Asset Managers

Antwerp-based asset manager Merit Capital will lose its Belgian brokerage licence, according to a judgement by Belgium’s Council of State published on 26 April. Merit Capital has been struggling for years with its governance model and profitability. Having its license revoked casts a cloud over its arrangement with Frankfurt-based Renell Bank, which announced in October it had agreed to acquire Merit subject to conditions.

A relatively new asset owner-led platform providing information needed to decide on sustainable development investments is gaining global traction now that the world’s biggest asset management firm Blackrock has decided to join as a subscriber.

Although growth in Luxembourg’s alternative investment funds market slowed in 2020, it remained significant, bringing the total of alternative assets managed in the Grand Duchy above the 1000-billion-euro mark for a first time, according to new data released by financial regulator CSSF. 

Fund managers looking for sustainable investments can find themselves with incomplete non-financial data needed to make their decisions. At BLI - Banque de Luxembourg Investments, Annick Drui, manager of the 75 million euro BL Sustainable Horizon fund, explains how she is trying to strike the right balance.

In an interview with Investment Officer, Ritesh Jain, an influential global macro strategist, trend watcher and advisor to family offices and investment companies from India, says that with Russia’s expulsion from the Swift digital payments system, the West is crossing a dangerous divide that will have far-reaching consequences for the global world order. “Globalisation, as we know it, is probably over.”

Funds exposed to the Ukraine war have new liquidity management options following the recent publication of the CSSF’s guidance. To understand more about how the market is adapting , particularly during the current annual reporting season, we spoke to Nicolas Hennebert, partner and investment management leader audit & assurance at Deloitte Luxembourg.

With its 1.7 billion euro acquisition of Dutch asset manager NN Investment Partners completed as of today, US investment powerhouse Goldman Sachs Asset Management takes a major strategic step towards further growth. NN IP’s full management board will continue to lead, expand its services, and will become a center of excellence for sustainability in public markets investing.

In this second podcast from Alfi’s 2022 European Asset Management conference we enlighten you with valuable insights on what’s happening in Luxembourg’s asset management ecosystem. You will hear about Luxembourg’s new securitisation law, about collateralised loan obligations, about plans for the European Long-Term Investment Fund, known as ELTIF, as a new type of collective investment framework. 

In the turbulent first quarter of 2022, inflation and the pandemic gave way to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and resurfaced. Yet deep losses were recouped, and some investors even posted double-digit gains. This week in the Morningstar top five: mutual funds in the global large-cap equity category mixed.

Invesco, an asset management firm with a Luxembourg presence in Kirchberg, Invesco Management S.A., said it has expanded its Benelux operation with the hire of a new ETF sales manager.

Jolien Brouwer has joined the Invesco Benelux team as ETF sales manager, based in the Amsterdam office. Previously Brouwer was responsible for the ETF sales at VanEck. She will report to Roel Thijssen, Head of Benelux Distribution.