Global asset manager BlackRock has announced the shuttering of its Asia Pacific Equity Income Fund due to a decline in assets under management. In a notice issued to shareholders, BlackRock’s board stated that it no longer believes that the fund aligns with its wider investment platform and does not anticipate further subscriptions “in the absence of recent investor interest in the fund”. The fund’s assets will be liquidated and the redemption proceeds will be distributed to shareholders on March 2, 2023. No further subscriptions will be accepted in the interim while existing shareholders have the option to move their investments to another BlackRock fund by February 28. The Luxembourg-domiciled fund was launched in 2009 and reached a peak in 2014 at US$841million. But in the last five years, the fund has lost 8.39% while AuM had fallen to $114million as of December 6. ©2022 funds global asia