This article was written by Justin Brown and originally published on citywire.com on 08 April 2026.
This portfolio employs a turbocharged quant strategy that tracks volume to make bold momentum bets.
While traditional managers were busy dissecting balance sheets, the Investin BCI Equity fund was riding a massive wave of volume. By February 2026, the R311m fund delivered a staggering 61% return for the year, a performance fuelled by an ‘extreme’ tactical bet on gold and platinum stocks.
Managed by Adrian Meager and Nick Harris, this SA equity fund ignores fundamental analysis entirely, opting instead for a cold, hard, quant-driven approach that prizes trading volume over price action.
The portfolio is fully quant-driven. The co-managers skip fundamental and macro analysis entirely. Instead, they track trading volume over one to 12 months and adjust positions dynamically based on momentum.
Meager (pictured above), who is also Investin Asset Management’s managing director and chief investment officer, told Citywire South Africa that the fund uses volume-based momentum to make its decisions. He believes volume provides more reliable and accurate signals than price momentum alone.
‘Our DNA over the past almost four years is to say [to research providers]: “You have the expertise”,’ Meager explained. ‘We are quite comfortable paying for it, because the commercial agreement is probably less expensive than putting a whole team in place.’
The boutique bases its decisions on external models from research partners, with Investin implementing them within regulatory caps. Using external models is a cost-effective way to access tested strategies and diversify styles. Research partners provide ‘buy’ and ‘sell’ signals, which Investin implements.
Positions can move fast and far
Holdings are scaled up or down continuously based on momentum strength and are not bought and held. Positions can change rapidly. For example, the fund’s position in Sasol earlier this year moved from about 3% to nearly 12% of its assets over a three-week period.
Meager noted the fund has no emotional attachment to stocks and avoids the ‘investment thesis’ bias often seen in fundamentally driven funds. The fund can take big positions when momentum is strong.
Recently, gold and platinum prices fell, dragging down SA equities. The fund now holds about 60% in gold and platinum within its SA equities portfolio.
The fund offers the potential for high returns, but also significant risk and heightened volatility. While there can be substantial upside, investors may also experience sharp declines. The fund’s highly dynamic nature and unconstrained positioning contribute to these swings.
Because of this, Meager does not recommend using the fund as a standalone SA equity holding. Rather, it is intended as a low-correlation building block or a complement to traditional fundamental managers, suitable for investors who can tolerate high risks.
The two portfolio co-managers decide on asset allocation, covering offshore and local holdings and cash. Investin is currently targeting retail and private clients, not institutions. The fund fits investors seeking outperformance, who are aware of volatility and who use multi-manager portfolios.
Due to the fund’s high turnover, its total investment charge is relatively high at 2.4%, though this is justified when momentum works in the investor’s favour.
A place within a broader ecosystem
Investin is part of Orion Investment Managers, which has six specialist managers, each focused on a distinct strategy — for example, fixed income, quant, equities or multi-asset. The other five managers are Cadiz Asset Management, Starfunds.ai, Accorn Investment Management, Palmyra Asset Management and Capita Asset Management.
Investin’s total assets exceed R400m, spanning two funds: the SA equity fund and a balanced fund.
‘We try to find lowly correlated investing styles,’ Meager said, especially regarding Orion’s discretionary fund manager Accorn, which builds in-house model portfolios for Warwick Wealth.
‘When you run funds for a wealth manager, it’s hard to use only one asset management style,’ he explained. ‘The goal is to use different investment styles in the underlying funds. When you blend them together, you can remove the big outperformance or underperformance and protect your client’s capital.’
Investin’s core role is asset allocation and portfolio construction for funds, particularly for Warwick Wealth.
Global diversification and tactical ETFs use
The fund derives its global allocation from up to four international funds with different styles: value, quality, growth at a reasonable price and blended strategies.
The portfolio also uses passive ETFs, such as the Satrix Top 40, in neutral markets to match benchmark returns. At the end of January, the Top 40 ETF was the largest holding at 12.4%. ‘ETFs are an inexpensive way to replicate the market,’ Meager noted.
Earlier this year, the fund’s ETF exposure was under 4%; now it is over 12%. ‘We use the ETF tactically when one market segment, like gold and platinum, is overweight. Instead of going to cash, we shift to the Top 40.’
With this fluid and disciplined approach, Investin positions itself to respond to opportunities and risks as they emerge, aiming to deliver superior returns while managing volatility. For investors seeking a dynamic and adaptable part of their portfolio, this high-conviction, momentum-driven strategy offers both potential and purpose.
