Investment Policy

Ysquared is a mid to long-term investor with low levels of leverage; therefore, the level of new investments made by Ysquared is expected to correlate with new capital growth. Ysquared’s primary objective is to deliver superior per share total return through both capital and income, which in turn can be expected to be reflected in share price growth. To achieve this, Ysquared seeks to invest in undervalued companies within the financial services sector and has the flexibility to make investments in a range of financial-related sectors and markets. Ysquared will identify and invest in opportunities where the underlying value is not reflected in the market or purchase price. The perceived undervaluation may arise from a variance of factors including the limited number of potential buyers, the paucity of bank lending to smaller financial services companies and the abundant supply of financial services companies for sale as banks continue to deleverage in response to the global credit crisis.

Ysquared will generally aim to achieve a control position but is equally comfortable with a minority position if the purchase price is sufficiently attractive or the investment instrument offers a degree of protection. Ysquared aims to maximise value for shareholders by holding a reasonably concentrated portfolio of investments and maintaining a prudent level of gearing. These investments can be both unlisted and listed. Besides looking for “bolt-on” opportunities, Ysquared hopes to extract synergistic benefits from the investee companies on both costs and revenue as investee companies are encouraged to collaborate with each other, share resources where appropriate and think smarter.

Ysquared expects to be supportive of its investee companies, maintain regular dialogue with the management, have strategic input and, where appropriate, provide additional capital to ensure that the companies can develop and grow.