Liberty's just opened Global Young Investor Fund will not mark the end of the firm's efforts to leverage its strengths and European connections. The fund, which is an expansion of its Young Investor Fund, was opened yesterday.

Philip Fragasso, managing director for marketing for Liberty funds, told the MutualFundWire.com that the firm is planning a series of offerings that will take advantage of Liberty's core capabilities.

He explained that the firm will subadvise funds for UniBank, a Copenhagen, Denmark-based partner on some of its funds. In turn, UniBank will subadvise for some of Liberty's new funds.

The firm is also eyeing new products in Japan, where its Newport funds have had success and in the United States.

Look for Liberty, which has been put up for sale by its corporate parent, to leverage its core competencies with multiple flavors of tax-managed funds (value, growth, aggressive growth) and more products in the bank floating-rate area. Tax-managed funds are especially in demand by advisors.

Don't look for the firm to offer exchange-traded funds any time soon (Fragasso admitted that the firm looked at the possibility, though). One way that the firm may meet the demand for non-fund investments is by offering separate account products for advisors "at some point in the future," said Fragasso.

Liberty offers funds through Stein Roe, Colonial, Wanger, Crabbe Huson, and Newport Pacific as well as Liberty. 

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