Message to Matthews Asia Dividend Fund Shareholders

I am writing to share with you information regarding portfolio management changes on the Matthews Asia Dividend Fund.  Effective December 31, 2022, Kenneth Lowe, CFA, has been named a Lead Manager of the Matthews Asia Dividend Fund, and I have transitioned from a Co-Manager on the Fund to serve as a Lead Manager. Also, Winnie Chwang, Elli Lee and Siddharth Bhargava have been newly appointed Co-Managers, replacing Sherwood Zhang, CFA. Additionally, effective December 31, 2022, Joyce Li, CFA, no longer serves as a Lead Manager of the Fund and effective January 31, 2023, Yu Zhang, CFA, will cease being a portfolio manager of the Fund.

Following Yu Zhang and Joyce Li’s decisions to leave the company to pursue other endeavors, we have taken this opportunity to consolidate our income-focused portfolios under the same portfolio management team, as well as strengthen the team with the addition of Co-Managers with expertise across countries and sectors. We believe these changes will help better facilitate the Matthews Asia Dividend Fund’s investment philosophy which is to provide investors with a lower volatile approach to Asia Pacific equity markets with an emphasis on dividends.

Matthews Asia has been pursuing dividend investing in Asia for nearly 30 years and we have maintained a depth of expertise across the team and portfolios. Specifically, the addition of the new portfolio managers provides broader coverage and support across sectors and the Asian region in order to complement the existing portfolio management team. It also formalizes the close collaborative relationships between teams and allow for better recognition of the contributions they currently provide.

I also want to take this opportunity to recognize and thank Yu Zhang and Joyce Li for their efforts on the Fund over the past several years. The Matthews Asia Dividend Fund remains both a distinctive and important portfolio for our firm and our clients. The newly named team have a deep understanding of the existing portfolio and are committed to continuing to focus on investing in dividend paying companies in a total return framework. The investment objective and approach will not change as a result of this transition in responsibilities, and we are committed to continuing to deliver an excellent experience to our investors in this Fund. 

If you have any questions regarding the Matthews Asia Funds, please visit our website at matthewsasia.com.

Yours truly,

Robert Horrocks, PhD
Chief Investment Officer and Portfolio Manager
Matthews Asia