Asset Servicing

Investment services powerhouse State Street, leader in Luxembourg’s asset services market, is undergoing a transformation. The upcoming integration of Brown Brothers Harriman, data management, ESG requirements, digital asset management and the rollout of its upgraded Alpha business platform are on top of mind for country head Ricardo Lamanna. “We create an environment where we progressively shift from being an operational organisation in Luxembourg to being a client-facing organisation.”

Fund administrators active in Luxembourg will be required to produce an annual report on their governance and internal organisation from next year onwards as part of a long-awaited effort by financial supervisor CSSF to modernise a 30-year old supervisory framework in this field.

Apex Group Ltd continues to add management companies to its group through acquisitions. On Wednesday it said it plans to acquire the fund services and third-party management company business operations of Maitland International Holdings plc, an international fund services provider with a presence in Luxembourg, for an undisclosed amount. The transaction is subject to regulatory approval.

Has growth in new registrations of Reserved Alternative Investment Funds, known as Raifs, in Luxembourg peaked? As Investment Officer readers have noted, growth tailed off in February and March. Marc Kriegsmann, Raif market specialist at leading Luxembourg Raif issuer Hauck & Aufhäuser, said the dynamic in the Raif market may be affected by increasingly stringent risk control processes and the presence of suitable alternatives. 

Growth in funds registered as Reserved Alternative Investment Funds (RAIFs) in Luxembourg has slowed in February and March, according to a data analysis by Investment Officer Luxembourg.

Fundrock, one of Europe’s largest third-party management companies with a significant presence in Luxembourg, on Monday said it has been appointed by Royal London Asset Management Funds plc, also known as RLAM, to provide management and distribution services for its Irish fund range.

Wealth management platform FNZ and Clearstream, Deutsche Börse Group’s post-trade services provider, said that they have agreed a strategic partnership that will help asset managers get a better view of information required for the distribution of investment information.

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.

Frankfurt-based Universal Investment Group, a leading asset services provider with Super ManCo status in Luxembourg, on Tuesday flagged further European growth ambitions outside German-language countries when it announced it had reached agreement on its acquisition of European Fund Administration for an undisclosed amount.

Apex Group, a global asset services specialist present in Luxembourg also with its FundRock and LRI Invest subsidiaries, on Tuesday said it has acquired a majority stake in FTS, a US-based tax services firm serving clients in the alternative investment and family office sectors, for an undisclosed amount.