Van Biema Ex-US Contest Finalists Announced

Van Biema Value Partners, a family office and investment adviser specializing in identifying, vetting, and investing in small, value-oriented hedge funds, and legendary value investor Chuck Royce are pleased to announce the (5) Finalists in the recently completed van Biema Value Partners Ex-US Small-Cap Challenge. The initiative was designed to identify talented small managers investing in the small-cap space outside of the U.S.




Select managers chosen from the list below will be invited to participate in a new van Biema Manager Platform, receiving advice in business development and operations, and gaining exposure to van Biema’s broader network. Upon completion of investment and operational due diligence processes, exceptional candidates will be eligible for direct investment from van Biema.




We quote directly from the van Biema team,

”We chose five finalists out of what we felt was a high-quality field, and are grateful to all who participated.




Ultimately, we based our selection of the finalists on the quality of both the stock idea and the write-up, itself. All five provided well-reasoned, well-presented investment theses, indicating thorough research and a keen focus on key issues and risks. We particularly valued the authors’ insistence on a significant margin of safety, whether that rested on a substantial discount to the value of hard assets (in the case of Rezidor Hotel Group) or to that of the earnings power of a competitive, scalable business model (in the cases of XLMedia, Polski Bank Komorek Macierzystych, and Exco Technologies), and on their clear understanding of the reasons for the discount.




We were also impressed by an emphasis on the importance of both the alignment of interests with insider shareholders and the existence of multiple potential catalysts for re-rating (in the case of Evertz Technologies). Acknowledgment of the risks faced by an investment, and attention to the quality of the balance sheet and any other factors providing downside protection, also weighed significantly on our choices.




We look forward to engaging with the managers in person, through both our follow-up meetings and our Ocean House retreat.”

Finalists (unordered)

• Long on XLMedia Plc (XLM:LN)
  
  
  Jeffrey Meyers (Cobia Capital)




• Long on Exco Technologies Ltd (XTC:CN)
  
  
  Joseph Frankenfield (Saga Partners LLC)




• Long on Polski Bank Komorek Macierzystych Sa (BKM:PW)
  
  
  Ben Griffith (Caravan Capital Management)




• Long on Evertz Technologies Ltd (ET:CN)
  
  
  Andrew Shortreid (Aventine Asset Management)




• Long on Rezidor Hotel Group Ab (REZT:SS)
  
  
  Brad Hathaway (Far View Capital Management)

View All van Biema Ex-US Small Cap Challenge Entries


Our sincere congratulations to the Finalists, and our thanks goes out to all those who participated in the initiative.