2026 Perspectives: Global High Dividend Strategy
Market volatility in 2025 reinforced the importance of quality and consistency in portfolio construction. Joris Franssen, Head of Dividend, explains our disciplined approach to dividend investing and our positioning for the year ahead.
Value benefits from AI fatigue and rising Taiwan tensions
U.S. large-cap stocks are extending their rally into the new year, but a growing number of asset managers are entering 2026 with a more cautious view on expensive artificial intelligence bets. Many start to see better opportunities in value stocks.
Semi-transparent ETFs target free-riding on investment strategies
European asset managers are increasingly looking at semi-transparent ETFs to reduce the risk of intellectual property leakage. However, the relatively new vehicle has yet to generate unanimous enthusiasm.
The global economy continued its moderate growth in 2025 despite higher tariffs
Despite the disruptions caused by the tariff measures implemented over the past year, the global economy continued to follow a path of moderate growth, note Guy Wagner and his team in their latest monthly market report "Highlights".
Protectionist reflexes still stand in the way of Europe’s champions
The failed partnership between Italy’s Generali and France’s BPCE is more than a collapsed deal in European asset management. It exposes how challenging it remains for Europe to build financial scale once a project becomes truly cross-border, and how protectionist reflexes, legal uncertainty and unfinished integration can combine to smother a transaction.
What remains of ‘Who cares wins’? ESG after 25 years in perspective
What began as a tool for measuring risks evolved into a normative framework, only to return under political pressure to its core: the G. After 25 years, ESG has come of age, but not without scars.
2026 Perspective: Global Infrastructure Strategy
Infrastructure markets continue to evolve amid shifting global themes. Jags Walia, Head of Infrastructure, shares our perspective on the dynamics shaping the sector and what we are watching in 2026.
From lottery bonds to cryptocurrencies: the rational gamble of the small investor
For the average institutional investor, the appeal of lottery-like stocks—shares with a low price, high potential returns, and extreme volatility—is a mystery. But poorer investors simply reason very differently.
IO asset manager survey: structural risks are rising, but risk appetite holds up
For the second time, the editorial team of Investment Officer conducted a year-end survey among large asset managers operating in Europe. The aim was to assess their outlooks for 2026 based on a standardized set of proprietary questions. The common thread is that risks have become structural, without leading to a flight from risk assets.
Geopolitics emerges as a structural market risk in 2026
Geopolitical risk once entered markets through sudden shocks. Going into 2026, leading investment managers and economists see a more persistent source of pressure: structural forces reshaping a world that is fracturing.