DWS Scudder has introduced a new fund-of-funds, christened the DWS Alternative Asset Allocation Plus Fund. The fund, which invests in alternative asset categories, will be available in A, C, S and Institutional shares through intermediary advisors and institutions.

---

DWS Scudder, the U.S. retail division of Deutsche Asset Management (DeAM), today announced the launch of the DWS Alternative Asset Allocation Plus Fund. The Fund is an open-ended mutual fund which seeks capital appreciation by investing in alternative asset categories. Class A, C, S and Institutional shares will be offered through intermediary advisors and institutions.

The fund is structured as a ‘fund-of-funds’, with assets invested in a combination of underlying DWS funds, as well as other securities and derivative instruments. It gives shareholders access to non-traditional or ‘alternative’ asset categories and investment strategies such as market neutral, inflation-protection, commodities, real estate and emerging markets assets.

“Institutions have long benefited from investing in less correlated, alternative asset classes to complement their core holdings but accessibility to such strategies has, until now, been far more elusive for retail investors," said Doug Beck, a Managing Director and Head of Product Management at DWS Scudder. “This fund is designed to be a simple solution that gives the average mutual fund investor access to components of what we believe are some of the best alternative ideas, through one easily accessible strategy.”

The underlying funds will include:

Commodities
DWS Commodity Securities Fund

Market neutral
DWS Disciplined Market Neutral Fund

Emerging market equity
DWS Emerging Markets Equity Fund

Emerging market fixed income
DWS Emerging Markets Fixed Income Fund

Gold
DWS Gold & Precious Metals Fund

Treasury inflation protected securities
DWS Inflation Protected Plus Fund

Global real estate
DWS RREEF Global Real Estate Securities Fund

“From a financial advisor’s standpoint, this niche product complements traditional asset allocation,” said Philipp Hensler, CEO & Chairman of DWS Scudder Distributors Inc. “It offers the potential for adding return and minimizing risk through investing in a diversified set of asset classes that are largely uncorrelated to the core US equity and bond markets. This is a one-stop, accessible solution to diversify into alternatives, which can benefit investors during various market cycles.”

The fund will employ the use of DeAM’s integrated Global Portable Alpha strategy, iGAP when fund assets reach $50 million. This strategy is designed to add uncorrelated, consistent excess return to portfolios by taking advantage of inefficiencies in country equity and bonds, yield curve and currency markets around the world using a multi-manager, multi-style approach.

The fund is quantitatively managed by Deutsche Asset Management’s Quantitative Strategies Group. Robert Wang, a Managing Director at Deutsche Asset Management is the Portfolio Manager of the fund. Inna Okounkova, a Director is co-manager.

The Fund’s investment manager is Deutsche Investment Management Americas (“DIMA”).

DWS Scudder

DWS Scudder is part of Deutsche Asset Management, which is the marketing name in the US for the asset management activities of Deutsche Bank AG, Deutsche Bank Trust Company Americas, Deutsche Investment Management Americas Inc. and DWS Trust Company.

Deutsche Asset Management

With approximately €553.01 billion in assets under management globally (as of 3/31/07), Deutsche Bank’s Asset Management division is one of the world's leading investment management organizations, not just in size, but in quality and breadth of investment products, performance and client service. The Asset Management division provides a broad range of investment management products across the risk/return spectrum.

Deutsche Bank

Deutsche Bank is a leading global investment bank with a strong and profitable private clients franchise. A leader in Germany and Europe, the bank is continuously growing in North America, Asia and key emerging markets. With 73,114 employees in 75 countries, Deutsche Bank offers competes to be the leading global provider of financial solutions for demanding clients creating exceptional value for its shareholders and people.

www.cef.dws-scudder.com www.db.com

View a Prospectus To obtain a prospectus, download one from www.cef.dws-scudder.com or call Shareholder Services at (800) 349-4281. We advise investors to carefully consider the Fund’s objectives, risks, charges and expenses before investing. The prospectus contains this and other important information about the Fund. Please read the prospectus carefully before investing.

This announcement is not an offer to purchase or the solicitation of an offer to sell shares of the Fund or a prospectus, circular or representation intended for use in the purchase or sale of Fund shares.

Risk Considerations

Fund risks: Although asset allocation among different asset classes generally limits risk and exposure to any one class, the risk remains that management may favor an asset class that performs poorly relative to other asset classes. Fund and underlying funds’ risk: One or more of the underlying funds may experience relatively large investments or redemptions due to reallocations or rebalancing of the fund or other fund-of-fund products. These transactions could cause adverse effects on the fund’s performance to the extent that underlying funds may be required to sell securities or invest cash at times when they would otherwise not do so. Derivatives may be more volatile and less liquid than traditional securities and the portfolio could suffer losses on its derivative positions. Short sales involve the risk that the strategy will incur a loss by subsequently buying a security at a higher price than the price at which the strategy previously sold the security short. If a counterparty becomes bankrupt or otherwise fails to perform its obligations due to financial difficulties, the fund may experience delays in obtaining any recovery. Because the strategy intends to borrow money for investment purposes, commonly referred to as “leveraging,” exposure to fluctuations in the prices of its assets will be increased as compared to the exposure if the strategy did not borrow. Underlying funds’ risk: The funds are subject to stock market risk and may focus its investments on certain economic sectors or industries, thereby increasing its vulnerability to any single economic, political or regulatory development. Investments in securities of foreign issuers, especially those in emerging markets, present greater risks than investments in domestic securities, including currency fluctuations, changes in political/economic conditions, greater price volatility and less liquidity. Bond investments are subject to interest–rate risk such that when interest rates rise, the prices of the bonds, and thus the value of the bond fund, can decline and the investor can lose principal value. Because of concentration in investments in securities related to commodities, market-price movements, regulatory changes, economic changes, and adverse political or financial factors could have a significant impact on performance. Investments in commodity-linked structured notes and futures contracts have substantial additional risks, including risk of loss of a significant portion of their principal value and liquidity risk, as well as the risk of greater volatility. The funds may be nondiversified and can take larger positions in fewer issuers, increasing their overall risk potential. See the prospectus for additional risks and specific details regarding the fund’s risk profile.  

Edited by: Erin Kello


Stay ahead of the news ... Sign up for our email alerts now
CLICK HERE