Asset Servicing

Private market fund managers are entering 2026 with record fundraising confidence, and much of that expansion is being engineered out of Luxembourg, according to Carne Group. The Grand Duchy has become the operational nerve centre for European private capital, hosting the majority of Europe’s ELTIFs and an expanding ecosystem of third-party management companies. Yet as assets surge and semi-liquid structures multiply, Carne’s survey finds that institutional investors are sending a firm signal: growth will only be tolerated if governance, valuation discipline and liquidity management meet a significantly higher bar.

Blackfin Capital Partners will become the majority shareholder of Arendt Investor Services in a deal valued at 500 million dollars that is aimed at accelerating the Luxembourg firm’s growth across Europe.

Data giant S&P Global, best known for its credit ratings, is strengthening its position in the fast-growing market for private and alternative investments with the acquisition of the London-based platform With Intelligence for 1.8 billion dollars. The seller is Motive Partners, founded by Belgian fintech leader Rob Heyvaert.

Investre founder Georges Bock urges Luxembourg to stay ahead as blockchain reshapes the fund industry, warning that technology is advancing too quickly for comfort.

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.

Once again, voices are rising to transfer the 195 billion euro in Russian assets frozen at Brussels-based securities depository Euroclear into a European investment vehicle. But within the Belgian camp, there’s growing concern that doing so would open Pandora’s box.

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.

As artificial intelligence takes over functions once handled by offshore teams, asset managers and their services firms face a new frontier, one that blends automation gains with urgent ESG questions.

The number of licensed management companies in Luxembourg has held steady at 298. But this surface stability masks a quiet transformation in the Grand Duchy’s asset services industry.

Degroof Petercam Asset Services (DPAS), a key service provider to Luxembourg’s fund industry, will change its name on 1 June. The rebranding follows the acquisition of Belgian financial group Degroof Petercam by the French firm Indosuez, part of Crédit Agricole.