Reflecting on success and looking forward to the future of the SSI-SCA Open-Ended Fund

- With Mr. Bui Van Tot, CFA, Portfolio Manager - SSIAM

? In 2023, the investment performance of the SSI-SCA Fund achieved superior return of 28.4%, more than double that of the VN-Index market index (12.1%). What contributed to this outstanding performance?

?During most periods, the portfolio is often fully invested in stocks, hence the fund's investment performance mainly comes from allocation of funds to specific sectors and stock selection. Allocating more to sectors such as information technology, raw materials, and industrial has proven to be beneficial for the portfolio as these sectors showed impressive growth this year. Regarding stock selection, our consistent approach is to choose companies with transparent leadership, effective execution, a solid operating platform with sustainable competitive advantages, leading to excellent performance. The selection and allocation of capital into various quality stocks such as FPT, ACB, GMD, DRC, HPG, etc., have contributed to creating the outstanding performance of the Fund.

The investment performance of the fund over the 3-year period (2021-2023) was exceptionally high at 42.4%, compared to the VN-Index's 2.4%.

?Maintaining sustainable growth in the face of economic and political fluctuations in recent year requires an effective and systematic asset management strategy. Could you share the principles or beliefs that have guided you throughout the investment process?

I have some enduring principles and beliefs when it comes to investment:

1. Intrinsic Value: Every company has a true value, and the fund manager's duty is to understand the true value of the company and act based on that fundamental value. While stock prices may deviate from the true value in the short term due to investor psychology, rumors, market manipulation, etc., over time, stock prices will fluctuate around the true value, reflecting the company's business activities. Therefore, instead of seeking short-term stories and speculative gains, we focus on researching various industries and businesses to understand what is happening in the economy and identify companies that operate genuinely, creating true value for society and shareholders.

2. Risk Management: Managing risk in investments is as important as seeking profit. Profit figures only show one side of the picture; the other, less visible, side is the risk that the portfolio has accepted. Funds that are highly successful in one year but perform poorly in another often accept high risks for high returns. When the market is unfavorable, these uncontrolled risks can significantly impact the portfolio. Therefore, to provide stable high returns in the long term, at SSIAM, we consider risk management as important as generating profits.

3. Focus on the Investment Process: Short-term high performance may come from luck and intuition, but long-term high performance requires the right approach, discipline, and an effective decision-making system. Therefore, at SSIAM, we always pay attention to the investment decision-making process, continuously improving our methods and systems. This helps us achieve sustainability in the long term.

?With the growth foundation already established and the expected growth trend in the coming year, what are your thoughts for SSI-SCA? What investment direction do you foresee taking?

Although recovery may be challenging, we expect 2024 to be a favorable year for financial assets in general and, in particular, for securities due to economic improvement and a low-interest-rate environment. For SSI-SCA, we will continue the investment strategy that has proven effective in recent years. We will focus on identifying investment opportunities in clearly recovering industries, businesses with excellent fundamentals, and reasonable valuations. Additionally, maintaining portfolio balance and diversification is crucial for risk management and stability. We aim for a reasonable allocation between large and mid-cap companies, growth and value stocks, aggressive and defensive stocks, etc.

Do you have any advice for investors as they approach the new year?

I hope investors will view the stock market as a long-term investment channel, and as an asset class that should always be present in the portfolio rather than a short-term buying and selling channel for quick profits.

I wish investors good health and a prosperous investment year.