Efama

Net inflows for Ucits investment funds in Europe more than doubled in January when compared to a month earlier as investors regained trust in the economy and were feeling hope that the interest rate peak was in sight. Money market funds and alternatives funds however experienced a surge in outflows.

Data reported by the European Fund and Asset Management Association, Efama, showed that net inflows for Ucits funds rose to 43 billion euro in January, compared to 16 billion in December of last year.

There’s a battle raging just out of view on Europe’s financial markets. It’s a fight between data originators – largely but not only the stock exchanges – and the data users – who could be anyone active on the markets  – over the proposed “consolidated tape” which aims to improve access to trading data. Selling access has become “probably one of their biggest cash cows,” said a representative for Europe’s asset management sector, commenting on the position of the stock exchanges.

With the endorsement of almost all European stock exchanges, the “consolidated tape” recently booked significant progress. Hurdles remains however, as representatives of stock exchanges and asset managers remain at loggerheads. “Europe risks missing the boat on this entire issue of really getting market structure right,” FESE’s director general Rainer Riess told Investment Officer.

European Ucits and AIF investment funds experienced net outflows of 278 billion euro last year, the biggest level since the financial crisis of 2008, according to industry statistics compiled by the European Fund and Asset Management Association, Efama.

The European Parliament in Strasbourg on Wednesday (15 February) adopted the eagerly anticipated upgrade of the EU regulation for long-term investment funds, a package known as Eltif 2.0. An overwhelming majority of 492 members, or 70 percent, voted in favour.

Inflows into alternative investment funds in Europe rebounded in November when compared to massive outflows during October, as inflows for Ucits funds fell significantly, according to data released by the European Fund and Asset Management Association, or Efama.

When it comes to EU financial regulation it won’t surprise anyone to hear that more is in store for the year ahead. Investment Officer looks ahead together with Vincent Ingham, director of regulatory policy at the European Fund and Asset Management Association in Brussels.

Regulatory uncertainty that the industry is contending with as a result of the complex range of interacting legal requirements, Efama, the EU’s main trade body for asset management, said. Luxembourg’s Alfi argued that “the element of intent” needs to be considered when making judgements on greenwashing.

Total assets under management in Europe amounted to 28,400 billion euro by the end of September, reflecting a decline of about 12 percent from year-end 2021 levels as bond and stock markets fell amid rising inflation and interest rates and slowing economic growth following the outbreak of war in Ukraine.

Following in the footsteps of the European Parliament earlier this month, the Council of the EU on Monday finalised the legislative process by adopting the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive, known as CSRD.

Efama, the trade association for Europe’s fund and asset management industry, welcomed the adoption of what it sees as “a crucial piece of the puzzle”, but warned that the industry still faces years of uncertainty because of the “staggered” adoption between the years 2025 and 2029.