Investment Officer Luxembourg

Inflation is rearing its head again, and many fear a rerun of the 1970s scenario. But here’s the catch: the world today is vastly different from back then, mainly because of our access to information. It’s a game-changer. Think about it: a smartphone user today holds more data in the palm of their hand than the US President had in the early 1980s. Knowledge about inflation isn’t just abundant—it’s at our fingertips, dramatically altering how we deal with economic crises.

Increased concentration in equity markets has emerged as a significant concern for investors. The rising dominance of US companies globally, notably the pronounced influence of the technology sector in major stock indices, is typified by the hegemony of a small cadre of prominent stocks, colloquially known as the “Magnificent Seven.” This phenomenon continues to captivate market participants, though signs of vulnerability in the supremacy of these seven market stalwarts are beginning to surface.

Degroof Petercam, Belgium’s largest private bank with a significant presence in Luxembourg, on Wednesday posted a double-digit decline in its full year net profit because of one-time costs related to sale of a majority stake to France’s Credit Agricole group and due to higher tax pressure.

Addressing its business performance, the firm said its private banking business improved due to higher interest rates, while its asset management activities faced a decline in revenues. 

With a sophisticated dividend strategy, the Goldman Sachs Eurozone Equity Income Fund has been scoring above average for decades. “We spend our risk budget mainly on stock selection and do not deviate much from the benchmark in terms of sector and factor exposure,” said Nicolas Simar of Goldman Sachs Asset Management in an interview.

This week’s overview of transfers, appointments, promotions and other people news includes updates from Euroclear, Norton Rose Fulbright, Mourant Luxembourg and Pictet.

Valérie Urbain

Valérie Urbain (photo) has officially been appointed as chief executive officer of Euroclear, with her appointment having been approved at the May 3 annual general meeting. She will replace Lieve Mostrey.

Publicly listed companies with the highest ESG scores and substantial investments from ESG funds often pay the least in taxes. In many cases, they pay even less than required by law, and according to Professor Gideon Parchomovsky, institutional investors play a role in this.

Swiss-headquarterted private equity firm Partners Group has announced the launch of a new private equity European Long-Term Investment Fund (Eltif), opening up its private offerings also to retail investors. The fund is its first new private equity fund under the updated Eltif regime.

The Partners Group Private Equity Evergreen was already registered in Luxembourg last December and has a minimum investment threshold of 10,000 euro. The fund will be available to investors across Europe, including Germany, France, Spain, Italy, and the Benelux regions.

Even though growth is falling short of high expectations, the European market for Long-Term Investment Funds (Eltifs) is poised for significant expansion, with Berlin-based research and ratings firm Scope projecting a potential tripling in volume to 30-35 billion euro by 2026 from 13.6 billion euro in 2023.

LGIM has launched its first Luxembourg-domiciled fund, aimed at international institutional investors, to expand its private markets strategy. It’s called ‘Staff’, or short term alternative finance fund. LGIM’s head of private credit Nick Bamber spoke to Investment Officer.