Asset Managers

Strong inflows at Amundi, Natixis, DWS and Allianz show investors’ appetite for income strategies. But equity outflows and margin pressure reveal an industry split between volume growth and conviction.

Allianz GI and JP Morgan AM take different paths to multi-asset income: one prioritises yield, the other favours balance. Morningstar compares their approach.

Luxembourg, long seen as the administrative engine of Europe’s fund industry, has evolved into a strategic global hub, with U.S. asset managers leading the charge. Firms like Blackrock, Invesco, and JPMorgan are anchoring cross-border operations in the Grand Duchy, turning it into a launchpad for global growth and highlighting America’s dominant role in shaping Europe’s financial future.

Amundi, Europe’s biggest asset manager, is calling on investors to reassess their global asset allocation in light of deep structural changes in the world economy, with its top investment leaders highlighting Europe’s growing role as a safe and opportunity-rich destination.

A quiet power shift is underway in the European fund industry. Investors are increasingly gravitating towards larger Ucits vehicles, favouring scale, simplicity and cost-efficiency over specialisation and boutique appeal.

Columbia Threadneedle Investments is preparing to launch a new range of Irish-domiciled active ETFs, but unlike many of its peers, the firm will oversee these funds from Luxembourg, not Dublin.

Robeco pioneers the use of agentic AI, as autonomous systems begin to disrupt how asset managers invest, decide, and execute.

Agentic AI, a new class of artificial intelligence capable of autonomous decision-making, is beginning to reshape the asset management industry. Dutch investment firm Robeco is among the first to publicly test the technology, aiming to integrate AI systems that not only analyse markets but also can act on them.

Are defense investments compatible with the principles of sustainable investing? At a conference in Brussels, the answers ranged from “maybe” to a firm “no”.

Candriam is transforming its Global Metaverse Fund—originally focused on companies developing the metaverse—into a tech fund centered around AI, cybersecurity, and other trends. It marks a clear sign that the tech hype of 2022 has fully fizzled out.