Asset Servicing

While one active ETF after another enters the market, various Dutch banks have yet to add these to their offerings, and pension funds are still adopting a wait-and-see approach. The added value compared to other passive strategies has yet to be proven, particularly in the form of a track record.

With the hype around artificial intelligence and despite its high-profile failures and misuses, it’s clear the global financial sector has plenty of interest in AI, especially in hopes of finding yet another way to outsource low-complexity work. Many large financial firms have set up special departments to explore and lead the introduction of the technology in its various product offerings.

In Belgium, less than 10 percent of the 410 members of the CFA Society are women. ‘Bitterly few,’ concludes Maud Reinalter, CIO of Belfius Asset Management. When a woman applies for a fund manager position, 200 percent of the profile matches. A male candidate applies when he meets only 80 percent of the requirements.

Institutional investors are predicting significant growth and risk-adjusted returns in the hedge fund sector over the next few years, according to new global research from Beacon Platform Inc., a provider of portfolio analytics and risk management solutions.

Martine Solovieff, Luxembourg’s top criminal prosecutor, has issued a stark warning regarding the country’s persistent struggle with financial crime investigations, citing overwhelming caseloads and staffing shortages as key obstacles.

Chinese stocks experienced an unprecedented rally in the final week of Q3. A series of unexpected stimulus measures pushed Chinese equities to their largest weekly rise in 15 years, supporting the outperformance of emerging markets compared to developed markets over the past three months.

This week’s overview of transfers, appointments, promotions and other career news in the fund and asset management community in and outside Luxembourg includes updates from Crédit Mutuel Asset Management, the European Securities and Markets Authority (Esma), M&G, Schroders, Carmignac and Vistra.

As Luxembourg’s financial ecosystem adjusts to the open finance revolution, wealth and asset managers must navigate a range of hurdles to stay competitive.

secondary transactions have grown significantly providing liquidity to long-term illiquid asset classes. Indeed, despite private fund-raising contraction, across the private market, secondaries fundraising almost doubled in 2023. In 2024, it is expected that the global secondary private market will reach approximately 140 billion dollars in size.

The regulations surrounding the European sustainable finance package seem to have entered somewhat calmer waters for now. Nevertheless, the topic of transition financing and transition investing remains relevant, especially as there is a need for clear frameworks and definitions.