ACATIS Investment has entered the ETF market with the launch of its first actively managed ETF, listing the ACATIS Altersvorsorgedepot UCITS ETF on Deutsche Börse Xetra, on Friday 8 May.
The fund has been designed as a long-term savings product for investors building capital for retirement. It is positioned around Germany’s developing Altersvorsorgedepot (AVD) framework. Altersvorsorgedepot is due to launch in Germany on 1 January 2027 as a new tax-advantaged private retirement account designed to promote capital market investment with fewer restrictions. It will allow flexible, exposure to capital-market returns and offer subsidies of up to €540 annually, child allowances of up to €300 per child and a one-off €200 bonus for younger savers. A simplified standard product will also be available, with effective costs capped at 1.0%.
ACATIS is presenting the strategy as a simple, cost-efficient way for investors to access a global equity portfolio through an active ETF structure. The ETF invests in developed market companies and uses a value-oriented approach rather than seeking to follow short-term market trends. Its stock selection starts with a universe of around 300 to 350 companies that have already been assessed by ACATIS fund managers, before an AI-supported process is used to build a concentrated portfolio of around 50 quality stocks.
The portfolio focuses on businesses with stable models, strong market positions and the ability to generate shareholder value. The fund is rebalanced quarterly and aims to outperform the MSCI World Net Total Return EUR Index. It carries annual product costs of 0.70%.
In an interview published by Deutsche Börse today, Thomas Bosch, managing director at ACATIS Investment, said the firm had deliberately emphasised a “Made in Germany” structure for the launch. He said the management company, custodian, fund administrator and ETF technology partner are all based in Germany, while the ETF is listed in Germany with a German ISIN.
Bosch also said the strategy differs from passive ETFs by using artificial intelligence in the security selection process and by actively limiting position sizes to reduce concentration risk, unlike many equity indices. For ACATIS, the move also links two themes that are becoming more prominent in European fund distribution: retirement savings reform and the shift of active management into the ETF format.
Our view
David Batchelor, senior analyst at QuotedData, said: “This launch is a further sign that active ETFs in Europe are moving beyond simple product proliferation and starting to target more specific investor needs. ACATIS is positioning its first ETF around long-term retirement savings, which is notable given the growing policy focus on private pension provision in Germany and across Europe. The use of an active, value-oriented process within the ETF wrapper also shows how managers are trying to differentiate themselves from low-cost passive global equity products. For investors, the key question will be whether the strategy can justify its higher fee through consistent stock selection, but the launch underlines how active ETFs are increasingly becoming a mainstream distribution route for established fund managers”.
