UK- Ruffer Investment Management LLP, a London boutique with £800m (€1.2bn), is to open subscriptions next week for its first closed-ended, UK-listed investment company for pension funds.

The Guernsey-based company will be managed by Jonathan Ruffer, chief executive, and Steve Russell, head of research, as a multi-asset, long-only fund targeting absolute returns of twice the Bank of England base rate and without losing money on a one-year rolling basis.

The strategy will be similar to the Ruffer Income open-ended fund, which has returned 65% from 29 September 2000 to 5 May 2004, and invest internationally in listed equities, bonds and cash without benchmark weightings. Illustrative initial portfolio will be 24% UK equities, 18% Swiss bonds, 14% Japan & Asia equities, 12% UK fixed interest, 12% German bonds, 10% European equities, 6% gold and 3% cash.

Philip Dunne, business development director at Ruffer, said: “The fund will be long-only in an absolute return style as it will seek the preservation of capital and consistent returns in all market conditions.”

He said he expected the company’s shares to trade at a premium to net asset value and would have the ability to buy-back shares.