Key Takeaways
- • Lakefield Swiss Equity Long/Short UCITS fund won The Hedge Fund Journal's UCITS Hedge Award 2025 for Best Performing Fund in both 2024 and the two-year period ending December 2024 in the Equity Long/Short – DACH Region category, validating its systematic stock-picking and dynamic asset allocation approach.
- • The fund fills a market gap identified in 2017 by Lakefield Partners founder Vinicio Marsiaj, who observed that no genuine Swiss equity long/short strategy existed despite the presence of 130/30 strategies, leveraging the firm's proven equity selection engine and asset allocation models.
- • Lakefield Partners draws on over 20 years of asset allocation modeling and 10+ years of Swiss equity stock-picking experience, building on foundational work from Highgate Wealth Management (founded 2002) and combining active management across equities, bonds, and cash with country and sector-level alpha generation.
- • The fund is available in multiple share classes (CHF, EUR fully hedged, and USD fully hedged) structured as a Luxembourg-domiciled SICAV with a focus on Swiss large-cap equities, offering daily pricing and institutional-grade asset management services.
- • Top five holdings represent 32.46% of the portfolio, including Holcim AG (8.15%), Swiss Prime Site AG (6.88%), Helvetia Baloise Holding AG (6.18%), ABB Ltd (5.96%), and Novartis AG (5.29%), with exposure concentrated in Financial Services (32.04%) and Industrials (20.00%) sectors.
Summary
Lakefield Swiss Equity Long/Short UCITS has achieved recognition as a top-performing hedge fund strategy, receiving The Hedge Fund Journal's UCITS Hedge Award 2025 for Best Performing Fund in 2024 and over the two-year period ending December 2024 in the Equity Long/Short – DACH Region category. While the DACH designation typically encompasses Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, the fund operates as a focused Swiss-only equity strategy—a positioning that reflects a deliberate market opportunity identified by the firm's leadership.
The fund's genesis traces to 2017, when Vinicio Marsiaj, founder of Lakefield Partners, identified a strategic gap in Swiss asset management. Despite the existence of approximately 130/30 strategies in the market, no genuine Swiss equity long/short strategy with comprehensive systematic methodologies existed. Marsiaj leveraged Lakefield's proprietary equity selection engine, already proven across multiple geographies, combined with dynamic asset allocation models tested across varying beta exposures and multiple market cycles. This combination of proven capabilities created the foundation for the fund's launch and subsequent outperformance.
Lakefield Partners itself has deep roots in active asset management, with over 20 years of asset allocation modeling expertise and more than 10 years of dedicated Swiss equity stock-picking experience. The firm evolved from Highgate Wealth Management, founded in 2002, and progressively developed sophisticated models spanning equities, bonds, and cash before advancing to country and sector-level strategies capable of generating alpha through stock selection. The firm provides comprehensive asset management services to private and institutional clients, alongside tactical asset allocation advisory services to select Swiss public pension funds.
The fund structure reflects institutional-grade design with multiple share classes denominated in CHF, EUR (fully hedged), and USD (fully hedged), available through Luxembourg domiciliation as a SICAV. Portfolio composition shows meaningful concentration in Swiss blue-chip equities, with the top five holdings representing 32.46% of assets: Holcim AG (8.15%), Swiss Prime Site AG (6.88%), Helvetia Baloise Holding AG (6.18%), ABB Ltd (5.96%), and Novartis AG (5.29%). Sector exposure is weighted toward Financial Services (32.04%) and Industrials (20.00%), reflecting the composition of Switzerland's large-cap equity market and the fund's focus on market capitalizations and blend investment approaches.
The fund's recognition by The Hedge Fund Journal validates the systematic approach to Swiss equity management that combines quantitative stock selection with disciplined risk management through both long and short positioning, addressing an identified market inefficiency that persisted until Lakefield's entry into the space.
The fund's genesis traces to 2017, when Vinicio Marsiaj, founder of Lakefield Partners, identified a strategic gap in Swiss asset management. Despite the existence of approximately 130/30 strategies in the market, no genuine Swiss equity long/short strategy with comprehensive systematic methodologies existed. Marsiaj leveraged Lakefield's proprietary equity selection engine, already proven across multiple geographies, combined with dynamic asset allocation models tested across varying beta exposures and multiple market cycles. This combination of proven capabilities created the foundation for the fund's launch and subsequent outperformance.
Lakefield Partners itself has deep roots in active asset management, with over 20 years of asset allocation modeling expertise and more than 10 years of dedicated Swiss equity stock-picking experience. The firm evolved from Highgate Wealth Management, founded in 2002, and progressively developed sophisticated models spanning equities, bonds, and cash before advancing to country and sector-level strategies capable of generating alpha through stock selection. The firm provides comprehensive asset management services to private and institutional clients, alongside tactical asset allocation advisory services to select Swiss public pension funds.
The fund structure reflects institutional-grade design with multiple share classes denominated in CHF, EUR (fully hedged), and USD (fully hedged), available through Luxembourg domiciliation as a SICAV. Portfolio composition shows meaningful concentration in Swiss blue-chip equities, with the top five holdings representing 32.46% of assets: Holcim AG (8.15%), Swiss Prime Site AG (6.88%), Helvetia Baloise Holding AG (6.18%), ABB Ltd (5.96%), and Novartis AG (5.29%). Sector exposure is weighted toward Financial Services (32.04%) and Industrials (20.00%), reflecting the composition of Switzerland's large-cap equity market and the fund's focus on market capitalizations and blend investment approaches.
The fund's recognition by The Hedge Fund Journal validates the systematic approach to Swiss equity management that combines quantitative stock selection with disciplined risk management through both long and short positioning, addressing an identified market inefficiency that persisted until Lakefield's entry into the space.
Go deeper than the headline
Research every firm in this story, track the ones that matter and get the daily briefing — free for 7 days.