Raymond Frenken

A fresh approach to investment research that Paris-based Amundi, Europe’s only asset manager ranked in the global Top 10, adopted two years ago appears to be paying off by effectively guiding Chief Investment Officers and clients in maintaining investment discipline. “Having a disciplined way to look at the market is helpful,” Monica Defend, the head of the Amundi Research Institute, told Investment Officer in this IO Talks podcast interview.

Luxembourg’s financial supervisor CSSF is ready to conditionally give its green light for new applications of Eltif 2.0 funds, even as the market still awaits a final adoption of the regulatory and technical standards, known as the RTS, by the European Commission.

As the clock ticks down to the much-anticipated launch of the revamped EU regime for European Long-Term Investment Funds (Eltifs), the private markets world is abuzz with anticipation and a dash of uncertainty.

Several European funds have emerged in recent years that use religious principles as a basis for their investment decisions. Impact criteria, exclusions and Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) factors play a dominant role when it comes to determining the content of these portfolios, as does direct guidance from churches.

Fixed income markets are moving out of the doldrums encouraged by the medium-term prospect of declining interest rates. Despite persistent macro-economic challenges, a new golden age could loom for bonds, one CIO argues. Investment officers and fixed income strategists that spoke to Investment Officer agree, but all underline the need to be picky.

Ireland has joined Luxembourg on a supervisory drive to push the financial industry to improve their asset valuation processes for investment funds. 

The Central Bank of Ireland has given fund managers in Dublin until the end of the second quarter next year to complete reviewing and upgrading where necessary their internal governance for fund valuations. A letter to the industry, published on Thursday, has defined four action points that need to be addressed at Board level.

Luxembourg’s financial markets authority CSSF has given fund management companies until the end of this year to review the way they determine the value of their investment funds. Investment Officer recently spoke to Marco Zwick, the CSSF director in charge of supervising investment funds. “We noted some room for improvement,” he said.

In a world grappling with economic fragmentation, geopolitical tensions, and inflationary pressures, chief investment officers at Europe’s three largest asset managers – Amundi, DWS, and Schroders – see 2024 as a year poised for cautious optimism amid ongoing economic uncertainty. 

The European Securities and Markets Authority, Esma, on Thursday issued a warning about practices surrounding Collateralised Loan Obligations (CLOs) in the EU. The supervisory body has found potential conflicts of interest and undue influence in the CLO rating process during the 2017-2021 period.

The Big Three credit rating agencies - Fitch Ratings, Moody’s and S&P - are at the centre of this review.

The fact that financial institutions in Luxembourg have frozen some 86.000 investor accounts should not be regarded as a material issue because the Financial Action Task Force has not issued a recommendation on this topic, a senior official at the Grand Duchy’s financial supervisory body CSSF has said.