Robeco Next Digital Billion D USD

Michiel van Voorst is Co-Portfolio Manager within the Trends Equities team. He has a focus on financials/fintech/next digital billion. In 2019, Michiel rejoined Robeco from Union Bancaire Privée in Hong Kong where he was CIO Asian Equities. Prior to that, Michiel spent 12 years at Robeco in several senior positions including senior portfolio manager Rolinco Global Growth fund and Robeco Asian Stars. Prior to joining Robeco in 2005, Michiel was Portfolio Manager US Equity at PGGM and Economist with Rabobank Netherlands. Michiel started his career in the investment industry in 1996. Michiel van Voorst holds a Master’s in Economics from University of Utrecht and is a CFA® charterholder. Bryan Satterly is Portfolio Manager Next Digital Billion and a member of the Robeco Trends Equities team. Prior to this role, Bryan was an investment manager for Robeco’s Private Equity group where he was responsible for group exposures in emerging markets, venture capital and co-investments. He joined Robeco in 2018. Before that he was an investment analyst in Washington D.C. for the Venture Capital Group at IFC, the World Bank Group’s private sector investment arm, investing into technology companies across emerging markets. He started his career in 2013 as an investment banking analyst at BMO Capital Markets in New York, working on a variety of equity, debt and M&A transactions in the Healthcare and Real Estate sectors. Bryan holds a Bachelor’s degree in Foreign Service from Georgetown University in Washington D.C.

The fund is established in Luxembourg and is subject to the Luxembourg tax laws and regulations. The fund is not liable to pay any corporation, income, dividend or capital gains tax in Luxembourg. The fund is subject to an annual subscription tax ('tax d'abonnement') in Luxembourg, which amounts to 0.05% of the net asset value of the fund. This tax is included in the net asset value of the fund. The fund can in principle use the Luxembourg treaty network to partially recover any withholding tax on its income.

The fiscal consequences of investing in this fund depend on the investor's personal situation. For private investors in the Netherlands real interest and dividend income or capital gains received on their investments are not relevant for tax purposes. Each year investors pay income tax on the value of their net assets as at 1 January if and inasmuch as such net assets exceed the investor’s tax-free allowance. Any amount invested in the fund forms part of the investor's net assets. Private investors who are resident outside the Netherlands will not be taxed in the Netherlands on their investments in the fund. However, such investors may be taxed in their country of residence on any income from an investment in this fund based on the applicable national fiscal laws. Other fiscal rules apply to legal entities or professional investors. We advise investors to consult their financial or tax adviser about the tax consequences of an investment in this fund in their specific circumstances before deciding to invest in the fund.

The fund incorporates sustainability in the investment process through exclusions, ESG integration, engagement and voting. The fund does not invest in issuers that are in breach of international norms or where activities have been deemed detrimental to society following Robeco's exclusion policy. Financially material ESG factors are integrated in the bottom-up investment analysis to assess existing and potential ESG risks and opportunities. In the stock selection the fund limits exposure to elevated sustainability risks. In addition, where a stock issuer is flagged for breaching international standards in the ongoing monitoring, the issuer will become subject to engagement. Lastly, the fund makes use of shareholder rights and applies proxy voting in accordance with Robeco's proxy voting policy.

February was a negative month for our portfolio holdings in both absolute and relative terms. The MSCI Emerging Markets Index was also negative for the month. Robeco Next Digital Billion underperformed, with relative losses coming primarily from the fund's exposure to China.

Based on transaction prices, the fund's return was -6.78%. The fund underperformed, with relative losses coming primarily from the fund's exposure to China. Internet platforms contributed most positively to performance during February, a continuation of the positive contribution of the category in January. The largest contributor was once again MercadoLibre. The fintech portion of the portfolio was a negative contributor to returns during the month of February. Several of our Brazilian fintech companies were down, inverting the positive trend from January. The B2B/enterprise-focused portion of the portfolio made a positive contribution to performance during February. One of our biggest positions in this category, Globant, contributed positively to performance during the month. This portion of the portfolio made a slightly negative contribution to the fund's performance in February, continuing its negative contribution from December and January. Our largest holding in this category, ESR Group, was down for the month. Overall, ICT & enabler companies made a positive contribution to the fund's results in February. The online consumer & media portion of our portfolio made the most negative contribution.

Our focus markets continue to adjust to a higher interest rate environment globally. Signs of possible demand weakness for goods and services offered by technology companies vary greatly by geography. However, in the most impacted areas, we are beginning to see demand recovery, with portfolio holdings well positioned. The local and regional challenges companies need to face across emerging markets are as diverse as the mix of countries itself. However, quarter-after-quarter we have seen that innovative companies in the portfolio have withstood obstacles well. In the short term, we see the China macro story developing positively after reopening, which may have a ripple effect across emerging markets as global demand picks up. Within our high conviction approach, we remain diversified across geographies. We continue to reevaluate fundamental theses on individual positions within the portfolio. However, our Next Digital Billion trend remains incredibly compelling for the long-term. We continue to search for new investment ideas even in these turbulent times.