnings growth, as the investment team believes that this is ultimately the driver of share prices over time. The process is designed with the aim of identifying companies that can translate top line revenue growth to free cash flow and investing in these companies when the analysis suggests that the cash flow stream is undervalued. Financial models are developed focusing on company financials, particularly cash flow statements, rather than relying on third party research.
ESG factors can be useful and relevant indicators for investment purposes and can help portfolio managers with their decision making through identifying potentially negative events or corporate behaviour. This results in the expectation that there will be an outperformance bias towards better governed companies in the long-run. The portfolio managers work closely with BlackRock’s Investment Stewardship team (BIS) to assess the governance quality of companies and investigate any potential issues, risks or opportunities.
Specific to corporate governance, the portfolio management team leverages local expertise (BIS and investors) in its proprietary, risk-based approach. Financial statement integrity is central to the analysis, where BIS applies a range of systematic measures to highlight companies’ accounting ratios in its assessment of balance sheet and earnings quality risks. For other categories under the corporate governance umbrella (e.g. audit quality, board accountability, executive pay and ownership and control), BIS flags risks based on internal research, including regulatory filings announcements and public news feeds. Governance (G) data from MSCI ESG Research Manager and other data sources may also be employed for supporting consideration. Environmental (E) and Social (S) factors are primarily assessed using MSCI data, examining whether specific E&S exposure exists, and if so, to determine how well such exposure is being managed. Further information on the Manager’s approach to ESG and Socially Responsible Investing can be found in the Corporate Governance report in the Annual Report.
The Investment Managers’ research team monitors differing levels of risk throughout the process and believes that avoiding major downside events can generate significant outperformance over the long-term. Inputs from BlackRock’s Risk & Quantitative Analysis Team (RQA) are an integral part of the investment process. RQA analyse market and portfolio risk factors including stress tests, correlations, factor returns, cross-sectional volatility and attributions. BlackRock’s evaluation procedures and financial analysis of the companies within the portfolio also take into account environmental, social and governance matters and other business issues. The Company invests primarily on financial grounds to meet its stated objectives.
PERFORMANCE
Details of the Company’s performance for the year are given in the Chairman’s Statement above. The Investment Managers’ Report above includes a review of the main developments during the period, together with information on investment activity within the Company’s portfolio.
RESULTS AND DIVIDENDS
The results for the Company are set out in the Statement of Comprehensive Income which follows. The total loss for the year, after taxation, was US$6,681,000 (2018: loss of US$29,342,000) of which the revenue return amounted to US$18,924,000 (2018: US$19,328,000) and the capital loss amounted to US$25,605,000 (2018: loss of US$48,670,000).
The Directors are recommending the payment of a final dividend of 4.75 cents per ordinary share in respect of the year ended 30 September 2019 (2018: final dividend of 4.40 cents and a special dividend of 1.00 cent) as set out in the Chairman’s Statement above.
KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS
The Directors consider a number of performance measures to assess the Company’s success in achieving its objectives. The key performance indicators (KPIs) used to measure the progress and performance of the Company over time and which are comparable to those reported by other investment trusts are set out below.
Performance measured against the benchmark
At each meeting the Board reviews the performance of the portfolio as well as the net asset value and share price for the Company and compares this to the return of the Company’s benchmark. The Board considers this to be an important key performance indicator and has determined that it should also be used to calculate whether a performance fee is payable to BlackRock. The Company’s absolute and relative performance is set out in the performance record table above.
Share rating
The Directors recognise the importance to investors that the Company’s share price should not trade at a significant discount or premium to NAV. Accordingly, the Directors monitor the share rating closely and will consider share repurchases in the market if the discount widens significantly, or the issue of shares to the market to meet demand to the extent that the Company’s shares are trading at a premium. In addition, in accordance with the Directors’ commitment at launch the Company will formulate and submit to shareholders proposals to provide them with an opportunity at each five year anniversary since launch, to realise the value of their ordinary shares at the applicable NAV per share less costs. The next opportunity will take place on or around the date of the Company’s AGM in 2021.
For the year under review the Company’s shares have traded at an average premium to the cum-income NAV of 0.8% and were trading at a premium of 0.5% on a cum-income basis at 4 December 2019. The Directors have the authority to buy back up to 14.99% of the Company’s issued share capital (excluding treasury shares). The Directors sought and received shareholder authority at the last AGM to issue up to 10% of the Company’s issued share capital (via the issue of new shares or sale of shares from treasury) on a non pre-emptive basis. Further information can be found in the Directors’ Report on in the Annual Report.
Ongoing charges
The ongoing charges reflect those expenses which are likely to recur in the foreseeable future, whether charged to capital or revenue, and which relate to the operation of the investment company as a collective investment fund, excluding the costs of acquisition or disposal of investments, financing charges and gains or losses arising on investments and performance fees. The ongoing charges are based on actual costs incurred in the year as being the best estimate of future costs. The Board reviews the ongoing charges and monitors the expenses incurred by the Company.
The table below sets out the key KPIs for the Company.
Alternative Performance Measures (see Glossary in the Annual Report)
| Year ended 30 September 20191 |
Year ended 30 September 20181 |
|||
| £% | US$% | £% | US$% | |
| Net asset value total return2 | +4.2 | -1.5 | -4.0 | -6.6 |
| Share price total return3 | -0.9 | -6.3 | -3.1 | -5.7 |
| Benchmark Index return4 | +5.8 | +0.0 | +5.3 | +2.3 |
| (Discount)/premium to cum income NAV | (2.3) | 2.6 | ||
| Ongoing charges5 | 1.39 | 1.42 | ||
| Ongoing charges including performance fees | 1.39 | 1.42 | ||
| ========= | ========= | |||
1 Based on an exchange rate of US$1.2323 to £1 at 30 September 2019 and US$1.3041 to £1 at 30 September 2018.
2 Calculated with dividends reinvested in accordance with AIC guidelines.
3 Calculated on a mid to mid basis with dividends reinvested.
4 With effect from 1 April 2018, the Benchmark Index changed to a composite of the MSCI Emerging Markets Index ex Selected Countries + MSCI Frontier Markets Index +MSCI Saudi Arabia Index. Prior to 1 April 2018, the Benchmark Index was the MSCI Frontier Markets Index. The performance of the Benchmark indices have been blended to reflect this change.
5 Calculated as a percentage of average net assets and using expenses, excluding performance fees, VAT refunded, transaction charges, finance costs and taxation.
The Board also regularly reviews a number of indices and ratios to understand the impact on the Company’s relative performance of the various components such as asset allocation and stock selection. The Board also reviews the performance of the Company against a peer group of Frontier Market open and closed-ended funds.
PRINCIPAL RISKS
The Board has in place a robust process to identify, assess and monitor the principal risks of the Company, including those that they consider would threaten its business model, future performance, solvency or liquidity. A core element of this is the Company’s risk register, which identifies the risks facing the Company and assesses the likelihood and potential impact of each risk, and the quality of the controls operating to mitigate the risk. A residual risk rating is then calculated for each risk based on the outcome of this assessment. This approach allows the effect of any mitigating procedures to be reflected in the final assessment.
The register, its method of preparation and the operation of the key controls in BlackRock’s and other third-party service providers’ systems of internal control are reviewed on a regular basis by the Company’s Audit and Management Engagement Committee. In order to gain a more comprehensive understanding of BlackRock’s and other third party service providers’ risk management processes and how these apply to the Company’s business, the Audit and Management Engagement Committee periodically receives presentations from BlackRock’s Internal Audit and Risk & Quantitative Analysis teams, and reviews Service Organisation Control (SOC 1) reports from BlackRock and the Company’s Custodian and Fund Accountant, The Bank of New York Mellon (International) Limited.
The current risk register includes a range of risks spread between performance risk, income/dividend risk, legal & regulatory risk, counterparty risk, operational risk, market risk, political risk and financial risk.
The principal risks and uncertainties faced by the Company during the year, together with the potential effects, controls and mitigating factors, are set out below:
| Principal Risk | Mitigation/Control |
| Investment Performance Risk The Board is responsible for: • setting the investment policy to fulfil the Company’s objectives; • monitoring the performance of the Company’s Investment Manager and the strategy adopted. An inappropriate policy or strategy may lead to: • poor performance compared to the Company’s benchmark, peer group or shareholder expectations; • a widening discount to NAV; • a reduction or permanent loss of capital; and • dissatisfied shareholders and reputational damage. |
To manage this risk the Board: • regularly reviews the Company’s investment mandate and long term strategy; • has set, and regularly reviews, the investment guidelines and has put in place appropriate limits on levels of gearing and the use of derivatives; • receives from the Investment Manager a regular explanation of stock selection decisions, portfolio gearing and any changes in gearing and the rationale for the composition of the investment portfolio; • receives from the Investment Manager regular reporting on the portfolio’s exposure through derivatives, including the extent to which the portfolio is geared in this manner and the value of any short positions; • monitors the maintenance of an adequate spread of investments in order to minimise the risks associated with particular countries or factors specific to particular sectors, based on the diversification requirements inherent in the Company’s investment policy; and • regularly reviews detailed performance attribution analyses. |
| Income/Dividend Risk The amount of dividends and future dividend growth will depend on the Company’s underlying portfolio. In addition, any change in the tax treatment of the dividends or interest received by the Company (including as a result of withholding taxes or exchange controls imposed by jurisdictions in which the Company invests) may reduce the level of dividends received by shareholders. |
The Company does not have a policy of actively seeking income. The Board monitors this risk through the receipt of detailed income forecasts and considers the level of income at each meeting. The Company also has a revenue reserve and powers to pay dividends from capital which could potentially be used to support the Company’s dividend if required. |
| Legal & Regulatory Risk The Company has been approved by HM Revenue & Customs as an investment trust, subject to continuing to meet the relevant eligibility conditions, and operates as an investment trust in accordance with Chapter 4 of Part 24 of the Corporation Tax Act 2010. As such, the Company is exempt from capital gains tax on the profits realised from the sale of its investments. Any breach of the relevant eligibility conditions could lead to the Company losing its investment trust status and being subject to corporation tax on capital gains realised within the Company’s portfolio. In such event the investment returns of the Company may be adversely affected. Any serious breach could result in the Company and/or the Directors being fined or the subject of criminal proceedings or the suspension of the Company’s shares which would in turn lead to a breach of the Corporation Tax Act 2010. Amongst other relevant laws and regulations, the Company is required to comply with the provisions of the Companies Act 2006, the Alternative Investment Fund Managers’ Directive, the Market Abuse Act, the UK Listing Rules and the Disclosure Guidance & Transparency Rules. |
The Investment Manager monitors investment movements, the level of forecast income and expenditure and the amount of proposed dividends, if any, to ensure that the provisions of Chapter 4 of Part 24 of the Corporation Tax Act 2010 are not breached and the results are reported to the Board at each meeting. Following authorisation under the Alternative Investment Fund Managers’ Directive (AIFMD), the Company and its appointed Alternative Investment Fund Manager (AIFM) are subject to the risks that the requirements of this Directive are not correctly complied with. The Board and the AIFM also monitor changes in government policy and legislation which may have an impact on the Company. Compliance with the accounting standards applicable to quoted companies and those applicable to investment trusts are also regularly monitored to ensure compliance. The Company Secretary and the Company’s professional advisers monitor developments in relevant laws and regulations and provide regular reports to the Board in respect of the Company’s compliance. |
| Counterparty Risk The Company’s investment policy also permits the use of both exchange-traded and over-the-counter derivatives (including contracts for difference). The potential loss that the Company could incur if a counterparty is unable (or unwilling) to perform on its commitments. |
Due diligence is undertaken before contracts are entered into and exposures are diversified across a number of counterparties. The Board reviews the controls put in place by the Investment Manager to monitor and to minimise counterparty exposure, which include intra-day monitoring of exposures to ensure that these are within set limits. |
| Operational Risk In common with most other investment trust companies, the Company has no employees. The Company therefore relies upon the services provided by third parties and is dependent on the control systems of BlackRock (the Investment Manager and AIFM), and of The Bank of New York Mellon (International) Limited (the Depositary and Fund Accountant), which ensures safe custody of the Company’s assets and maintains the Company’s accounting records. The Company’s share register is maintained by the Registrar, Computershare. Failure by any service provider to carry out its obligations to the Company could have a material adverse effect on the Company’s performance. Disruption to the accounting, payment systems or custody records, as a result of a cyber-attack or otherwise, could impact the monitoring and reporting of the Company’s financial position. The security of the Company’s assets, dealing procedures, accounting records and maintenance of regulatory and legal requirements, depend on the effective operation of these systems. |
The Board reviews the overall performance of the Manager, Investment Manager and all other third party service providers and compliance with the investment management agreement on a regular basis. The Fund Accountant’s and the Manager’s internal control processes are regularly tested and monitored throughout the year and are evidenced through their Service Organisation Control (SOC 1) reports, which are subject to review by an Independent Service Assurance Auditor. The SOC 1 reports provide assurance in respect of the effective operation of internal controls. The Company’s assets are subject to a strict liability regime and in the event of a loss of financial assets held in custody, the Depositary must return assets of an identical type or the corresponding amount, unless able to demonstrate that the loss was a result of an event beyond its reasonable control. The Board considers succession arrangements for key employees of the Manager and the Investment Manager and receives reports on the business continuity arrangements for the Company’s key service providers. The Board also receives regular reports from BlackRock’s internal audit function. |
| Political Risk Investments in the Frontiers Universe may include a higher element of risk compared to more developed markets due to greater political instability. Political and diplomatic events in the Frontiers Universe where the Company invests (for example, governmental instability, corruption, adverse changes in legislation or other diplomatic developments such as the outbreak of war or imposition of sanctions) could substantially and adversely affect the economies of such countries or the value of the Company’s investments in those countries. |
The Investment Manager mitigates this risk by applying stringent controls over where investments are made and through close monitoring of political risks. The Investment Manager’s approach to filtering the investment universe takes account of the political background to regions and is backed up by rigorous stock specific research and risk analysis, individually and collectively, in constructing the portfolio. The management team has a wide network of business and political contacts which provides economic insights with public and private bodies. This enables the Investment Manager to assess potential investments in an informed and disciplined way, as well as being able to conduct regular monitoring of investments once made. However, given the nature of political risk, all investments will be exposed to a degree of risk and the Investment Manager will ensure that the portfolio remains diversified across countries to mitigate the risk. |
| Financial Risk The Company’s investment activities expose it to a variety of financial risks which include foreign currency risk, liquidity risk, currency risk and interest rate risk. |
Details of these risks are disclosed in note 18 to the financial statements, together with a summary of the policies for managing these risks. |
| Market Risk Market risk arises from volatility in the prices of the Company’s investments. It represents the potential loss the Company might suffer through realising investments in the face of negative market movements. The securities markets of the Frontiers Universe are not as large as the more established securities markets and have substantially less trading volume, which may result in a lack of liquidity and higher price volatility. There are a limited number of attractive investment opportunities in Frontier Markets and this may lead to a delay in investment and may affect the price at which such investments may be made and reduce potential investment returns for the Company. There is also exposure to currency, market and political risk due to the location of the operation of the businesses in which the Company may invest. As a consequence of this and other market factors the Company may invest in a concentrated portfolio of shares and this focus may result in higher risk when compared to a portfolio that has spread or diversified investments more broadly. Corruption also remains a significant issue across the Frontiers Universe and the effects of corruption could have a material adverse effect on the Company’s performance. Accounting, auditing and financial reporting standards and practices and disclosure requirements applicable to many companies in developing countries may be less rigorous than in developed markets. As a result there may be less information available publicly to investors in these securities, and such information as is available is often less reliable. The Company also gains exposure to the Frontiers Universe by investing indirectly through Promissory Notes (P-Notes) which presents additional risk to the Company as P-Notes are uncollateralised resulting in the Company being subject to full counterparty risk via the P-Note issuer. P-Notes also present liquidity issues as the Company, being a captive client of a P-Note issuer, may only be able to realise its investment through the P-Note issuer and this may have a negative impact on the liquidity of the P-Notes which does not correlate to the liquidity of the underlying security. |
Market risk represents the risks of investment in a particular market, country or geographic region. Therefore, this is largely outside of the scope of the Board’s control. However, the Board carefully considers asset allocation, stock selection and levels of gearing on a regular basis and has set investment restrictions and guidelines which are monitored and reported on by the Investment Manager. Market risk is also mitigated through portfolio diversification across countries and regions. The Board monitors the implementation and results of the investment process with the Investment Manager regularly. The Investment Manager also regularly reports to the Board on relative market risks associated with investment in such regions. Further information is provided under ‘Political Risk’. |
VIABILITY STATEMENT
In accordance with provision C.2.2 of the UK Corporate Governance Code, the Directors have assessed the prospects of the Company over a longer period than the 12 months referred to by the ‘Going Concern’ guidelines. The Board conducted this review for the period up to the AGM in 2024. In determining this period, the Board took into account the Company’s investment objective to achieve long-term capital growth and the fact that on or around the AGM in 2021 it will be necessary for the Board to formulate and submit to shareholders proposals (which may constitute a tender offer and/or other method of distribution, as was the case in 2016) to provide an opportunity to realise the value of their investment in the Company at NAV less applicable costs.
In making this assessment the Board has considered the following factors:
• The Company’s principal risks as set out above;
• The ongoing relevance of the Company’s investment objective in the current environment; and
• The level of ongoing demand for the Company’s ordinary shares.
The Board has also considered a number of financial metrics, including:
• The level of current and historic ongoing charges incurred by the Company;
• The Company’s borrowings and its ability to meet its liabilities as they fall due;
• The premium or discount to NAV;
• The level of income generated by the Company;
• Future income forecasts; and
• The liquidity of the Company’s portfolio.
The Company is an investment company with a relatively liquid equity portfolio (as at 30 September 2019, 92.3% of the equity portfolio was capable of being realised in less than 20 days) and largely fixed overheads (excluding performance fees) which comprise a very small percentage of net assets (1.39%). In addition, any performance fees are capped at 1% of gross assets in years where the NAV per share has fallen or 2.5% of gross assets in years where the NAV per share has increased. Therefore, the Board has concluded that even in exceptionally stressed operating conditions, the Company would comfortably be able to meet its ongoing operating costs as they fall due.
However, investment companies may face other challenges, such as regulatory changes and the tax treatment of Investment Trusts, or a significant decrease in size due to substantial share buy-back activity, which may result in the Company no longer being of sufficient market capitalisation to represent viable investment propositions or no longer being able to continue in operation.
The Board has also considered the adverse impact of potential changes in law, regulation and taxation and the matter of foreign exchange risk. They have determined that although there are a number of potential risks associated with the Brexit process, any transition following any agreement, and the legal, fiscal and regulatory landscape thereafter, they do not believe that this represents a material threat to the Company’s strategy and business model, nor do they believe that the Investment Manager would be materially impeded in achieving the Company’s investment objective. In addition, the level of complexity, uncertainty and general lack of information present a number of potential outcomes and scenarios, which may or may not prove to be malign or benign and/ or supportive of the Investment Manager in achieving the Company’s investment objective.
The Board has determined that the factors considered are applicable to the period up to the AGM in 2024 and beyond.
Based on the results of their analysis, the Directors have a reasonable expectation that the Company will be able to continue in operation and meet its liabilities as they fall due over the period of their assessment.
FUTURE PROSPECTS
The Board’s main focus is on the achievement of capital growth and the future of the Company is dependent upon the success of the investment strategy. The outlook for the Company is discussed in both the Chairman’s Statement and the Investment Manager’s Report in the Annual Report.
SOCIAL, COMMUNITY AND HUMAN RIGHTS ISSUES
As an investment trust, the Company has no direct social or community responsibilities. However, the Company believes that it is in shareholders’ interests to consider environmental, social and governance factors and human rights issues when selecting and retaining investments. Details of the Company’s policy on socially responsible investment are set out in the Annual Report.
MODERN SLAVERY
As an investment vehicle the Company does not provide goods or services in the normal course of business, and does not have customers. Accordingly, the Directors consider that the Company is not required to make any slavery or human trafficking statement under the Modern Slavery Act 2015. In any event, the Board considers the Company’s supply chain, dealing predominantly with professional advisers and service providers in the financial services industry, to be low risk in relation to this matter.
DIRECTORS, GENDER REPRESENTATION AND EMPLOYEES
The Directors of the Company on 30 September 2019, all of whom , with the exception of Katrina Hart who was appointed with effect from 1 October 2019, held office throughout the year, are set out in the Directors’ biographies section in the Annual Report. As at the date of this report, the Board consists of five men and one woman constituting 16.6% female Board representation. Following the retirement of Mr Murray at the conclusion of the AGM this will increase to 20%. The Company does not have any employees.
BY ORDER OF THE BOARD
KEVIN MAYGER
FOR AND ON BEHALF OF
BLACKROCK INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT (UK) LIMITED
Company Secretary
5 December 2019
RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS
BlackRock Fund Managers Limited (BFM) provides management and administration services to the Company under a contract which is terminable on six months’ notice. BFM has (with the Company’s consent) delegated certain portfolio and risk management services, and other ancillary services, to BlackRock Investment Management (UK) Limited (BIM (UK)). Further details of the investment management contract are disclosed in the Directors’ Report in the Annual Report.
The investment management fee due for the year ended 30 September 2019 amounted to US$4,429,000 (2018: US$4,280,000). No performance fee is payable for the year (2018: US$nil). At the year end, US$2,385,000 was outstanding in respect of management fees (2018: US$1,024,000) and US$nil (2018: US$nil) was outstanding in respect of performance fees.
In addition to the above services, BlackRock has provided marketing services. The total fees paid or payable for these services for the year ended 30 September 2019 amounted to US$79,000 excluding VAT (2018: US$93,000) of which marketing fees of US$147,000 excluding VAT (2018: US$68,000) were outstanding as at year end.
The Company has an investment in the BlackRock Institutional Cash Series plc – US Dollar Liquid Environmentally Aware Fund of US$71,191,000 (2018: US$100,917,000 held in BlackRock’s Institutional Cash Series plc – US Dollar Liquidity Fund) at the year end, which is a fund managed by a company within the BlackRock Group.
Disclosures of the Directors’ interests in the ordinary shares of the Company and fees and expenses payable to the Directors are set out in the Directors’ Remuneration Report in the Annual Report. At 30 September 2019, US$15,000 (£12,000) (2018: US$16,000 (£12,000)) was outstanding in respect of Directors’ fees.
STATEMENT OF DIRECTORS’ RESPONSIBILITIES IN RESPECT OF THE ANNUAL REPORT AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
The Directors are responsible for preparing the Annual Report, the Directors’ Remuneration Report and the financial statements in accordance with applicable United Kingdom law and regulations.
Company law requires the Directors to prepare financial statements for each financial year. Under that law, the Directors are required to prepare the financial statements under IFRS as adopted by the European Union. Under Company law the Directors must not approve the financial statements unless they are satisfied that they give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the Company and of the profit or loss of the Company for that period.
In preparing these financial statements, the Directors are required to:
• present fairly the financial position, financial performance and cash flows of the Company;
• select suitable accounting policies in accordance with IAS 8: Accounting Policies, Changes in Accounting Estimates and Errors and then apply them consistently;
• present information, including accounting policies, in a manner that provides relevant, reliable, comparable and understandable information;
• make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent;
• state whether the financial statements have been prepared in accordance with IFRS as adopted by the European Union, subject to any material departures disclosed and explained in the financial statements;
• provide additional disclosures when compliance with the specific requirements in IFRS as adopted by the European Union is insufficient to enable users to understand the impact of particular transactions, other events and conditions on the Company’s financial position and financial performance; and
• prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the Company will continue in business.
The Directors are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that are sufficient to show and explain the Company’s transactions and disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the Company and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Companies Act 2006.
They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the Company and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities. The Directors are also responsible for preparing the Strategic Report, the Directors’ Report, the Directors’ Remuneration Report, Corporate Governance Statement and the Report of the Audit and Management Engagement Committee in accordance with the Companies Act 2006 and applicable regulations, including the requirements of the Listing Rules and the Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules. The Directors have delegated responsibility to the Investment Manager and the AIFM for the maintenance and integrity of the Company’s corporate and financial information included on BlackRock’s website. Legislation in the United Kingdom governing the preparation and dissemination of financial statements may differ from legislation in other jurisdictions.
Each of the Directors, whose names are listed in the Annual Report, confirms to the best of their knowledge that:
• the financial statements, which have been prepared in accordance with IFRS as adopted by the European Union, give a true and fair view of the assets, liabilities, financial position and profit/loss of the Company; and
• the Strategic Report contained in the Annual Report and Financial Statements includes a fair review of the development and performance of the business and the position of the Company, together with a description of the principal risks and uncertainties that it faces.
The 2016 UK Corporate Governance Code also requires Directors to ensure that the Annual Report and Financial Statements are fair, balanced and understandable. In order to reach a conclusion on this matter, the Board has requested that the Audit and Management Engagement Committee advise on whether it considers that the Annual Report and Financial Statements fulfil these requirements. The process by which the Committee has reached these conclusions is set out in the Audit and Management Engagement Committee’s report in the Annual Report. As a result, the Board has concluded that the Annual Report and Financial Statements for the year ended 30 September 2019, taken as a whole, is fair, balanced and understandable and provides the information necessary for shareholders to assess the Company’s position and performance, business model and strategy.
FOR AND ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD
AUDLEY TWISTON-DAVIES
Chairman
5 December 2019
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
STATEMENT OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2019
Notes |
Revenue | Capital | Total | ||||
| 2019 US$’000 |
2018 US$’000 |
2019 US$’000 |
2018 US$’000 |
2019 US$’000 |
2018 US$’000 |
||
| Income from investments held at fair value through profit or loss | 3 | 21,717 | 19,295 | – | – | 21,717 | 19,295 |
| Net income from contracts for difference | 3 | 1,858 | 3,245 | – | – | 1,858 | 3,245 |
| Other income | 3 | 216 | 103 | – | – | 216 | 103 |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | ||
| Total revenue | 23,791 | 22,643 | – | – | 23,791 | 22,643 | |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | ||
| Net loss on investments held at fair value through profit or loss | – | – | (21,959) | (27,899) | (21,959) | (27,899) | |
| Net loss on foreign exchange | – | – | (406) | (336) | (406) | (336) | |
| Net profit/(loss) from contracts for difference | – | – | 1,423 | (22,830) | 1,423 | (22,830) | |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | ||
| Total | 23,791 | 22,643 | (20,942) | (51,065) | 2,849 | (28,422) | |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | ||
| Expenses | |||||||
| Investment management and performance fees | 4 | (886) | (856) | (3,543) | (3,424) | (4,429) | (4,280) |
| Other operating expenses | 5 | (1,082) | (1,252) | (214) | (118) | (1,296) | (1,370) |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | ||
| Total operating expenses | (1,968) | (2,108) | (3,757) | (3,542) | (5,725) | (5,650) | |
| ========== | ========== | ========== | ========== | ========== | ========== | ||
| Net profit/(loss) on ordinary activities before finance costs and taxation | 21,823 | 20,535 | (24,699) | (54,607) | (2,876) | (34,072) | |
| Finance costs | 7 | (311) | (5) | (1,245) | (18) | (1,556) | (23) |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | ||
| Net profit/(loss) on ordinary activities before taxation | 21,512 | 20,530 | (25,944) | (54,625) | (4,432) | (34,095) | |
| Taxation | 7 | (2,588) | (1,202) | 339 | 5,955 | (2,249) | 4,753 |
| ========== | ========== | ========== | ========== | ========== | ========== | ||
| Profit/(loss) for the year | 18,924 | 19,328 | (25,605) | (48,670) | (6,681) | (29,342) | |
| ========== | ========== | ========== | ========== | ========== | ========== | ||
| Earnings/(loss) per ordinary share (cents) | 7 | 8.24 | 10.13 | (11.15) | (25.50) | (2.91) | (15.37) |
| ========== | ========== | ========== | ========== | ========== | ========== | ||
The total column of this statement represents the Company’s Statement of Comprehensive Income, prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) as adopted by the European Union (EU). The supplementary revenue and capital columns are both prepared under guidance published by the Association of Investment Companies (AIC). All items in the above statement derive from continuing operations. No operations were acquired or discontinued during the year. All income is attributable to the equity holders of the Company.
The Company does not have any other comprehensive income/(loss). The net profit/(loss) for the year disclosed above represents the Company’s total comprehensive income/(loss).
The notes that follow form part of these financial statements.
STATEMENT OF CHANGES IN EQUITY FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2019
Notes |
Called up share capital US$’000 |
Share premium account US$’000 |
Capital redemption reserve US$’000 |
Special reserve US$’000 |
Capital reserves US$’000 |
Revenue reserve US$’000 |
Total US$’000 |
|
| For the year ended 30 September 2019 | ||||||||
| At 30 September 2018 | 2,006 | 95,095 | 5,798 | 230,799 | 7,231 | 15,566 | 356,495 | |
| Total comprehensive income: | ||||||||
| Net (loss)/profit for the year | – | – | – | – | (25,605) | 18,924 | (6,681) | |
| Transactions with owners, recorded directly to equity: | ||||||||
| Share issues | 62 | 10,783 | – | – | – | – | 10,845 | |
| Share issue costs | – | (55) | – | – | – | – | (55) | |
| Share issues – conversion of C shares | 339 | 58,184 | – | – | – | – | 58,523 | |
| Dividends paid1 | 6 | – | – | – | – | – | (18,307) | (18,307) |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | ||
| At 30 September 2019 | 2,407 | 164,007 | 5,798 | 230,799 | (18,374) | 16,183 | 400,820 | |
| ========== | ========== | ========== | ========== | ========== | ========== | ========== | ||
| For the year ended 30 September 2018 | ||||||||
| At 30 September 2017 | 1,778 | 46,275 | 5,798 | 230,776 | 55,901 | 9,719 | 350,247 | |
| Total comprehensive income: | ||||||||
| Net (loss)/profit for the year | – | – | – | – | (48,670) | 19,328 | (29,342) | |
| Transactions with owners, recorded directly to equity: | ||||||||
| Share issues | 228 | 49,119 | – | – | – | – | 49,347 | |
| Share issue costs | – | (299) | – | – | – | – | (299) | |
| C share issue costs – write back | – | – | – | 23 | – | – | 23 | |
| Dividends paid2 | 6 | – | – | – | – | – | (13,481) | (13,481) |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | ||
| At 30 September 2018 | 2,006 | 95,095 | 5,798 | 230,799 | 7,231 | 15,566 | 356,495 | |
| ========== | ========== | ========== | ========== | ========== | ========== | ========== |
1 Final dividend of 4.40 cents per share for the year ended 30 September 2018, declared on 10 December 2018 and paid on 7 February 2019 and special dividend paid in respect of the year ended 30 September 2018 of 1.00 cent per share, declared on 10 December 2018 and paid on 7 February 2019. Interim dividend paid in respect of the year ended 30 September 2019 of 3.00 cents per share, declared on 30 May 2019 and paid on 28 June 2019.
2 Final dividend of 4.20 cents per share for the year ended 30 September 2017, declared on 1 December 2017 and paid on 9 February 2018 and interim dividend paid in respect of the year ended 30 September 2018 of 3.00 cents per share, declared on 17 May 2018 and paid on 29 June 2018.
The notes that follow form part of these financial statements.
STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL POSITION AS AT 30 SEPTEMBER 2019
Notes |
2019 US$’000 |
2018 US$’000 |
|
| Non current assets | |||
| Investments held at fair value through profit or loss | 393,582 | 348,501 | |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | ||
| Current assets | |||
| Other receivables | 7,760 | 755 | |
| Derivative financial assets held at fair value through profit or loss | 3,414 | 4,011 | |
| Cash and cash equivalents | 6,020 | 4,425 | |
| Cash collateral held with brokers in respect of contracts for difference | 40 | 10,180 | |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | ||
| 17,234 | 19,371 | ||
| ------------------ | ------------------ | ||
| Total assets | 410,816 | 367,872 | |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | ||
| Current liabilities | |||
| Other payables | (5,211) | (7,847) | |
| Derivative financial liabilities held at fair value through profit or loss | (1,056) | (3,511) | |
| Cash collateral received in respect of contracts for difference | (3,710) | – | |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | ||
| (9,977) | (11,358) | ||
| ------------------ | ------------------ | ||
| Total assets less current liabilities | 400,839 | 356,514 | |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | ||
| Non current liabilities | |||
| Management shares of £1.00 each (one quarter paid) | (19) | (19) | |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | ||
| Net assets | 400,820 | 356,495 | |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | ||
| Equity attributable to equity holders | |||
| Called up share capital | 8 | 2,407 | 2,006 |
| Share premium account | 9 | 164,007 | 95,095 |
| Capital redemption reserve | 9 | 5,798 | 5,798 |
| Special reserve | 9 | 230,799 | 230,799 |
| Capital reserves | 9 | (18,374) | 7,231 |
| Revenue reserve | 9 | 16,183 | 15,566 |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | ||
| Total equity | 400,820 | 356,495 | |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | ||
| Net asset value per ordinary share (cents) | 7 | 166.54 | 177.70 |
| ========== | ========== |
The financial statements on in the Annual Report were approved and authorised for issue by the Board of Directors on 5 December 2019 and signed on its behalf by Mr Twiston-Davies, Chairman.
BlackRock Frontiers Investment Trust plc
Registered in England, No. 7409667
The notes that follow form part of these financial statements.
CASH FLOW STATEMENT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2019
| 2019 US$’000 |
2018 US$’000 |
|
| Operating activities | ||
| Net loss on ordinary activities before taxation | (4,432) | (34,095) |
| Add back finance costs | 1,556 | 23 |
| Net loss on investments and contracts for difference held at fair value through profit or loss (including transaction costs) | 17,258 | 47,874 |
| Net loss on foreign exchange | 406 | 336 |
| Sales of investments held at fair value through profit or loss | 298,919 | 245,347 |
| Purchases of investments held at fair value through profit or loss | (355,397) | (232,640) |
| Sales of Cash Funds* | 307,793 | 195,025 |
| Purchases of Cash Funds* | (278,045) | (229,748) |
| Amounts paid for losses on closure of contracts for difference | (67,119) | (77,413) |
| Amounts received on gains on closure of contracts for difference | 70,065 | 55,539 |
| Increase in other receivables | (16) | (203) |
| Increase/(decrease) in other payables | 1,546 | (2,139) |
| (Increase)/decrease in amounts due from brokers | (6,971) | 3,567 |
| (Decrease)/increase in amounts due to brokers | (4,182) | 2,342 |
| Net cash collateral received/(pledged) | 13,850 | (10,679) |
| Taxation paid | (2,266) | (1,186) |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | |
| Net cash outflow from operating activities | (7,035) | (38,050) |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | |
| Financing activities | ||
| Interest paid | (43) | (23) |
| Cash proceeds from ordinary share issues | 10,845 | 50,644 |
| Ordinary share issue costs paid | (55) | (276) |
| Cash proceeds from C share issue | 9,853 | – |
| Cash received from BlackRock Emerging Europe Plc | 7,353 | – |
| C share issue costs paid | (610) | – |
| Dividends paid | (18,307) | (13,481) |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | |
| Net cash inflow from financing activities | 9,036 | 36,864 |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | |
| Increase/(decrease) in cash and cash equivalents | 2,001 | (1,186) |
| Effect of foreign exchange rate changes | (406) | (336) |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | |
| Change in cash and cash equivalents | 1,595 | (1,522) |
| Cash and cash equivalents at the start of the year | 4,425 | 5,947 |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | |
| Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the year | 6,020 | 4,425 |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | |
| Comprised of: | ||
| Cash at bank | 6,020 | 4,425 |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | |
| 6,020 | 4,425 | |
| ========== | ========== |
* Cash Funds represents funds held on deposit with BlackRock’s Institutional Cash Series plc – US Dollar Liquidity Fund and BlackRock Institutional Cash Series plc - US Dollar Liquid Environmentally Aware Fund.
The notes that follow form part of these financial statements.
NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
1. PRINCIPAL ACTIVITY
The principal activity of the Company is that of an investment trust company within the meaning of section 1158 of the Corporation Tax Act 2010. The Company was incorporated on 15 October 2010, and this is the ninth Annual Report.
2. ACCOUNTING POLICIES
The principal accounting policies adopted by the Company are set out below.
(a) Basis of preparation
The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) as adopted by the European Union and as applied in accordance with the provisions of the Companies Act 2006. All of the Company’s operations are of a continuing nature.
Insofar as the Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) for investment trust companies and venture capital trusts issued by the Association of Investment Companies (AIC) in November 2014 and updated in February 2018, is compatible with IFRS, the financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the guidance set out in the SORP.
Substantially, all of the assets of the Company consist of securities that are readily realisable and, accordingly, the Directors believe that the Company has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. Consequently, the Directors have determined that it is appropriate for the financial statements to be prepared on a going concern basis.
The Company’s financial statements are presented in US Dollars, which is the functional currency of the Company and the currency of the primary economic environment in which the Company operates. All values are rounded to the nearest thousand dollars (US$’000) except where otherwise indicated.
IFRS standards that have yet to be adopted:
A number of new standards, amendments to standards and interpretations are effective for the annual periods beginning after 1 January 2019 and have not been applied in preparing these financial statements. None of these are expected to have a significant effect on the measurement of the amounts recognised in the financial statements of the Company.
IFRS 16 – Leases (effective 1 January 2019) specifies accounting for leases and removes the distinction between operating and finance leases. This standard is not applicable to the Company as it has no leases.
IFRIC 23 – Uncertainty over Income Tax Treatments seeks to provide clarity on how to account for uncertainty over income tax treatments and specifies that an entity must consider whether it is probable that the relevant tax authority will accept each tax treatment or group of tax treatments, that it plans to use in its income tax filing. The interpretation also requires companies to reassess the judgements and estimates applied if facts and circumstances change. The interpretation is effective for annual reporting periods beginning on or after 1 January 2019. The interpretation would require the Company to recognise uncertain tax positions which are more than probable within its financial statements. The interprepation is unlikely to have any impact on the financial statements of the Company.
Adoption of new and amended standards and interpretations:
IFRS 9 Financial Instruments
The classification and measurement requirements of IFRS 9 have been adopted retrospectively as of the date of initial application on 1 October 2018, however, the Company has chosen to take advantage of the option not to restate comparatives. Therefore, the 2018 comparative figures are presented and measured under IAS 39. All financial assets previously held at fair value continue to be measured at fair value and accordingly there has been no impact as a result of the adoption of IFRS 9. All financial assets that were classified as loans and receivables and measured at amortised cost continue to be so and there was no significant impact of expected credit losses on financial assets measured at amortised cost.
IFRS 15 Revenue from contracts with customers
The Company adopted IFRS 15 as of the date of initial application of 1 October 2018. IFRS 15 replaces IAS 18 Revenue and establishes a five-step model to account for revenue arising from contracts with customers. In addition, guidance on interest and dividend income have been moved from IAS 18 to IFRS 9 without significant changes to the requirements. Therefore, there was no impact of adopting IFRS 15 for the Company.
(b) C share liability
On 27 November 2018 the Company issued 44,927,580 C shares with a nominal value of 10 cents each at a price of £1.00 per share. On 11 January 2019 the C shares were converted into Ordinary shares. The conversion ratio, which has been calculated by reference to the net assets of the Company attributable to the Ordinary shares and the net assets of the Company attributable to the C shares as at the close of business on 7 January 2019 was 0.7547 Ordinary shares for every C share held.
The C shares (when in issue) were listed on the London Stock Exchange. After the conversion of the C shares into Ordinary shares, the C shares were delisted on 22 January 2019.
While the C shares were in issue, the results, assets and liabilities attributable to the C shares were accounted for in a separate pool to the results, assets and liabilities of the Ordinary shares. A share of the management fee and other expenses for the period the C shares had been in issue was allocated to the C share pool.
C shares are recognised on issue at the fair value of the proceeds received less directly attributable transaction costs. After initial recognition, C shares are subsequently measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method. Amortisation is credited or charged to finance income or finance costs in the Statement of Comprehensive Income. Transaction costs are amortised to the earliest conversion period.
The C shares issued represented contracts for conversion into a variable number of Ordinary shares and therefore the C shares are classified as liabilities under IAS 32. The classification resulted in the issue costs and the return on the C shares being presented as finance costs in the Company’s Statement of Comprehensive Income. The return on the C shares represented an increase in the assets attributable to the C shares over and above the proceeds raised from their issue.
(c) Presentation of the Statement of Comprehensive Income
In order to reflect better the activities of an investment trust company and in accordance with guidance issued by the AIC, supplementary information which analyses the Statement of Comprehensive Income between items of a revenue and a capital nature has been presented alongside the Statement of Comprehensive Income.
(d) Segmental reporting
The Directors are of the opinion that the Company is engaged in a single segment of business being investment business.
(e) Income
Dividends receivable on equity shares are recognised as revenue for the year on an ex-dividend basis. Where no ex-dividend date is available, dividends receivable on or before the year end are treated as revenue for the year. Provision is made for any dividends not expected to be received. Special dividends, if any, are treated as a capital or a revenue receipt depending on the facts or circumstances of each dividend. The return on a debt security is recognised on a time apportionment basis so as to reflect the effective yield on the debt security.
Deposit interest receivable is accounted for on an accruals basis.
Where the Company has elected to receive its dividends in the form of additional shares rather than in cash, the cash equivalent of the dividend is recognised as revenue. Any excess in the value of the shares received over the amount of the cash dividend is recognised in capital.
(f) Expenses
All expenses, including finance costs, are accounted for on an accruals basis. Expenses have been charged wholly to the revenue column of the Statement of Comprehensive Income, except as follows:
• expenses which are incidental to the acquisition or sale of an investment are charged to the capital column of the Statement of Comprehensive Income. Details of transaction costs on the purchases and sales of investments are disclosed within note 10 to the Financial Statements in the annual report;
• expenses are treated as capital where a connection with the maintenance or enhancement of the value of the investments can be demonstrated;
• the investment management fee and finance costs have been allocated 80% to the capital column and 20% to the revenue column of the Statement of Comprehensive Income in line with the Board’s expected long term split of returns, in the form of capital gains and income, respectively, from the investment portfolio;
• performance fees are allocated 100% to the capital column of the Statement of Comprehensive Income as fees are generated in connection with enhancing the value of the investment portfolio.
(g) Taxation
The tax expense represents the sum of the tax currently payable and deferred tax. The tax currently payable is based on the taxable profit for the period. Taxable profit differs from net profit as reported in the Statement of Comprehensive Income because it excludes items of income or expenses that are taxable or deductible in other years and it further excludes items that are never taxable or deductible. The Company’s liability for current tax is calculated using tax rates that were applicable at the balance sheet date.
Where expenses are allocated between capital and revenue, any tax relief in respect of the expenses is allocated between capital and revenue returns on the marginal basis using the Company’s effective rate of corporation tax for the accounting period.
Deferred taxation is recognised in respect of all temporary differences that have originated but not reversed at the financial reporting date, where transactions or events that result in an obligation to pay more taxation in the future or right to pay less tax in the future have occurred at the financial reporting date. This is subject to deferred tax assets only being recognised if it is considered more likely than not that there will be suitable profits from which the future reversal of the temporary differences can be deducted. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are measured at the rates applicable to the legal jurisdictions in which they arise.
(h) Investments held at fair value through profit or loss
In accordance with IFRS 9, the Company classifies its investments at initial recognition as held at fair value through profit or loss and are managed and evaluated on a fair value basis in accordance with its investment strategy and business model.
All investments are measured initially and subsequently at fair value through profit or loss. Purchases of investments are recognised on a trade date basis. Sales of investments are recognised at the trade date of the disposal.
The fair value of the financial investments is based on their quoted bid price at the financial reporting date, without deduction for the estimated selling costs. This policy applies to all current and non current asset investments held by the Company. The fair value of the P-Notes are, when held, based on the quoted bid price of the underlying equity to which they relate.
Changes in the value of investments held at fair value through profit or loss and gains and losses on disposal are recognised in the Statement of Comprehensive Income as “Profits or losses on investments held at fair value through profit or lossâ€. Also included within the heading are transaction costs in relation to the purchase or sale of investments.
For all financial instruments not traded in an active market, the fair value is determined by using various valuation techniques. Valuation techniques include market approach (i.e., using recent arm’s length market transactions adjusted as necessary and reference to the current market value of another instrument that is substantially the same) and the income approach (e.g., discounted cash flow analysis and option pricing models making use of available and supportable market data where possible).
(i) Derivatives
The Company can hold long and short positions in contracts for difference (CFD) which are held at fair value based on the bid prices of the underlying securities in respect of long positions, and the offer prices of the underlying securities in respect of short positions.
Profits and losses on derivative transactions are recognised in the Statement of Comprehensive Income. They are shown in the capital column of the Statement of Comprehensive Income if they are of a capital nature and are shown in the revenue column of the Statement of Comprehensive Income if they are of a revenue nature. To the extent that any profits or losses are of a mixed revenue and capital nature, they are apportioned between revenue and capital accordingly.
(j) Other receivables and other payables
Other receivables and other payables do not carry any interest and are short term in nature and are accordingly stated at their nominal value.
(k) Dividends payable
Under IFRS, final dividends should not be accrued in the financial statements unless they have been approved by shareholders before the financial reporting date. Interim dividends should not be accrued in the financial statements unless they have been paid.
Dividends payable to equity shareholders are recognised in the Statements of Changes in Equity.
(l) Foreign currency translation
Transactions involving foreign currencies are converted at the rate ruling at the date of the transaction. Foreign currency monetary assets and liabilities and non monetary assets held at fair value are translated into US dollars at the rate ruling on the financial reporting date. Foreign exchange differences arising on translation are recognised in the Statement of Comprehensive Income as a revenue or capital item depending on the income or expense to which they relate. For investment transactions and investments held at the year end, denominated in a foreign currency, the resulting gains or losses are included in the profit/(loss) on investments held at fair value through profit or loss in the Statement of Comprehensive Income.
(m) Cash and cash equivalents
Cash comprises cash in hand and on demand deposits. Cash equivalents are short term, highly liquid investments that are readily convertible to known amounts of cash and that are subject to an insignificant risk of changes in value.
The Company’s investment in BlackRock’s Institutional Cash Series plc – US Dollar Liquid Environmentally Aware Fund (Cash Fund) of US$71,191,000 (2018: investment in BlackRock’s Institutional Cash Series plc – US Dollar Liquidity Fund US$100,917,000) is managed as part of the Company’s investment policy and, accordingly, this investment along with purchases and sales of this investment has been classified in the Statement of Financial Position as an investment and not as a cash equivalent as defined under IAS 7.
(n) Critical accounting estimates and judgements
The Company makes estimates and assumptions concerning the future. The resulting accounting estimates and assumptions will, by definition, seldom equal the related actual results. Estimates and judgements are regularly evaluated and are based on historical experience and other factors, including expectations of future events that are believed to be reasonable under the circumstances. The Directors do not believe that any accounting judgements or estimates have a significant risk of causing a material adjustment to the carrying amount of assets and liabilities within the next financial year.
3. INCOME
| 2019 US$’000 |
2018 US$’000 |
|
| Investment income: | ||
| UK dividends | 139 | 24 |
| Overseas dividends | 14,573 | 12,415 |
| Overseas special dividends | 1,224 | 707 |
| Overseas stock dividends | 3,780 | 3,798 |
| Income from P-Notes | – | 547 |
| Interest from Cash Funds | 1,942 | 1,804 |
| Fixed interest income | 59 | – |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | |
| 21,717 | 19,295 | |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | |
| Net income from contracts for difference | 1,858 | 3,245 |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | |
| 23,575 | 22,540 | |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | |
| Other income: | ||
| Deposit interest | 216 | 103 |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | |
| Total income | 23,791 | 22,643 |
| ========== | ========== |
Dividends and interest received in cash during the year amounted to US$17,600,000 and US$2,007,000 respectively (2018: US$17,706,000 and US$1,771,000).
Special dividends of £104,000 have been recognised in capital (2018: nil).
4. INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT AND PERFORMANCE FEES
| 2019 | 2018 | |||||
| Revenue US$’000 |
Capital US$’000 |
Total US$’000 |
Revenue US$’000 |
Capital US$’000 |
Total US$’000 |
|
| Investment management fee | 886 | 3,543 | 4,429 | 856 | 3,424 | 4,280 |
| ========== | ========== | ========== | ========== | ========== | ========== | |
An investment management fee equivalent to 1.10% per annum of the Company’s gross assets (defined as the aggregate net assets of the long equity and CFD portfolios of the Company) is payable to the Manager. In addition, the Manager is also entitled to receive a performance fee at a rate of 10% of any increase in the NAV at the end of a performance period over and above what would have been achieved had the NAV since launch increased in line with the Benchmark Index, which, since 1 April 2018, is a composite of the MSCI Emerging Markets Index ex Selected Countries + MSCI Frontier Markets Index + MSCI Saudi Arabia Index. Prior to 1 April 2018, the Benchmark Index was the MSCI Frontier Markets Index. For the purposes of the calculation of the performance fee, the performance of the Net Asset Value total return was measured against the performance of the benchmark indices on a blended basis.
For the year to 30 September 2019, the Company’s NAV performance of -1.5% generated a deficit of US$7.46 million (2018: NAV performance of -6.6% generated a deficit of US$39.88 million) resulting in no performance fee for the year (2018: US$nil). The performance fee payable in any year is capped at an amount equal to 2.5% or 1% of the gross assets if there is any increase or decrease in the NAV per share at the end of the relevant performance period, respectively. Any capped excess outperformance for a period may be carried forward to the next two performance periods, subject to the then applicable annual cap. The performance fee is also subject to a high watermark such that any performance fee is only payable to the extent that the cumulative relative outperformance of the NAV is greater than what would have been achieved had the NAV increased in line with the Benchmark Index since the last date in relation to which a performance fee has been paid.
Under the terms of the C share issue in November 2018, BlackRock agreed to waive the management fees payable by the Company up to the value of issue expenses that exceeded the capped amount of 1.00% of the gross proceeds from the issue of C shares. As the issue expenses exceeded the capped amount, the excess issue expenses of US$34,000 have been offset against the investment management fee payable by the Company during the year ended 30 September 2019.
5. OPERATING EXPENSES
| 2019 US$’000 |
2018 US$’000 |
|
| Allocated to revenue: | ||
| Custody fee | 366 | 503 |
| Auditor’s remuneration: | ||
| – audit services | 36 | 38 |
| – other assurance services1 | 8 | 9 |
| Registrar’s fee | 42 | 52 |
| Directors’ emoluments | 201 | 205 |
| Broker fees | 38 | 62 |
| Depositary fees2 | 44 | 44 |
| Marketing fees | 79 | 93 |
| AIC fees | 26 | 24 |
| FCA fees | 16 | 16 |
| Printing and Postage fees | 40 | 44 |
| Employer NI contributions | 20 | 23 |
| Stock exchange listings | 11 | 10 |
| Legal and professional fees | 12 | 14 |
| Other administrative costs | 143 | 115 |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | |
| 1,082 | 1,252 | |
| ========== | ========== | |
| Allocated to capital: | ||
| Custody transaction charges | 214 | 118 |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | |
| 1,296 | 1,370 | |
| ========== | ========== | |
| The Company’s ongoing charges3, calculated as a percentage of average net assets and using expenses, excluding performance fees, VAT refunded, transaction costs and taxation, were: | 1.39% | 1.42% |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | |
| The Company’s ongoing charges,3 calculated as a percentage of average net assets and using expenses and performance fees but excluding VAT refunded, transaction costs and taxation, were: | 1.39% | 1.42% |
| ========== | ========== |
1 Fees for non-audit services relate to the following services provided by the Auditor:
– £6,500 (US$8,000) (2018: £6,500 (US$9,000)) relating to the review of the interim financial statements.
– £37,500 (US$49,000) (excluding VAT) was paid in respect of the work on the Company’s C share issue and conversion. These fees were included within the C share issue costs and were debited to finance costs in the Company’s Statement of Comprehensive Income.
2 All expenses other than depositary fees are paid in Sterling and are therefore subject to exchange rate fluctuations.
3 Alternative Performance Measures, see Glossary in the Annual Report.
For the year ended 30 September 2019, expenses of US$214,000 (2018: US$118,000) were charged to the capital column of the Statement of Comprehensive Income, these relate to transaction costs charged by the custodian on sale and purchase trades.
No fees were payable in 2019 or 2018 in relation to investing in new markets.
Details of the Directors’ emoluments are given in the Directors’ Remuneration Report in the Annual Report.
6. DIVIDENDS
Dividends paid on equity shares: |
Record date |
Payment date |
2019 US$’000 |
2018 US$’000 |
| 2018 final of 4.40 cents (2017: 4.20 cents) per ordinary share | 4 January 2019 | 7 February 2019 | 9,034 | 7,631 |
| 2018 special dividend of 1.00 cents per ordinary share (2017: nil) | 4 January 2019 | 7 February 2019 | 2,053 | – |
| 2019 interim of 3.00 cents (2018: 3.00 cents) per ordinary share | 7 June 2019 | 28 June 2019 | 7,220 | 5,850 |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | |||
| 18,307 | 13,481 | |||
| ========== | ========== |
The total dividends payable in respect of the year ended 30 September 2019 which form the basis of section 1158 of the Corporation Tax Act 2010 and section 833 of the Companies Act 2006, and the amounts proposed, meet the relevant requirements as set out in this legislation.
| 2019 US$’000 |
2018 US$’000 |
||
| Interim dividend of 3.00 cents per ordinary share (2018: 3.00 cents) | 7,220 | 5,850 | |
| Final proposed dividend of 4.75 cents per ordinary share (2018: 4.40 cents)* | 11,432 | 8,987 | |
| Special dividend of Nil cents per ordinary share (2018: 1.00 cent)* | – | 2,042 | |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | ||
| 18,652 | 16,879 | ||
| ========== | ========== |
* Based on 240,672,801 ordinary shares in issue on 5 December 2019.
7. EARNINGS AND NET ASSET VALUE PER ORDINARY SHARE
Total revenue, capital return and net asset value per ordinary share are shown below and have been calculated using the following:
| Year ended 30 September 2019 |
Year ended 30 September 2018 |
|
| Net revenue profit attributable to ordinary shareholders (US$’000) | 18,924 | 19,328 |
| Net capital loss attributable to ordinary shareholders (US$’000) | (25,605) | (48,670) |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | |
| Total loss attributable to ordinary shareholders (US$’000) | (6,681) | (29,342) |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | |
| Equity shareholders’ funds (US$’000) | 400,820 | 356,495 |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | |
| The weighted average number of ordinary shares in issue during the year, on which the return per ordinary share was calculated was: | 229,597,290 | 190,842,459 |
| The actual number of ordinary shares in issue at the year end, on which the net asset value per ordinary share was calculated was: | 240,672,801 | 200,616,108 |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | |
| Return per ordinary share | ||
| Revenue earnings per share (cents) | 8.24 | 10.13 |
| Capital loss per share (cents) | (11.15) | (25.50) |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | |
| Total loss per share (cents) | (2.91) | (15.37) |
| ========== | ========== | |
| As at 30 September 2019 |
As at 30 September 2018 |
|
| Net asset value per ordinary share (cents) | 166.54 | 177.70 |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | |
| Ordinary share price (cents)* | 162.66 | 182.25 |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | |
| Net asset value per ordinary share (pence) | 135.15 | 136.26 |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | |
| Ordinary share price (pence) | 132.00 | 139.75 |
| ========== | ========== |
* The Company’s share price is quoted in sterling and the above represents the US dollar equivalent based on an exchange rate of $1.2323 to £1 as at 30 September 2019 (30 September 2018: $1.3041 to £1).
8. CALLED UP SHARE CAPITAL
| Number of ordinary shares in issue |
Nominal value US$’000 |
|
| Allotted, called up and fully paid share capital comprised: | ||
| Ordinary shares of 1 cent each: | ||
| ------------------ | ------------------ | |
| At 30 September 2018 | 200,616,108 | 2,006 |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | |
| Share issues | 6,150,000 | 62 |
| Conversion of C shares into Ordinary shares | 33,906,693 | 339 |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | |
| At 30 September 2019 | 240,672,801 | 2,407 |
| ========== | ========== |
The Company also has in issue 50,000 management shares which carry the right to a fixed cumulative preferred dividend. Additional information is given in note 15 to the Financial Statements in the Annual Report.
During the year the Company issued 6,150,000 Ordinary shares (2018: 22,748,000) for a total gross consideration of US$10,845,000 (2018: US$49,347,000). A further 33,906,693 Ordinary shares were issued following the conversion of C shares. Please see note 12 in the Annual Report for further details.
No further shares have been issued since the year end and up to and including the date of this report.
9. RESERVES
| Distributable reserves | ||||||
Share premium account US$’000 |
Capital redemption reserve US$’000 |
Special reserve US$’000 |
Capital reserve arising on investments sold US$’000 |
Capital reserve arising on revaluation of investments held US$’000 |
Revenue reserve US$’000 |
|
| At 30 September 2018 | 95,095 | 5,798 | 230,799 | 49,775 | (42,544) | 15,566 |
| Movement during the year: | ||||||
| Total Comprehensive Income: | ||||||
| Net profit for the year | – | – | – | (32,341) | 6,736 | – |
| Revenue return for the year | – | – | – | – | – | 18,924 |
| Transactions with owners: | ||||||
| Share issues | 10,783 | – | – | – | – | – |
| Share issue costs | (55) | – | – | – | – | – |
| Share issues – conversion of C shares | 58,184 | – | – | |||
| Dividends paid | – | – | – | – | – | (18,307) |
| ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | |
| At 30 September 2019 | 164,007 | 5,798 | 230,799 | 17,434 | (35,808) | 16,183 |
| ========== | ========== | ========== | ========== | ========== | ========== | |
The share premium account and capital redemption reserve are not distributable profits under the Companies Act 2006. The special reserve may be used as distributable profits for all purposes and, in particular, for the repurchase by the Company of its ordinary shares and for payment as dividends. In accordance with the Company’s status as an investment company under the provisions of section 1158 of the Corporation Tax Act 2010, net capital returns may be distributed by way of dividend.
10. VALUATION OF FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS
Financial assets and financial liabilities are either carried in the Statement of Financial Position at their fair value (investments and derivatives) or at an amount which is a reasonable approximation of fair value (due from brokers, dividends and interest receivable, due to brokers, accruals, cash at bank and bank overdrafts). IFRS 13 requires the Company to classify fair value measurements using a fair value hierarchy that reflects the significance of inputs used in making the measurements. The valuation techniques used by the Company are explained in the accounting policies note 2(h) to the Financial Statements in the Annual Report.
Categorisation within the hierarchy has been determined on the basis of the lowest level of input that is significant to the fair value measurement of the relevant asset as follows.
The fair value hierarchy has the following levels:
Level 1 – Quoted market price for identical instruments in active markets
A financial instrument is regarded as quoted in an active market if quoted prices are readily and regularly available from an exchange, dealer, broker, industry group, pricing service or regulatory agency and those prices represent actual and regularly occurring market transactions on an arm’s length basis. The Company does not adjust the quoted price for these instruments.
Level 2 – Valuation techniques using observable inputs
This category includes instruments valued using quoted prices for similar instruments in markets that are considered less than active, or other valuation techniques where all significant inputs are directly or indirectly observable from market data. Valuation techniques used for non-standardised financial instruments such as options, currency swaps and other over-the-counter derivatives include the use of comparable recent arm’s length transactions, reference to other instruments that are substantially the same, discounted cash flow analysis, option pricing models and other valuation techniques commonly used by market participants making the maximum use of market inputs and relying as little as possible on entity specific inputs.
In the year ended 30 September 2018, the P-Notes were valued using the underlying equity bid price and the inputs to the valuation were the exchange rates used to convert the P-Note valuation from the relevant local currency to US Dollars at the year end date. There was 1 P-Note held as at the year ended 30 September 2018.
As at the year end the CFDs were valued using the underlying equity bid price and the inputs to the valuation were the exchange rates used to convert the CFD valuation from the relevant local currency in which the underlying equity was priced to US Dollars at the year end date. There have been no changes to the valuation technique since the previous year or as at the date of this report.
Level 3 – Valuation techniques using significant unobservable inputs
This category includes all instruments where the valuation technique includes inputs not based on observable market data and these inputs could have a significant impact on the instrument’s valuation.
This category includes instruments that are valued based on quoted prices for similar instruments where significant entity determined adjustments or assumptions are required to reflect differences between the instruments and instruments for which there is no active market. The Investment Manager considers observable data to be that market data that is readily available, regularly distributed or updated, reliable and verifiable, not proprietary, and provided by independent sources that are actively involved in the relevant market.
The level in the fair value hierarchy within which the fair value measurement is categorised in its entirety is determined on the basis of the lowest level input that is significant to the fair value measurement.
Assessing the significance of a particular input to the fair value measurement in its entirety requires judgement, considering factors specific to the asset or liability. The determination of what constitutes ‘observable’ inputs requires significant judgement by the Investment Manager.
Contracts for difference and P-Notes have all been classified as Level 2 investments as their valuation has been based on market observable inputs represented by the market prices of the underlying quoted securities to which these contracts expose the Company.
Fair values of financial assets and financial liabilities
The table below sets out fair value measurements using IFRS 13 fair value hierarchy.
Financial assets at fair value through profit or loss at 30 September 2019 |
Level 1 US$’000 |
Level 2 US$’000 |
Level 3 US$’000 |
Total US$’000 |
| Assets: | ||||
| Equity investments | 322,391 | – | – | 322,391 |
| P-Notes | – | – | – | – |
| Cash Fund | 71,191 | – | – | 71,191 |
| Contracts for difference (fair value) | – | 3,411 | 3 | 3,414 |
| Liabilities: | ||||
| Contracts for difference (fair value) | – | (1,056) | – | (1,056) |
| --------------- | --------------- | --------------- | --------------- | |
| 393,582 | 2,355 | 3 | 395,940 | |
| ========= | ========= | ========= | ========= |
Financial assets at fair value through profit or loss at 30 September 2018 |
Level 1 US$’000 |
Level 2 US$’000 |
Level 3 US$’000 |
Total US$’000 |
| Assets: | ||||
| Equity investments | 236,806 | – | – | 236,806 |
| P-Notes | – | 10,778 | – | 10,778 |
| Cash Fund | 100,917 | – | – | 100,917 |
| Contracts for difference (fair value) | – | 4,008 | 3 | 4,011 |
| Liabilities: | – | |||
| Contracts for difference (fair value) | – | (3,511) | – | (3,511) |
| --------------- | --------------- | --------------- | --------------- | |
| 337,723 | 11,275 | 3 | 349,001 | |
| ========= | ========= | ========= | ========= |
There were no transfers between levels of financial assets and financial liabilities during the year recorded at fair value as at 30 September 2019. The Company held 1 Level 3 long CFD security during the year ended 30 September 2019, which is also held at the year end. The Company held one Level 3 long CFD security throughout the year ended 30 September 2018.
A reconciliation of fair value measurement in Level 3 is set out below
Level 3 Financial assets at fair value through profit or loss at 30 September |
2019 US$’000 |
2018 US$’000 |
| Opening fair value | 3 | 213 |
| Disposal | – | (211) |
| Change in fair value during the year | – | 1 |
| --------------- | --------------- | |
| Closing fair value | 3 | 3 |
| ========= | ========= |
11. RELATED PARTY DISCLOSURE: DIRECTORS’ EMOLUMENTS
Disclosures of the Directors’ interests in the ordinary shares of the Company and fees and expenses payable to the Directors are set out in the Directors’ Remuneration Report in the Annual Report. At 30 September 2019, US$15,000 (£12,000) (2018: US$16,000 (£12,000)) was outstanding in respect of Directors’ fees.
12. TRANSACTIONS WITH INVESTMENT MANAGER AND AIFM
BlackRock Fund Managers Limited (BFM) provides management and administration services to the Company under a contract which is terminable on six months’ notice. BFM has (with the Company’s consent) delegated certain portfolio and risk management services, and other ancillary services, to BlackRock Investment Management (UK) Limited (BIM (UK)). Further details of the investment management contract are disclosed in the Directors’ Report in the Annual Report.
The investment management fee due for the year ended 30 September 2019 amounted to US$4,429,000 (2018: US$4,280,000). No performance fee is payable for the year (2018: US$nil). At the year end, US$2,385,000 was outstanding in respect of management fees (2018: US$1,024,000) and US$nil (2018: US$nil) was outstanding in respect of performance fees.
In addition to the above services, BlackRock has provided marketing services. The total fees paid or payable for these services for the year ended 30 September 2019 amounted to US$79,000 excluding VAT (2018: US$93,000) of which marketing fees of US$147,000 excluding VAT (2018: US$68,000) were outstanding as at year end.
The Company has an investment in the BlackRock Institutional Cash Series plc – US Dollar Liquid Environmentally Aware Fund of US$71,191,000 (2018: US$100,917,000 held in BlackRock’s Institutional Cash Series plc – US Dollar Liquidity Fund) at the year end, which is a fund managed by a company within the BlackRock Group.
13. CONTINGENT LIABILITIES
There were no contingent liabilities at 30 September 2019 (2018: nil).
14. PUBLICATION OF NON STATUTORY ACCOUNTS
The financial information contained in this announcement does not constitute statutory accounts as defined in the Companies Act 2006. The 2019 Annual Report and Financial Statements will be filed with the Registrar of Companies shortly.
The report of the Auditor for the year ended 30 September 2019 contains no qualification or statement under section 498(2) or (3) of the Companies Act 2006.
The comparative figures are extracts from the audited financial statements of BlackRock Frontiers Investment Trust plc for the year ended 30 September 2018, which have been filed with the Registrar of Companies. The report of the Auditor on those financial statements contained no qualification or statement under section 498 of the Companies Act.
This announcement was approved by the Board of Directors on 5 December 2019.
15. ANNUAL REPORT
Copies of the annual report will be sent to members shortly and will be available from the registered office, c/o The Company Secretary, BlackRock Frontiers Investment Trust plc, 12 Throgmorton Avenue, London EC2N 2DL.
16. ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
The Annual General Meeting of the Company will be held at 12 Throgmorton Avenue, London EC2N 2DL on Tuesday, 4 February 2020 at 12:00 p.m.
The Annual Report will also be available on the BlackRock website at blackrock.co.uk/brfi. Neither the contents of the Manager’s website nor the contents of any website accessible from hyperlinks on the Manager’s website (or any other website) is incorporated into, or forms part of, this announcement.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:
Simon White, Managing Director, Investment Trusts, BlackRock Investment Management (UK) Limited
Tel: 020 7743 3000
Press enquiries:
Lansons Communications
Email: BlackRockInvestmentTrusts@lansons.com
Tel: 020 7490 8828
5 December 2019
12 Throgmorton Avenue
London EC2N 2DL
END
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