Raymond Frenken

Verena Ross, the chair of the European Securities and Markets Authority, Esma, has laid out a robust European framework for improving financial markets, boosting trust and transparency. But in a speech in Germany on Monday, she also identified the industry’s sluggish response to digitalisation and “greenwashing” as barriers to progress.

Pension funds are keen for asset managers to increase allocations to India, some advocating for a 20% allocation in their emerging markets portfolio. India’s growth trajectory could potentially eclipse China’s, given its focus on the service sector rather than manufacturing. At its European Media Forum on Friday, Edinburgh-based Baillie Gifford also acknowledged burgeoning opportunities in Latin America and Indonesia, particularly due to the increasing connectivity and the unfolding global energy transition.

In a high-profile executive shuffle, Pierre Jond has been named the new Chief Executive Officer of Amundi Luxembourg, and chairman of Fund Channel, the B2B fund distribution platform jointly owned by Amundi and Caceis. The appointment took effect on September 1. 

Jond succeeds Jeanne Duvoux, who is transitioning to a new role as Head of Business Support & Operations for Amundi Group, Europe’s biggest asset manager with approximately 2,000 billion euro in assets under management.

Just returned from your sun-soaked holiday? Luxembourg’s asset scene is heating up, and not just due to the weather. Dive into our latest analysis, covering everything from the CSSF’s game-changing valuation order to shifting ETF trends. This column is your essential back-to-work read!

Animated movies. German real estate. Trade finance. Polish mortgages. Industrial lasers. Environmental intelligence. Pharmaceutical services. More than 1.5 billion euro has been invested in the Luxembourg-domiciled alternative investment funds under the wings of Fuchs Asset Management. Its AIFM portfolio presents a small microcosm of alternative investments managed via the Grand Duchy. The manco is for sale after its parent company, Fuchs & Associes, entered liquidation last month. Jean-Jacques Lava, deputy-CEO at Fuchs AM, said the sale process is going according to plan.

Unlike Luxembourg, financial supervisors in Belgium and the Netherlands see no need for a diligent review of fund valuation practices, spokespeople have told Investment Officer. In Ireland, meanwhile, the supervisor is preparing a “broader industry communication” on the valuation of funds that will be published in the coming months.

Adhering to non-financial reporting requirements—especially with the increasingly stringent European rules surrounding sustainability, and Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) reporting—is a substantial concern for those engaged in fund and asset management.

Luxembourg’s financial watchdog, the Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier (CSSF), has set a deadline of December 31, 2023, for investment funds and their managers to conduct comprehensive assessments of their valuation frameworks and to update these where necessary.

The tone of a central bank’s communication matters for asset prices, according to a new European Central Bank study demonstrating the impact of words used to describe the context for monetary policy. The ECB has developed a specific indicator to measure the tone of its policy messages compared to the Federal Reserve.

Ciaran Fitzpatrick of State Street Institutional Services paints a vibrant picture of the evolving landscape for Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs). Across the investment world, the move from active to passive is not just a trend but a shift that is being felt across retail and institutional investments, largely due to persistent pressure on costs. Ireland and Luxembourg present different appeals to new issuers.