The term ‘Smart Beta' has recently established itself as the clear winner in the battle to become the investment industry's preferred label for an eclectic mix of diverse investment strategies. The common thread linking these various ‘Smart Beta' approaches is the objective of providing investors with a ‘different' – but still systematic – equity exposure to that offered by traditional cap-weighted indices.

Regional differences in growth and policy will drive international financial markets next year. This is the view of Asoka Wöhrmann, Chief Investment Officer (CIO) of Deutsche Asset & Wealth Management in his outlook for 2015.

Today's launch represents one of the industry's first UCITS advanced beta multi-factor funds combining three factors: low valuation, low volatility and high quality. All three strategies demonstrate increased risk-adjusted returns over a long-term investment horizon when compared to the MSCI World index.

Bill Gross is managing the global macro-driven bond fund, acting on his highest conviction ideas in order to generate positive returns and fixed income diversification, while navigating ever-changing market conditions in the global economy.

The investment approach of the Fund enables the manager to invest directly across asset classes, principally in global equities and bonds. The Fund may also invest up to 10% in other Threadneedle funds and uses derivatives for investment purposes and hedging, including the generation of additional income.