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It doesn't come as a complete surprise, but the Mavrix and Seamark mutual funds are poised to be re-branded under the Matrix name.

The makeover is coming now that Seamark Asset Management Ltd. and GrowthWorks Ltd., which bought Mavrix Fund Management Inc. in 2009, have merged. The combined entity listed earlier this year as Matrix Asset Management Inc. .

Most Mavrix funds are simply being renamed with the same mandates, but some others will have different tweaks or manager and mandate changes. Mavrix Global, a global equity fund, is turning into Matrix International Equity Fund. Manager Pictet International Management Ltd. is being replaced by Seamark Asset Management. See regulatory filings.

The new Matrix family will include three Seamark mutual funds launched in late 2007 as a way for institutionally focused Seamark to make a foray into the retail investor market. These funds will be renamed Matrix Canadian Equity, Matrix North American Equity and Matrix Conservative Dividend & Income Fund (currently Seamark Dividend & Income Fund).

Matrix has also hired Han Investment Stewards & Co. to manage the Matrix International Income Balanced and Matrix International Balanced funds.

Under the fund reorganization, Matrix will market "core" funds and also "specialty funds" where Mavrix tried to make its mark. Mavrix Explorer, which will be renamed Matrix Explorer, posted an eye-popping 198 per cent return in 2009, but its manager, Paul MacDonald, left in the spring to join former Mavrix manager Bill Shaw at Creststreet Asset Management Ltd. Mavrix co-founder Malvin Spooner also left in early May. See previous Fund Watch blog.

Last year, David Levi who is chief executive officer of GrowthWorks and now Matrix too, said "the intention is to keep the Mavrix name and, we certainly want to keep the whole team together."

It looks like the courtship of Seamark changed everything.

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