Our Brand

The brand change is part of a global re-branding programme, which began in 2019 after First State Investments (Colonial First State Global Asset Management in Australia) was acquired by Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking Corporation (MUTB), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Inc. (MUFG). At that time, we decided to progress towards a single corporate global brand name in all markets.

For the past 10 months, we have been operating as First Sentier Investors in Australia and will now progressively move to that name across all global markets, with a final transition date scheduled for September 2020.

Following our change of ownership to MUFG in 2019, we are taking this opportunity to adopt a single global corporate brand name - providing a unified approach to our brand management globally.

A unified single brand will simplify our brand experiences for both employees and clients, and reaffirms the strengths of our global investment management business, our commitment to our clients and broader stakeholders.

First Sentier Investors operates as a stand-alone investment management business under MUFG ownership, with its own unique brand identity.

When choosing a brand name, there were a number of considerations.

• We wanted a brand name that reflected core attributes of our personality and business philosophy
• We wanted a brand name that had a link to our past so we could retain some of our heritage
• We wanted a brand name that provided a smooth transition from First State Investments
• We needed a brand name that was available for trademark in all jurisdictions in which we operate
• We are required to transition to get-up / livery / logo design that is not similar to our current design

First Sentier Investors met all the above criteria.

The name First Sentier Investors reflects our heritage and ongoing purpose. ‘First’ references our strong and successful heritage as First State Investments, while the word ‘Sentier’ means path - which reflects our commitment to creating our own way forward, thinking about the future and investing responsibly over the long term for the benefit of our clients and the communities in which we invest. First Sentier Investors also abbreviates to FSI which provides a smooth transition from our current abbreviation.

No. There will be no change to our investment teams or the way these teams manage our client assets. This is a brand name change only to allow us the benefit of operating as a unified global business.

All our investment teams – whether in-house or individually branded – operate with discrete investment autonomy, according to their investment philosophies.

There is no change to the branding of investment teams Stewart Investors and FSSA Investment Managers, or to the way these teams manage client assets.

First Sentier Investors is a stand-alone asset management business and the home of investment teams Stewart Investors, FSSA Investment Managers and Realindex. There is no change to the branding of these investment teams, or to the way they manage client assets.

Yes. These funds have always been managed by FSSA Investment Managers and therefore, during this time of brand change, it makes sense to adopt a consistent approach and provide appropriate clarity across our fund range.

By way of background, First State Stewart Asia was established as an investment team in 2015 when the former First State Stewart team was separated into two teams (First State Stewart Asia and Stewart Investors). In July 2019, this investment team was formally rebranded to FSSA Investment Managers.

For the past 10 months, we have been operating as First Sentier Investors in Australia while continuing to operate as First State Investments across all other global markets. The current macro-economic environment is challenging for almost every business around the world – and undoubtedly COVID-19 has been the over-riding priority for our management team and our employees for much of 2020. That being said, this change is a change in brand name only, with absolutely no impact on our business, our clients or how we manage client assets. Operating under a unified single brand will simplify our brand experiences for both employees and clients and allow us to fully leverage the market opportunities ahead and as we re-emerge from this period.

Given the corporate brand name change, and the brand change of some First State funds to FSSA branded funds, it is our wish and intention to facilitate a smooth transition and ensure our funds are easily found and identifiable on relevant fund platforms. In addition, as First Sentier Investors is both a home of investment teams and a stand-alone asset management business, we also wanted to ensure that this is clearly communicated within platform listings.

It is our intention that all platforms will have three separate management group listings for the three fund brands - First Sentier Investors, FSSA Investment Managers, Stewart Investors – while maintaining the link to First Sentier Investors. Therefore, the respective fund ranges will be listed under: First Sentier Investors; FSSA IM (First Sentier Investors); and Stewart Investors (First Sentier Investors) across VCC structures.

We will be working with all platforms, over the coming months, to affect this desired change.