StepStone: “CPRIM provides convenient, efficient and transparent access to private markets for small institutional investors and high net worth individuals”

  |   For  |  0 Comentarios

Shannon Bolton, Managing Director at StepStone, and Neil Menard, President of Distribution at Conversus.
Foto cedida. StepStone: "CPRIM provides convenient, efficient and transparent access to private markets for small institutional investors and high net worth individuals"

Private markets have historically produced attractive returns relative to their public market counterparts. However, retail investors, and especially high net worth individuals (HNWIs), currently maintain a small exposure to this potential source of return compared with large institutional investors. StepStone Group, a global private markets investment company, launched Conversus, its private wealth platform in 2019 with the hope of converting the advantages enjoyed by large institutions into opportunities for small institutional investors and HNWIs.

Funds Society had the opportunity to chat with Shannon Bolton, a managing director at StepStone, and Neil Menard, president of distribution at Conversus, about the end-to-end solution that CPRIM offers to retail investors to access the same high-quality global investments in private markets as major institutions.

Specifically, Bolton and Menard presented CPRIM as a multi-strategy private markets fund that provides global and diversified access to a wide spectrum of asset classes—private equity, real assets (real estate and infrastructure) and private debt—in a single investment. CPRIM takes advantage of StepStone’s deep institutional relationships and investment experience in these markets.  As of June 30, 2021, StepStone oversaw $465 billion of private markets allocations, including $90 billion of assets under management. Its clients include some of the world’s largest public and private defined benefit and defined contribution pension funds, sovereign wealth funds and insurance companies.

Minimum investment of $50,000, monthly Net Asset Value and potential for quarterly liquidity

“If you think about the conditions that worry HNWIs about conventional private-equity funds—10-year lockups, unpredictable capital calls, ‘black box’ investment strategies—investors don’t really know what they’re buying,” Neil explains at the beginning of the interview. “We [at StepStone] have been able to eliminate all of this with CPRIM. We have been able to offer significant diversification within the private markets in an investor-friendly structure.”

Created in October 2020, during the coronavirus pandemic, CPRIM stands out as an open-architecture investment strategy. The fund invests in deals and with managers that StepStone identifies as the best in private markets.

In addition to its open architecture investment strategy and the ability to access quarterly liquidity as core building blocks, Bolton points to three features that differentiate CPRIM from other semi-liquid private market investment vehicles: CPRIM only invests in private markets deals, and the fund does not invest in ETFs or publicly traded stocks so the true underlying exposure is only to the private markets. The fund also holds a low cash position, 5–10% target of the portfolio; and the fund structure is fee efficient. There is no performance fee, and the management fee is only 1.4%, which is quite low for a fund that invests in private markets and gives investors the ability to redeem quarterly.

“The fund allows access to private markets to investors who either do not have the standard minimum five million dollars of investment needed to access conventional private equity funds or to those investors who are not comfortable with the lack of liquidity in those markets,” she adds.

Symbiosis between StepStone and Conversus

CPRIM is managed consistently with other separately managed accounts held by StepStone, Menard explains. “The big concern among many investors is that the deals that go into retail funds are the ones that the big investment institutions did not want. Since we launched the fund last October, we have made approximately 56 investments [in CPRIM] as of August 1, 2021. Each one of these was conducted alongside one or more of StepStone’s institutional clients,” says Menard.

The profitable symbiosis between StepStone and CPRIM comes through the size of its team and the first-hand information they have thanks to extensive research and engagement with investment firms; in context, StepStone holds an average of 4,000 meetings annually with general partners. The information harvested feeds a proprietary database called SPI (StepStone Private Markets Intelligence), explains Bolton, which is a fundamental tool to track the activities of underlying GPs. “As of June 30, 2021, SPI contains information on more than 66,000 private companies, 38,000 funds and 14,000 general partners,” explains Bolton.

Highly diversified portfolio with monthly NAVs and potential for quarterly liquidity

The multi-strategy fund that characterizes CPRIM aims to build a portfolio “as diversified as possible,” says Bolton. In the long run, the strategic asset allocation aims to devote 40–60% to private equity, as well as 25–40% to real assets and, finally, a small portion to private debt. “The more diversified the fund, the more it will behave like a model where we can predict cash flow. That is what we want to do.”

How do you launch such a fund for retail investors? How do you manage to minimize the J-curve? “The obvious way is to invest in late-stage secondary portfolios so that you can put the money to work right away, or through direct co-investments. StepStone has a very robust pipeline in both secondary transactions and co-investments. Over time, we will start adding primary fund investments to the portfolio. This will happen when the portfolio starts to generate enough cash to meet capital calls without generating cash drag, which we don’t think will happen for three or four years,” says Menard.

The current composition of the portfolio shows an abundance of private equity investments, at more than 70% of the portfolio, and an allocation of around 20% to real estate and infrastructure. More than 80% of these investments were made through secondary transactions and about 20% through co-investments, according to the fund’s managers.

“We do not focus on a particular sector or industry, as there are always good opportunities in all sectors. We believe we can give investors a very diversified private markets portfolio that has the ability to provide liquidity to investors quarterly,” summarizes Bolton.

“CPRIM provides convenient, efficient and transparent access to private markets, through a semi-liquid structure, for small institutional investors and individuals,” Menard concludes.

Wall Street Ends its Seven-Month Streak of Positive Returns, and Now What?

  |   For  |  0 Comentarios

dices-over-newspaper-g335e0aefb_640
Pixabay CC0 Public DomainFin a la racha alcista de la Bolsa americana. Wall Street

US equities declined during the month of September, ending a seven-month streak of positive returns. Although COVID-19 Delta variant infection rates showed signs of improvement relative to August, the resulting broad market headwinds surrounding company supply chains and Fed policy changes in response to inflation were the primary points of focus in September.

While consumer demand has generally remained consistent, supply chain concerns resulting in shortages and increasing costs have pressured company profit margins. Approaching a new round of Q3 earnings this October, the market is remains cautious as companies are expected to face more difficult comps relative to Q2 2021.

Fed Chair Jerome Powell provided increasingly explicit signals that reductions of the Fed’s current asset purchase program may soon be warranted during recent congressional hearings. Early signs of tapering were taken in stride by the market which anticipated this action to occur in the near-term. This would be the initial step taken by the Fed which aims to help combat rising inflation which they continue to characterize as “transitory”.

Global M&A activity continued its torrid pace in the third quarter, with deal making reaching $4.4 trillion for the year, an increase of more than 90% compared to 2020. The first nine months of 2021 have already surpassed the full year M&A record that was set in 2015 at $4.3 trillion. Excluding SPAC acquisitions, which have announced $550 billion in deals in 2021, M&A activity totaled $3.85 trillion.  The U.S. remains the primary venue for deals, with targets there totaling $2 trillion, while Technology, Financials and Industrials remain the most active sectors.

While a number of factors drove global equities lower in September, the asymmetrical profile of convertibles offered some protection in a volatile environment. For the month, the Russell 3000 was down 4.48% while the global convertible market was down 2.29%, capturing just over 50% of the downside of equities. Issuance was a bit softer than anticipated given the volatile market, but we still saw some large deals that brought the total dollar amount to $14.4B for the month, and $124B for the year, globally. We anticipate the pace of issuance to slow through earnings season but pick up through the end of the year, likely leaving us just shy of 2020 totals.

 

______________________________________

To access our proprietary value investment methodology, and dedicated merger arbitrage portfolio we offer the following UCITS Funds in each discipline:

GAMCO MERGER ARBITRAGE

GAMCO Merger Arbitrage UCITS Fund, launched in October 2011, is an open-end fund incorporated in Luxembourg and compliant with UCITS regulation. The team, dedicated strategy, and record dates back to 1985. The objective of the GAMCO Merger Arbitrage Fund is to achieve long-term capital growth by investing primarily in announced equity merger and acquisition transactions while maintaining a diversified portfolio. The Fund utilizes a highly specialized investment approach designed principally to profit from the successful completion of proposed mergers, takeovers, tender offers, leveraged buyouts and other types of corporate reorganizations. Analyzes and continuously monitors each pending transaction for potential risk, including: regulatory, terms, financing, and shareholder approval.

Merger investments are a highly liquid, non-market correlated, proven and consistent alternative to traditional fixed income and equity securities. Merger returns are dependent on deal spreads. Deal spreads are a function of time, deal risk premium, and interest rates. Returns are thus correlated to interest rate changes over the medium term and not the broader equity market. The prospect of rising rates would imply higher returns on mergers as spreads widen to compensate arbitrageurs. As bond markets decline (interest rates rise), merger returns should improve as capital allocation decisions adjust to the changes in the costs of capital.

Broad Market volatility can lead to widening of spreads in merger positions, coupled with our well-researched merger portfolios, offer the potential for enhanced IRRs through dynamic position sizing. Daily price volatility fluctuations coupled with less proprietary capital (the Volcker rule) in the U.S. have contributed to improving merger spreads and thus, overall returns. Thus our fund is well positioned as a cash substitute or fixed income alternative.

Our objectives are to compound and preserve wealth over time, while remaining non-correlated to the broad global markets. We created our first dedicated merger fund 32 years ago. Since then, our merger performance has grown client assets at an annualized rate of  approximately 10.7% gross and 7.6% net since 1985. Today, we manage assets on behalf of institutional and high net worth clients globally in a variety of fund structures and mandates.

Class I USD – LU0687944552
Class I EUR – LU0687944396
Class A USD – LU0687943745
Class A EUR – LU0687943661
Class R USD – LU1453360825
Class R EUR – LU1453361476

GAMCO ALL CAP VALUE

The GAMCO All Cap Value UCITS Fund launched in May, 2015 utilizes Gabelli’s its proprietary PMV with a Catalyst™ investment methodology, which has been in place since 1977. The Fund seeks absolute returns through event driven value investing. Our methodology centers around fundamental, research-driven, value based investing with a focus on asset values, cash flows and identifiable catalysts to maximize returns independent of market direction. The fund draws on the experience of its global portfolio team and 35+ value research analysts.

GAMCO is an active, bottom-up, value investor, and seeks to achieve real capital appreciation (relative to inflation) over the long term regardless of market cycles. Our value-oriented stock selection process is based on the fundamental investment principles first articulated in 1934 by Graham and Dodd, the founders of modern security analysis, and further augmented by Mario Gabelli in 1977 with his introduction of the concepts of Private Market Value (PMV) with a Catalyst™ into equity analysis. PMV with a Catalyst™ is our unique research methodology that focuses on individual stock selection by identifying firms selling below intrinsic value with a reasonable probability of realizing their PMV’s which we define as the price a strategic or financial acquirer would be willing to pay for the entire enterprise.  The fundamental valuation factors utilized to evaluate securities prior to inclusion/exclusion into the portfolio, our research driven approach views fundamental analysis as a three pronged approach:  free cash flow (earnings before, interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, or EBITDA, minus the capital expenditures necessary to grow/maintain the business); earnings per share trends; and private market value (PMV), which encompasses on and off balance sheet assets and liabilities. Our team arrives at a PMV valuation by a rigorous assessment of fundamentals from publicly available information and judgement gained from meeting management, covering all size companies globally and our comprehensive, accumulated knowledge of a variety of sectors. We then identify businesses for the portfolio possessing the proper margin of safety and research variables from our deep research universe.

Class I USD – LU1216601648
Class I EUR – LU1216601564
Class A USD – LU1216600913
Class A EUR – LU1216600673
Class R USD – LU1453359900
Class R EUR – LU1453360155

GAMCO CONVERTIBLE SECURITIES

GAMCO Convertible Securities’ objective is to seek to provide current income as well as long term capital appreciation through a total return strategy by investing in a diversified portfolio of global convertible securities.

The Fund leverages the firm’s history of investing in dedicated convertible security portfolios since 1979.

The fund invests in convertible securities, as well as other instruments that have economic characteristics similar to such securities, across global markets (but the fund will not invest in contingent convertible notes). The fund may invest in securities of any market capitalization or credit quality, including up to 100% in below investment grade or unrated securities, and may from time to time invest a significant amount of its assets in securities of smaller companies. Convertible securities may include any suitable convertible instruments such as convertible bonds, convertible notes or convertible preference shares.

By actively managing the fund and investing in convertible securities, the investment manager seeks the opportunity to participate in the capital appreciation of underlying stocks, while at the same time relying on the fixed income aspect of the convertible securities to provide current income and reduced price volatility, which can limit the risk of loss in a down equity market.

Class I USD          LU2264533006

Class I EUR          LU2264532966

Class A USD        LU2264532701

Class A EUR        LU2264532610

Class R USD         LU2264533345

Class R EUR         LU2264533261

Class F USD         LU2264533691

Class F EUR         LU2264533428 

Disclaimer:
The information and any opinions have been obtained from or are based on sources believed to be reliable but accuracy cannot be guaranteed. No responsibility can be accepted for any consequential loss arising from the use of this information. The information is expressed at its date and is issued only to and directed only at those individuals who are permitted to receive such information in accordance with the applicable statutes. In some countries the distribution of this publication may be restricted. It is your responsibility to find out what those restrictions are and observe them.

Some of the statements in this presentation may contain or be based on forward looking statements, forecasts, estimates, projections, targets, or prognosis (“forward looking statements”), which reflect the manager’s current view of future events, economic developments and financial performance. Such forward looking statements are typically indicated by the use of words which express an estimate, expectation, belief, target or forecast. Such forward looking statements are based on an assessment of historical economic data, on the experience and current plans of the investment manager and/or certain advisors of the manager, and on the indicated sources. These forward looking statements contain no representation or warranty of whatever kind that such future events will occur or that they will occur as described herein, or that such results will be achieved by the fund or the investments of the fund, as the occurrence of these events and the results of the fund are subject to various risks and uncertainties. The actual portfolio, and thus results, of the fund may differ substantially from those assumed in the forward looking statements. The manager and its affiliates will not undertake to update or review the forward looking statements contained in this presentation, whether as result of new information or any future event or otherwise.

 

Allianz GI Joins the One Planet Asset Managers Initiative

  |   For  |  0 Comentarios

earth-g8294b1b0a_1920
Pixabay CC0 Public Domain. Allianz GI se une a la iniciativa One Planet Asset Managers

Recognizing the role investors play as a catalyst to finance the transition towards a low carbon economy, Allianz Global Investors has announced that it is joining the One Planet Asset Managers (OPAM) initiative.

This project was launched in 2019 to support the members of the One Planet Sovereign Wealth Funds (OPSWF) in their implementation of the OPSWF Framework. The OPSWF Network comprises 43 of the world’s largest institutional investors with over 36 trillion dollars in assets under management and ownership.

By joining OPAM, Allianz GI commits to actively collaborate within the OPSWF Framework and to engage with other key actors, including standard setters, regulators and the broader industry to further the Framework’s objectives. The goal is to accelerate the understanding and integration of the implications of climate-related risks and opportunities within long-term investment portfolios through sharing of investment practices and expertise with the members of the OPSWF and publication of relevant research.

“Partnering with clients to tackle the most pressing sustainability issues and create a better future for all is at the heart of what we do. We are proud to be the first German investor to be joining the OPAM. We are committed to advance the understanding of the implications of climate-related risks and opportunities within long-term investment portfolios through the sharing of investment practices”, commented Tobias Pross, CEO.

In this sense, he pointed out that Allianz GI looks forward to contributing to the work of the One Planet Initiatives given their experience in climate finance through their “investment process, strong stewardship policy, and investment solutions that contribute positively to the alignment of an asset owner’s portfolio to a low carbon economy”.

This new commitment comes as, recognizing the urgency to tackle climate change, the firm is accelerating its sustainability drive. In fact, they announced earlier this year their commitment to supporting the climate transition via exclusions in coal production and coal-based energy production. Besides, Allianz GI is a member of the Net Zero Asset Managers initiative and supports the goal of net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 or sooner. It is also an original member of the EC’s Technical Expert Group (TEG) on Sustainable Finance and co-founded the Climate Finance Leadership Initiative. 

Navigating the Post-COVID Resurgence in Travel and Hospitality

  |   For  |  0 Comentarios

Pixabay CC0 Public Domain

The COVID-19 pandemic affected just about every sector worldwide and in 2020 brought the travel and hotel industry to a halt. But if history’s any guide, past crises (e.g., 9/11 and the Global Financial Crisis) have shown us that travel and leisure is a highly resilient industry.

While pandemic challenges have curtailed travel spending over the past couple of years, pockets of pent-up demand, pandemic-driven lifestyle shifts, increased digitization, and creative new business models have helped the travel and lodging industry stay afloat and recover.

What factors support the resurgence of the air travel and hotel sectors, and what do they mean for investors looking for opportunities in this space? Here are our thoughts on the key trends ahead.

Strong V-Shaped Recovery for Lodging on the Back of Supportive Trends

Throughout the pandemic, the hospitality sector was forced to get more creative and efficient in order to survive. The tenacity to reinvent itself enabled the industry to enjoy a V-shaped recovery across different countries soon after COVID-19 lockdowns and restrictions were eased as seen below.

Two Key Trends Stand Out in the Hotel Reinvention Playbook

While large hotel chains cut costs and sought to improve the efficiency of their businesses, many smaller hotel chains and independent operators had to reimagine their business models in order to withstand pandemic impacts.  During this time, these smaller operators began to form revenue-sharing partnerships with larger, well-established global hotel chains, such as Marriott or Hyatt. The benefits of these pacts are two-fold:

  • The smaller players are able to take advantage of the hefty marketing, distribution, and operational infrastructure of the larger hotels.
  • And by acquiring and partnering with local, more boutique hotels, larger chain properties could broaden their location and client experiences, as well as diversify their revenue streams.

Another trend that has played a role in the transformation of the hotel industry: lifestyle changes. As remote work gained widespread acceptance during the pandemic, the “work from anywhere” movement flourished. The normalization of remote work allowed people the freedom to combine work and leisure, taking extended trips to destinations they may not normally have gone to. Consequently, the “work-cation” trend gave rise to a brand-new customer group and demand for the hotel sector. In particular, alternative lodging like Airbnb became one of the key beneficiaries of this new lifestyle shift.  Last, with an increase in remote workers, corporations are driving a renewed demand for hotel nights as these corporation regularly seek to bring employees and teams together for in-person collaboration events.

 Pent-Up Demand Fuels Airlines’ Flightpath of Recovery

 Unlike the hotel sector, the airline industry’s post-COVID recovery has been more gradual — despite a strong surge in recent air-travel demand, which has been driven by domestic travel. Although airline revenues have been rising as COVID-19 restrictions have been gradually lifted and travelers returned, the industry is challenged with keeping costs under control as it grapples with staffing shortages and inflationary pressures.

With a strong desire to travel, however, consumers haven’t been deterred by steep increases in airline prices, cancelled and delayed flights, or poor service issues. In addition, business travel also has nearly returned to pre-pandemic levels due to companies reopening offices and reestablishing client-travel visits. Given these trends, we don’t expect market demand to soften going forward nor do we envision the so-called “death of corporate travel” to materialize.

What About Fresh Opportunities in a Post-Covid World and ‘Zero-Covid’ China?

We see many opportunities in the market today as well as some levels of uncertainty, not the least of which center around inflation, geopolitical instability, and other factors that may weigh on the market. However, we also believe travel and leisure demand is strong and shows no signs of slowing down.

Despite inflationary pressures, leisure travel continues to be a high budget priority for many Americans, especially across the middle to higher income groups who have shifted their spending habits from goods to services. These factors have made US travel and lodging companies attractive investment opportunities given the runway in view for sustained growth.

Last, China’s travel and hotel industry has been slow to recover due to the government’s “zero-Covid” policy. We recognize that the sector’s path to recovery will likely not be a straightforward one. However, we believe there could be significant upside potential in this country once China reopens and eases travel restrictions. Instead of shunning Chinese travel and hotel stocks, we’re taking an opportunistic view on the situation — focusing on searching for attractive buying opportunities while prices and valuations are still at depressed levels.

In summary, there are pockets of opportunity in the travel and lodging sector when looking through the lens of a post-COVID world or in regions where COVID mitigation is still the driving priority.

En resumen, hay oportunidades en el sector de turismo y alojamiento si miramos a través de las gafas de un mundo post-covid o en regiones donde la mitigación del covid todavía sigue siendo la prioridad.

Allfunds and Consensys Will Apply Allfunds Blockchain Technology Beyond the Fund Industry

  |   For  |  0 Comentarios

blockchain-gee9538e53_1920
Pixabay CC0 Public Domain. Allfunds y ConsenSys colaboran para aplicar la tecnología de Allfunds Blockchain más allá del sector de los fondos de inversión

The Allfunds-ConsenSys partnership reaches a new milestone: ConsenSys will commercialize Quorum Subscription with Allfunds Privacy, a new commercial offering that makes it possible for enterprises to leverage the innovative privacy features developed for the Allfunds Blockchain platform.

In February 2021, both firms announced a partnership to combine ConsenSys Quorum with the power of the Allfunds Funds Industry Platform in order to radically streamline the global fund distribution industry by enabling instant, reliable, secure communication among industry actors. This new launch opens the possibility to apply the privacy enhancements beyond the original Allfunds Blockchain Fund Industry use case.

In a press release, Allfunds and Consensys have revealed that selected consulting firms, as well as technology and blockchain companies have been testing alpha versions of the solution to understand the possibilities opened up by this new privacy approach, that contributes to the continued development of the Enterprise Ethereum ecosystem.

Quorum Subscription with Allfunds Privacy is a new commercial private transaction management solution that further expands the permissioning and privacy features of the Quorum suite and provides a new privacy model. It is based on patented technology created by Allfunds Blockchain, that is from now on maintained and commercially supported by ConsenSys.

Allfunds Blockchain, the dedicated software company focused on developing solutions not only for Allfunds and its clients but for the entire fund Industry, has built a “holistic and trailblazing” blockchain platform using its patented technology to transform technologically the fund industry. The firms point out that Quorum Subscription with Allfunds Privacy solves “major concerns” about data governance in blockchain ecosystems. Allfunds Blockchain is already collaborating with main industry players around the world to be fully prepared for a non-paper-driven industry.

“We are very proud about this new milestone. The most important thing in a blockchain initiative is clearly the technology, and having a leading firm as ConsenSys commercializing our technology beyond the Fund Industry is the best example to demonstrate how robust is our value proposition. Helping to solve the main data governance challenges in blockchain networks with this new privacy approach, contributes without doubt to the continued development of the Enterprise Ethereum ecosystem”, said Rubén Nieto, Managing Director of Allfunds Blockchain.

Lastly, Madeline Murray, Product Lead at Consensys Quorum, stated that their partnership with Allfunds will further facilitate global blockchain adoption for the fund’s industry and “enrich the ecosystem” with technical innovations suitable for advanced privacy use cases. “Privacy is a core element of the ConsenSys Quorum stack and collaborating with industry stakeholders will help produce the most sophisticated blockchain architecture for our partners”, she added.

Impact Investing Market Accelerates its Expansion

  |   For  |  0 Comentarios

drop-g0f9ce0035_1920
Pixabay CC0 Public Domain. NN IP

The 715 billion dollar impact-investing market is poised for rapid expansion driven by surging investor demand, government green-growth initiatives and supportive regulation, according to a recent analysis by NN Investment Partners (NN IP).

While impact investing is still a niche compared with the broader 35.3 trillion dollar sustainable-investment market, momentum has built since the adoption of the UN SDGs and the signing of the Paris Climate Agreement in 2015. However, the asset manager points out that investors need to be wary of ‘impact washing’ as the sector grows.

“From a fundamental point of view, looking at the type the companies our impact funds invest in, the outlook has never been better. There can always be cyclical headwinds, but structurally there’s tremendous growth”, says Ivo Luiten, Lead Portfolio Manager Impact Equity at NN IP, who believes there are three sectors to watch: healthcare, technology and ‘green’ industrials. 

Healthcare

The US spends about 18% of gross domestic product (nearly 4 trillion dollars a year) on healthcare. Companies that can help reduce that bill are in demand: for example, innovative high-tech medical devices can improve patient outcomes and cut treatment costs; the life-sciences segment (firms that develop and manufacture pharmaceuticals, biotechnology-based medicines and a range of other products) is also growing fast because of the increasing focus on the prevention of disease. 

The firm admits that picking winners in the drug-development space can be tough, but it highlights that many suppliers to this market, such as clinical research organisations and life-science equipment manufacturers, offer “interesting investment opportunities”.

Technology

Another sector turbo-charged by the pandemic in NN IP’s view is information technology, with digitalization accelerating around the world: “Software producers have high operating leverage and rapid revenue growth, alongside strong competitive advantages such as pricing power and a loyal customer base. They tend to have a high percentage of subscription revenues”.

Companies that service physical infrastructure also present “substantial opportunities” as governments roll out plans to spend as much as 10 trillion dollars to upgrade or replace decaying and obsolete facilities and systems, and green development plans bring long-term spending on new types of infrastructure.

The analysis points out that the cybersecurity sector is also expanding rapidly, as companies race to protect themselves against the sort of high-profile breaches that have accelerated in recent years. The shift to remote working and transition to the cloud are changing the way companies protect their digital assets, with an ongoing transition to a multi-location approach capable of covering employees who work from home. NN IP believes that this challenge requires new solutions such as the zero-trust or perimeterless security model predicated on the concept that devices shouldn’t be trusted by default, even within a corporate network

“The skyrocketing popularity of digital payment apps and decentralized finance will also create plenty of investment opportunities. Agile, disruptive payment processors are on course to create so-called closed-loop payment and loan networks (payment ecosystems that circumvent the traditional banking system and enable users to get loans that wouldn’t be possible through standard channels)”, they add.

‘Green’ industrials

The urgency behind efforts to tackle climate change is intensifying in the run-up to 2030, the target date for the UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals. Companies building solutions to reduce emissions and speed the transition to sustainable energy are “particularly well placed” to benefit from ongoing global policy and regulatory changes, such as China’s drive to decrease pollution and the EU’s waste and recycling initiatives. “The industrials sector is a good place to look for firms that are helping companies and consumers to shrink their carbon footprint”, the asset manager says.

In its opinion, innovative companies are also contributing to the drive for a more circular economy, which involves extending the lifecycle of products, reducing waste and reusing materials wherever possible to create further value. 

“Companies tackling the proliferation of plastics are a key area of opportunity, with new technologies such as chemical recycling being developed to complement traditional mechanical methods. Firms that are helping lower emissions and develop recycling solutions in heavy-emitting industries such as steel and cement are also making strides”, Luiten comments. In this sense, hydrogen power and carbon capture and storage are in their early stages, “but remain sectors to watch”.

Aware of impact washing

NN IP notes that impact washing (misleading marketing claims about a company’s actions or a financial product’s real-world impact) is something “to be aware of”. The related issue of how to measure impact also looms large, and more robust key performance indicators, as well as a standardized reporting framework, will be essential to addressing this issue.

According to Luiten, while these challenges remain, they also create opportunities for asset managers and banks to boost transparency on how they measure the real-world impact of their investments. “True impact funds that seize this opportunity will set themselves apart as the market develops over the next five years”, he concludes.

AXA IM Partners with XP To Launch Clean Economy Strategy in Brazil

  |   For  |  0 Comentarios

Captura de Pantalla 2021-10-19 a la(s) 14
CC-BY-SA-2.0, FlickrAmazonia, Brasil. ,,

Brazilians have increasingly started to invest internationally. In this context, AXA Investment Managers and XP Investments have partnered to bring strategies focusing on technological disruption and sustainable investments. Their collaboration started in 2020 to launch feeder funds in Brazil and today it has grown to exceed 1 billion reals in assets.

“The strategy is at the forefront of where technological innovation and the need for a more sustainable world meet, and it will provide investors in Brazil access to a vast and diverse set of innovative business opportunities that aim to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the most polluting and harmful industries”, pointed out AXA IM in a press release.

In this sense, it has identified four key areas that represent the most attractive investment opportunities within the Clean Economy strategy: Low Carbon Transport, Smart Energy, Agriculture & Food and Natural Resources Preservation. “These sectors have the potential for long-term profitability and growth, while making a positive impact on the environment”, they said.

The asset manager believes that its focus on technological disruption was key to bring to Brazil a strategy focusing on companies that allowed our lives to continue during the lockdowns, including companies in fintech, the cloud, remote working, streaming, video games, artificial intelligence, etc. “Investors in Brazil have also become captivated by sustainable and socially responsible investing. We believe we are in front of a multi-decade growth opportunity in areas such as low-carbon transportation, renewable energy, and smart grids. Electric and Hydrogen fuel-cell battery technologies are very exciting. Other areas include Agri-tech, and the development of healthier and organic foods, recycling, and water preservation”, AXA IM commented.

The firm has currently more than $1 trillion in assets under management. Founded in 1997 in Paris, it has grown into a global powerhouse in asset management, with a presence in more than 20 countries and major investment centers in the US, UK, France, and Hong Kong.

Colchester Global Investors’ Funds Now Available to BNY Mellon Pershing

  |   For  |  0 Comentarios

Captura de Pantalla 2021-10-19 a la(s) 13
Pxhere. ,,

Colchester has announced in a press release that its three flagship Irish UCITS funds (Colchester Global Bond Fund, Colchester Global Real Return Bond Fund and Colchester Local Markets Bond Fund) are now being offered to BNY Mellon Pershing’s clients.

The funds will be available to their introducing broker-dealers and registered investment advisors using BNY Mellon Pershing’s NetX360® platform upon the execution of an agreement with Colchester Global Investors’ Fund.

“We’re very pleased with bringing our core strategies to the Latin American and US offshore markets where we have had immense support to make this listing possible. The simplicity of our investment process and the exclusive focus on global sovereign bonds and currencies have resonated with investors in a heavily fixed income biased region”, said Global Head of Marketing and Client Services, Paul Allen.

In his view, their global sovereign bond strategies have experienced strong interest from advisers who are seeking both value and a defensive fixed income alternative for their client portfolios. “With our long track record of displaying negative correlation to risk assets including credit, we are sought out as the anchor in portfolios,” Allen explained.

He revealed that investors have also welcomed their expertise in local currency emerging markets to complement their “aggressive fixed income exposure” through the Colchester Local Markets Bond Fund USD Unhedged Accumulation Class – I Share class (ISIN IE00BQZJ1775), which has received a 5-Star Morningstar RatingTM as of 31/8/20211.

“Nuestro punto de diferencia es que solo invertimos en bonos soberanos físicos en nuestros fondos principales, lo que garantiza la liquidez en todos los mercados y una simplicidad que los clientes pueden comprender. En Colchester, nos enorgullecemos de nuestra alineación con nuestros clientes como inversores a largo plazo en lugar de realizar apuestas a corto plazo “, concluyó Allen.

Los fondos estarán disponibles de inmediato a través de varios acuerdos existentes con corredores de bolsa orientados a la gestión de patrimonios, asesores de inversión registrados (RIA) e instituciones.

Euromoney Recognizes Santander as the World’s Best Bank for Financial Inclusion

  |   For  |  0 Comentarios

Ana_Botín,_Group_Executive_Chairman,_Banco_Santander,_S
Wikimedia CommonsAna Botín, presidenta de Banco Santander durante la celebración de The Global Summit 2015.. Ana Botin

Euromoney has recognized Santander as the world’s best bank for financial inclusion in its “Global Awards for Excellence 2021”, highlighting the group’s efforts to make financial services more accessible.

The magazine has distinguished the company’s efforts to financially empower individuals and entrepreneurs through a range of programs in Latin America, Europe and the US, as well as the work Santander has done more broadly to help people, especially the elderly, adopting digital channels through the pandemic.

“In the last three years we have financially empowered 6 million people, with the goal to empower 10 million by 2025. The impact can be life changing: from supporting entrepreneurs in setting up new businesses through our micro finance programs, to helping individuals who want to build confidence in using digital banking. This is critical to creating inclusive, sustainable growth, and I am delighted that Euromoney has recognized the efforts and innovations of our teams across the world”, said Ana Botín, Santander Group executive chairman.

Different initiatives 

In a press release, the bank has informed that its initiative Santander Finance for All seeks to support financial inclusion to help people get access to the financial system, offer them finance to set up and grow micro-businesses, and enhance their resilience through financial education. The strategy “targets the unbanked and underserved”; individuals and SMEs who face difficulties obtaining credit; have limited financial understanding; or are in financial distress. 

One of those initiatives is Superdigital, Santander’s flagship 100% digital platform for making payments in Brazil, Mexico, and Chile. It leverages the rapid growth in smartphone adoption and improved network coverage in Latin America to increase financial inclusion in the region. The platform is expanding its services to reach five million active customers by 2023 across seven markets in Latin America.

Besides, Santander has specific microfinance programs to provide financing for micro entrepreneurs. Although named differently (Tuiio in México, Prospera in Brazil, Uruguay and Colombia, and Surgir in Perú), all have same goal: to support microentrepreneurs set up and grow microbusinesses with credit and other products such as microinsurance Thanks to these initiatives, Santander has supported 1.2 million micro-entrepreneurs in Latin America, out of which 70% were women.

The magazine has also recognized that, during the pandemic, the bank has been especially vigilant in supporting elderly or vulnerable customers and ensuring they can access financial services, contacting them proactively to help build confidence in using digital banking services. It also produced simple step-by-step videos and guides for online and mobile banking.

In August, Santander was also recognised as the most innovative bank for its financial inclusion initiatives by The Banker, a Financial Times magazine.

Financial Innovation of the Year

Santander has also won the Financial Innovation of the Year award for its role as joint lead manager advising European Investment Bank in the first-ever digital bond on a public blockchain multi-leader led. It was a 100 million euros and 2-year maturity bond, placed with key market institutional investors.

The transaction used Ethereum, a public blockchain protocol, and it was a milestone for Santander’s CIB Digital Solutions Group (DSG). Santander CIB created the unit at the beginning of 2021 to partner with global coverage and product teams to provide comprehensive support in the digital acceleration of customer’s business. It also produces added-value digital products and financing structures to help Santander’s clients in the digital acceleration of their business.

Euromoney magazine has been a leading publication in international finance for 50 years. Its Awards for Excellence were established in 1992 and are the global benchmark for the banking industry.

Finance Remains One of the Most Attractive Career Choices among Youngsters

  |   For  |  0 Comentarios

graduate-gc643ec63f_1920
Pixabay CC0 Public Domain. Las finanzas se mantienen como una de las opciones profesionales preferidas entre los jóvenes

CFA Institute, the global association of investment professionals, has recently released the results from a survey it conducted on the career outlook of more than 15,000 current university students and recent graduates aged 18-25 from 15 markets. Globally, 58% of respondents still feel confident about their future career prospects in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Traditionally stable fields, such as finance, remain attractive for graduates navigating these uncertain times”, the report points out. In fact, respondents across all 15 markets ranked this sector as one of the top five most valuable majors for finding a career. Overall, graduates felt that medicine/science was most stable and attractive, followed by healthcare and then education.

“Students and recent graduates are more flexible and confident about their prospects than ever. The pandemic forced many grads to reassess their expected career paths, and they have displayed remarkable resilience despite the circumstances. It is now incumbent on companies to adapt to the new realities, such as hybrid workplaces, in order to attract and retain the young talent we need to help lead us out of the pandemic”, said Margaret Franklin, CFA, President and CEO at CFA Institute.

She finds “encouraging” to see that many graduates still view finance as a stable and attractive career path; however, they currently don’t see the industry as making a positive social impact. “This issue is only going to increase in importance, and industry leaders need to make sure we are on the front foot in educating students about the positive impact an investment career can have for people and our planet,” Franklin concluded.

The survey shows that a majority of graduates believe their future career will be as good or better than their parents’ generation, despite the pandemic. Findings showed that those studying accounting and finance were particularly confident, with 80% believing their prospects are as good or better than their parents’ generation, compared to three quarters (75%) of respondents overall.

Skills and insecurities

Another primary concern for students is developing work-related skills during degree programs and after graduating. Those surveyed shared personal insecurities about this, with a quarter of respondents saying they feel underqualified for the job they want, and 22% saying they do not feel ready for the working world.

When approaching the current complex job market, students and graduates see value in further education. Nearly nine in 10 respondents feel that upskilling and post-graduate qualifications are important in the current job market, and 57% believe postgraduate qualifications/professional certification will give them an edge when looking for a job.

Working in an industry that makes a positive societal and environmental contribution ranks very important to recent graduates, with nearly nine in 10 respondents saying it’s an important part of their career choice. For CFA Institute, of concern is that only 8% of respondents consider a career in investment management as one in which they could make a positive environmental and societal impact. This finding shows that, to retain talent, the sector must do more to educate students around the positive impact they could have in an investment industry career. 

“Graduates may be unaware of the remarkable global trend towards environmental, social and governance (ESG) investing and the career opportunities a specialism in sustainability and ESG could offer them in the investment industry. We need to show them that investment careers can be rewarding well beyond the traditional attraction of higher salaries,” commented Peter Watkins, who leads the University Affiliation Program at CFA Institute in Europe, Middle East and Africa.