Investissement

When it comes to enhancing the economic value chain in terms of sustainability and financing the energy transition, the private assets sector is well positioned as an actor that can help deliver the changes that are needed to keep growth sustainable, a Luxembourg panel on net-zero investments was told on Wednesday. 

Real Estate Investment Funds, or Reifs, in Luxembourg saw total assets climb by 26 percent in the year running up to the end of the third quarter, to 131 billion euro. The number of Reifs increased by 20 percent to 621 funds.

The latest edition of the Reif survey conducted by the Association of the Luxembourg Fund Industry, or Alfi, showed that multi-sector allocations remain the most popular strategy for Reif investors, with 49 percent.

The exact impact on private asset values of this year’s declines on global stock and bond markets has yet to be determined, but already some family offices are concerned about the shifts in their portfolios. “There are capital calls that have not been met,” a UBS banker told the Alfi conference on Tuesday.

Le nombre de nouveaux enregistrements de fonds d’investissement alternatifs au Luxembourg, principale plaque tournante européenne de l’investissement privé, a presque atteint son niveau le plus bas en six ans, les investisseurs étant devenus prudents et certains émetteurs ayant décidé d’attendre la nouvelle année pour éviter de devoir faire des déclarations légales en 2022.

Toutes les obligations à haut rendement ne se valent pas : sur le marché américain, la différence de spreads entre les obligations notées CCC ou moins et les titres notés BB est passé de 4,6 % à 9 % depuis le début de l’année. 

Fresh registrations for alternative investment funds in Luxembourg, considered the top European hub for private investments, this month are at their lowest monthly level in nearly six years. Regulatory changes as well as market conditions are cited as a reason for the slowdown. Some issuers have decided to wait for the new year to avoid regulatory reporting in 2022.

High-yield bonds are not equal. In the US market this year, the difference in spreads between bonds with credit ratings of CCC and below versus BBs rose from 4.6 percent to 9 percent.

Le style est l’un des risques les plus importants que les investisseurs durables doivent prendre en compte. Car un grand nombre de fonds d’actions dotés d’un mandat durable ont souvent tendance à mettre l’accent sur les valeurs de croissance. Or, dès que l’on opte pour un style déterminé, il est possible que les investisseurs boudent ce dernier pendant une certaine période. Et cette année, c’est le cas de la croissance.

Style risk is one of the key risks that sustainable investors need to be aware of. After all, many equity funds with a sustainable mandate tend to lean towards a growth style. Any choice of style brings the likelihood of it falling out of favour with investors over a period of time. So too this year’s growth style.

Outlines of reform proposals for European long-term investment funds (Eltif), agreed by EU policy-makers last month, have been hailed as major positive step forward by some in the industry. More quietly, though, others suggest the fundamental contradictions at the heart of the vehicle have yet to be resolved.