Asset Managers

A Memorandum of Understanding on financial services agreed between the EU and the UK, published on 19 May, could elevate the tone of the discussions and lead to a more productive relationship. “It’s a very encouraging confirmation that the relations between the EU and the UK are warming up,” said Nicolas Mackel, the CEO of Luxembourg for Finance, the public-private Luxembourg agency for the development of the financial sector.

Swiss private bank Pictet has decided to move its European headquarters to Frankfurt, relocating the function from Luxembourg. The grand duchy has served as the main European hub of the Geneva-based private bank for about three decades.

The  bank said that its former Pictet & Cie (Europe) S.A. “transferred its registered office from Luxembourg” to Frankfurt per 26 May “by way of a cross border conversion from a Luxembourg Societé Anonyme into a German Aktiengesellschaft.”

Market consolidation, pressure on cost and the weight of regulation have reduced the total number of Management Companies in Luxembourg by four last year. The latest edition of PwC’s annual Manco Observatory nevertheless sees this industry as “very dynamic”, with 11 new Manco’s having been set up in the last year.

The market is expecting a 75 basis point rate cut by the Federal Reserve after a six-month pause. According to Invesco, the likelihood of that happening is much lower than the market thinks. This is good news for emerging markets, said Wim Vandenhoeck, senior portfolio manager for EMD and global bonds.

Fund management companies in Luxembourg registered some 22 new reserved alternative investment funds (Raifs) in April 2023, according to publicly-released data updated on 15 May. This development brings the total for this year so far to 128. Considering only the first four months of the year, the total number was down 20 per cent from last year during the same period.

While those European investors still in doubt about the importance of ESG are becoming increasingly bogged down in a rearguard action, U.S. states are increasingly passing anti-ESG laws. “If this becomes federal policy, I would underweight the U.S. in the portfolio,” said Gaya Herrington,  a sustainability researcher and advisor to the Club of Rome.

Fund firms face the prospect of EU rules setting standards of “value for money” for their investment products under the Retail Investment Strategy due to be unveiled on 24 May. This could include disincentives, for example, to charging active management fees for an investment that underperforms an index fund. For all the discussion of a ban on inducements for investment advice, the commission has decided to propose a more limited inducement ban on execution-only investments. 

Europe’s top regulator for securities and financial markets on Wednesday said it believes there is a need for EU-level legislation to make sure investors do not bear costs that are considered excessive, unnecessary, or unreasonable when they put their money in investment funds.

Some long awaited regulatory clarity on ESG and sustainability requirements for fund and asset managers appears to have reduced the state of confusion that had led to a downgrade of approximately 270 billion euro in assets under management last year. Yet, some specialists believe that claims of greenwashing that have plagued the industry in the last year are at serious risk of continuing. 

Franklin Templeton on Monday said that all 21 Ucits ETFs from its Icav range have become available to Luxembourg investors in response to growing client demand for ETF solutions.