UBS Group AG and PwC presented their joint annual billionaires report, “Are billionaires feeling the pressure?” The report examines wealth creation within the billionaire segment in 2015 and singles out the transfer of USD 2.1 trillion in billionaire wealth that is expected over the next two decades.
2015 saw a pause as total billionaire wealth fell by USD 300 billion to USD 5.1 trillion. Headwinds such as the transfer of assets within families, commodity price deflation and an appreciating US dollar, impacted the growth of billionaire wealth. Average billionaire wealth dropped from USD 4.0 billion to USD 3.7 billion and the US added only five net new billionaires in 20151. In contrast, Asia produced one billionaire every three days, with China alone accounting for over half of the 113 additions.
The findings build on UBS/PwC’s previous Billionaires Reports, released in May and December 2015. According to the new report, we are about to witness the greatest transfer of wealth in human history. Approximately 460 billionaires will transfer USD 2.1 trillion, the equivalent of India’s GDP, to their heirs over a period of just 20 years. For most of Asia’s young economies, where over 85% of billionaires are first- generation, this will be the first-ever handover of billionaire wealth.
Josef Stadler, Head Global Ultra High Net Worth, UBS, said: “The findings of this report help us stay ahead of the issues that matter to better advise our clients, which include over half the world’s billionaires and three out of every five billionaires in Asia. Even as China’s growth moderates, it is the bright spot for great wealth growth. Led by a tech sector on the rise, China minted 80 new billionaires in 2015 and Asia overall created a new billionaire nearly every three days. Meanwhile Europe’s billionaires stood out for maintaining and passing wealth down to their heirs. This is something that regions like Asia, where many more billionaires are first generation, can learn a lot from, especially as we head into the greatest period of wealth transfer we’ve ever seen. Just as Asian billionaires can gain from the experience of wealth transfer in Europe, there’s much that Europe can learn from the rapid billionaire growth in Asia.”
Michael Spellacy, Global Wealth Leader at PwC US added: “As the shockwaves from regulatory upheaval in the EU continue to trigger global currency fluctuations, strategic planning becomes even more crucial for wealth preservation. Those who control assets face tough investment questions. Encouragingly, this year’s report shows that Europe’s billionaires were the most resilient with many of the 60 individuals from Europe inheriting their fortunes in 2015 for the first time. The US, which boasts the biggest collection of billionaires by region, sets the trend. Total US billionaire wealth fell, but ‘new money’ fared better than old, falling by just 4%, from an average of USD 4.7bn per individual to USD 4.5bn.”
Key findings from the report include:
A USD 2.1 trillion inheritance
The past 20 years of exceptional wealth creation will soon be followed by the largest-ever wealth transfer. We estimate that less than 500 people (460 of the billionaires in the markets we cover) will hand over USD 2.1 trillion, a figure equivalent to India’s GDP, to their heirs in the next 20 years. For most of Asia’s young economies, where over 85% of billionaires are first generation, this will be the first-ever handover of billionaire wealth.
The Gilded Age pauses
After more than 20 years of unprecedented wealth creation, the Second Gilded Age has stalled. The transfer of assets within families, commodity price deflation and an appreciating US dollar have emerged as significant headwinds. In 2015, in the markets we cover, 210 fortunes broke through the billion-dollar wealth ceiling and 160 billionaires dropped off, leading to a net increase in the billionaire population of 50 to 1,397. Yet their total wealth fell from USD 5.4 trillion to USD 5.1 trillion. Average wealth fell from USD 4 billion in 2014 to USD 3.7 billion in 2015. It is still too early to tell if 2015 signals a pause in the Gilded Age or something more.
Old legacies’ lessons for new billionaires
Of the billionaire fortunes that have fallen below the billion dollar mark since 1995, 90% were not preserved beyond the first and second generations. At a time of economic headwinds and imminent wealth transfer, Europe’s old legacies are a model for new billionaires to avoid this fate. Germany and Switzerland, in particular, are the countries with the greatest share of ‘old’ wealth. Asia’s family- orientated billionaires may wish to adapt the European model of wealth preservation to their own needs.
New philanthropic models
In the first half of the 20th century, entrepreneurial families such as the Carnegies and Rockefellers funded significant advances in areas such as education and health. By doing so, they displayed many traits associated with billionaires – chiefly business focused and smart risk-takers – to drive success. After over three decades of this new Gilded Age, billionaire philanthropy is growing all over the world. New philanthropic models are emerging (loans, guarantees, contracts, impact investing etc.) and the millennial generation is putting philanthropy at the heart of their family values. In spite of this the current Gilded Age may not match its predecessor’s record.
Wikimedia CommonsFoto: Gratisography / Pexels. Cuatro estrategias para vincular mejor valor y precio de los family offices con los clientes de grandes patrimonios
A recent report from Family Office Exchange (FOX) has uncovered new strategies that forward-thinking advisors are beginning to use to better link value and price with their ultra-wealthy clients in the face of increasing price competition.
The findings stem from the recently released 2016 FOX Value Price Study: The Critical Link in Ultra-Wealth Market, which is available to all FOX members. According to the report, advisors have lost at least some pricing power with prospects, as fees quoted to prospective clients have dropped 17% since 2008 and 15% since 2012. Among current clients, fees have flattened-out—in large part due to the difficultly advisors encounter in articulating value.
In response, some advisors have begun utilizing four strategies to better link value and price:
Mastering Underlying Economics: Achieving sustainable business economics by thoroughly understanding value while making pricing and cost management everyone’s job at the firm.
Realigning Price and Value: Making it easier for clients to see how competitor fees line up, and enabling a more effective method to match firm talent against client needs.
Adapting Resources to Meet Changing Client Needs: Making it easier for clients to access the firm’s capabilities, and determining more efficient ways of bringing resources to bear on the client’s most pressing needs.
Managing Perception of Value: Better connecting client needs to the full value the firm may provide to them, and continually assessing whether their fees are aligned with that value
“The 2016 FOX Value Price Study reveals that the state of the ultra-wealth business remains quite healthy, even in the face of market volatility and growing competitive intensity. However, we have uncovered mounting evidence that the prevailing pricing model employed by ultra-wealth advisors needs attention,” said David Toth, Director of Advisor Research at Family Office Exchange. “The value/price relationship deserves careful thought when considering what changes to make to the pricing model. This report takes a look at how some firms are taking on the challenge of finding better ways to demonstrate value to their clients while refining their pricing models.”
According to KPMG‘s 2016 Global Women in Alternative Investments Report: The Time is Now: Real Change, Real Impact, Seize the Moment, mandates and programs for women-owned and managed fund increased to 10 percent in 2016 from just two percent in 2013. At a majority of investors, women-led funds represent less than 5 percent of their total portfolio.
This year’s report highlights that emerging manger mandates are on the rise among investors, presenting additional opportunities for women-owned and managed funds. Forty percent of women-owned and managed fund respondents have pursued emerging manager mandates, up from 31 percent last year. Nearly half who pursued mandates this year won them.
However, while 32 percent of investors polled said they expect an increase in their allocations to emerging managers over the next 18 months, only 16 percent expect allocations to women-owned and managed funds to increase over the same timeframe.
Alternative Investments Audit partner Kelly Rau, also a co-author of this year’s report, added: “Although we have not seen considerable improvement in some areas since last year, there are signs of progress. Firms are embarking on creative initiatives designed to better retain and advance women in alternatives, and there are greater numbers of investors considering allocations to women-owned and managed funds.”
Alternative Investments Sector Outlook Is Mixed for the Next 18 months
48 percent expect hedge fund performance will improve. However, 18 percent of investors expect to decrease allocations to hedge funds while the same percentage plans to increase allocations to the sector.
30 percent expect improved performance for private equity; 30 percent of investors plan to increase allocations to the sector
18 percent expect improved performance for real estate funds; and 22 percent of investors plan to increase their real estate allocations
Wealth and asset managers in Asia ex-Japan face the challenging task of managing the expectations of retail investors who are prone to poor investment habits, yet look for high returns on their investment portfolios. These findings and more are from a new report by global research and consulting firm Cerulli Associates, Asian Wealth Management 2016: Tailor-Made for the Wealthy.
According to the report, common investment habits among investors in the region include timing the markets or focusing on the short term, having a late start to investing, and lacking in portfolio diversification.
In Cerulli’s proprietary survey of a total of 1,800 investors in six countries in Asia ex-Japan–China, India, South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Singapore–more than 50% of respondents cited timing markets as their most common practice. While this practice is observed across the region, it is especially evident among Chinese and Indian investors. In terms of wealth tiers, this is more prevalent among high-net-worth investors.
One positive takeaway from Cerulli’s survey is that retail investors in the region intend to diversify their portfolios in coming months. However, the real dilemma for wealth managers is that they aspire for high returns with low-risk products amid volatile global markets.
A majority of respondents in Cerulli’s survey (barring those in Korea and Singapore) said they are looking for returns that are 5% higher than their respective country’s one-year deposit rates. In Singapore and Korea, a majority of investors’ desired returns are 3% higher than the one-year savings deposit rate in their country.
Yet, these investors have turned conservative and have significant allocation to cash and deposits in their investment portfolios. As such, wealth managers will need to convince these investors to look at other investment products to enhance portfolio returns over the longer term, given the low-yield environment.
As for wealth managers, they are striving to increase the risk profiles of investors by advising them to invest in liquid alternatives. However, Cerulli’s survey shows the percentage of retail investors who are willing to invest in alternatives, including the liquid versions, is low even in markets such as Singapore, Hong Kong, and Taiwan.
Further, new product launches have been mostly plain-vanilla funds across the region, while new product ideas have been limited except in Korea, which has seen the launch of robotics, water and clean-energy thematic funds, as well as a mutual fund sub-advised by a robo-advisor.
Meanwhile, product differentiation is one of the strategies private banks in Asia are adopting to stand out among the competition.
“Compared to improving on client service through the training of relationship managers or digitalization, which is often difficult to implement and measure, providing exclusive access to investment solutions is a more direct way of capturing and retaining investor loyalty,” said Shu Mei Chua, an associate director at Cerulli, who led the report.
Another finding from the report is that affluent Asians are gradually warming up to discretionary portfolio management (DPM) services, and this potentially offers opportunities for asset managers as well as wealth managers. “DPM is gaining traction as it has become increasingly difficult for clients to make their own decisions amid the volatile market conditions, leading them to seek professional services,” said Leena Dagade, senior analyst at Cerulli.
Foto: media.digest
. Más de la mitad de los activos de los grandes patrimonios se gestiona de forma discrecional
When approaching wealth managers for investment management, high net worth (HNW) individuals are more likely to opt for discretionary mandates over other services, according Verdict Financial’s 2016 Global Wealth Managers Survey, the company’s latestreport that analyzes the demand for discretionary asset management of HNW investors in 17 countries.
Although 52% of millionaires’ investable assets are managed on a discretionary basis globally, the level of interest in such services varies significantly between markets.
Bartosz Golba, Acting Head of Wealth Management at Verdict Financial, states: “HNW individuals in Singapore, the UK, and the US have an average of more than 70% of their portfolios placed in discretionary mandates – the highest share across the globe. These are all developed markets, where the uptake of discretionary asset management is generally higher than in emerging economies.
“Such services are a perfect match for clients lacking the time and expertise to manage their investments, both major factors driving demand for discretionary mandates. However, trust plays an important role as well. Investors will be skeptical about giving up control over the investment decisions to advisors they do not know well and do not have a relationship with.”
According to Golba, established wealth managers will try to leverage their relationships with existing clients to increase mandates penetration: “Discretionary services offer higher profit margins than advisory propositions. In this way, growing mandates penetration is at the center of many providers’ strategies, one example being Citi Private Bank, particularly in the Asia-Pacific region. For players with large client books, moving assets to mandated services might prove an easier way to grow revenue than competing for new clients.”
Verdict Financial’s research shows that discretionary portfolio managers will also experience competition from digital providers, which have traditionally been conceived as appealing mostly to self-directed investors.
Golba continues: “Wealth managers in developed markets have started to lean towards the view that digital players no longer compete only for execution-only business. Indeed, in Europe many providers dubbed ‘robo-advisors’ offer a discretionary investment management service. They have clear fee structures which appeal to price-sensitive clients, though the lack of a recognized brand remains their primary handicap.”
As Bob Dylan wrote way back when, “The Times They Are A-Changin’.” With the election of Donald Trump to the White House, they surely have. But perhaps not quite as dramatically as some commentators believe. If I look back over the CIO Weekly Perspectives written by myself and my colleagues over the past nine months, many of the current market trends were in plain view. In fact, much of what just happened in the U.S. is simply the amplification of a series of global trends that were already in place.
For evidence, look at the central banks piece written back in March: Central Banks Just Pulled Back from the Abyss. This described the growing recognition that central banks had reached the limits of policy intervention. And, as a result, the consensus was moving away from the aggressive pursuit of negative rates in the realization that central banks had done all they could, and that the burden of lifting growth and opportunity needed to shift to political leaders and legislators.
As the summer unfolded, my colleague, Joe Amato, President and Chief Investment Officer – Equities, wrote a piece on infrastructure entitled The World Turned Upside Down. Joe’s piece also referred to the end of central bank dominance and the need for political leadership to embrace the concept of structural reform and pro-growth policies. In some ways, Joe’s words back in July were prophetic: “The more unified the political control [in the U.S.] and the worse the economy is doing, the more likely we are to see a deal [on infrastructure].”
Turning Japanese
This August, I wrote about Japan in a piece entitled Lost in Translation.
This examined Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s latest economic stimulus package and how it was focused on fundamental labor market reform. His proposals included increasing wages for educators, changing the laws to encourage two-earner households, and improving the economics and availability of childcare. I concluded that some of the policies that Abe was pursuing would be emulated by other parts of the developed world.
Markets have been reflecting these changes for a while. Forward inflation indicators and interest rates bottomed in July and have been moving up for the past four months. Since July, bank stocks have outperformed utilities by nearly 50%, with nearly half the gain taking place through October. Commodities turned the corner even earlier, bottoming out in February.
This change in sentiment partly reflects the better growth story, but it also lends support to how fearful the market had become over the prospect of even lower rates. Indeed, the corrosive economic effects of negative interest rates probably won’t be fully appreciated for some years.
End of an Era?
Back to the present. The rapid lift in interest rates following the U.S. election has of course coincided with a much more optimistic re-pricing of risk assets in the U.S., namely stocks and credit spreads. We believe it reflects a dramatic shift in the markets’ views with respect to growth and inflation. It has happened fast and is barely reflected in any economists’ forecasts at this point. As such, it may be the “dynamite” required to blow up the log jam of the lingering aftereffects of zero interest rate policy. It provides the U.S. Federal Reserve the air cover they seem to need to continue raising rates. “ZIRP” has lost its punch, just as former Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke long ago predicted it would, and it needs to be left behind. We believe this is the beginning of the end of an era.
It may seem odd to hear a career bond man crowing about rising rates but remember, over the long term, bond market returns are all about income and, more importantly, about real income. We’ve spent a number of years struggling to find either in the higher quality bond markets. We believe the persistence of negative real rates in short to intermediate high grade fixed income is simply a recipe for losing money. For a long-term investor, the end of this era is coming none too soon.
Lombard Odier Investment Managers has appointed Jerry Devlin as head of UK Third-Party Distribution.
Devlin was previously head of UK Distribution at Amundi for three and a half years. At Amundi, Jerry was responsible for implementing a distribution strategy in the UK with an emphasis on global distribution accounts.
Prior to this, he was head of UK Wholesale at Macquarie Group, and has also held head of Sales roles at Castlestone Management and Barings.
Following the departure of Dominick Peasley, head of UK Third-Party Distribution, to pursue other opportunities within financial services, Devlin will join Lombard Odier on 3 January 2017.
“Unprecedented negative rates and direct intervention of key central banks has created a number of unintended consequences for investors to contend with. At Lombard Odier we seek to re-evaluate and rethink the world around us, to build an innovative and specialist investment offering that helps investors face these challenges. We are pleased to welcome Jerry, who brings a wealth of experience and insight that will be valuable as we grow our distribution business in the UK,” said Carolina Minio-Paluello, global head of Sales and Solutions at Lombard Odier.
“We would also like to take this opportunity to wish Dominick well in his future endeavours and thank him for the work he has done during his time with Lombard Odier,” she added.
Wikimedia CommonsFoto: Hollingsworth John and Karen, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Los inversores globales siguen reduciendo sus exposiciones a efectivo
The BofA Merrill Lynch December Fund Manager Survey shows Wall Street is bullish as cash levels continue to drop.
“Fund managers have pushed pause on a risk rally, with cash balances falling sharply over the past two months,” said Michael Hartnett, chief investment strategist. “With expectations of growth, inflation and corporate profits at multi-year highs, Wall Street is sending a strong signal that it is bullish.”
Manish Kabra, European equity quantitative strategist, added that, “Despite the improved outlook on European economic growth and inflation, global investors continue to shun European stocks amid concerns of further EU disintegration or bank defaults.”
Other highlights include:
Investor expectations of global growth jump to 19-month highs (net 57% from net 35% in November), while expectations of global inflation are at the second highest percentage level in over 12 years (net 84% from net 85% last month).
With a net 56% of investors thinking global profits will improve in the next 12 months, fund managers are the most optimistic about corporate profit expectations in 6.5 years.
Cash levels continue to fall to 4.8% in December from 5.0% in November and 5.8% in October.
Allocation to banks jumps to record highs (net 31% overweight from net 25% last month); the current reading is far above its long-term average.
Over one-third of investors surveyed name Long USD as the most crowded trade.
Investors identify EU disintegration and a bond crash as the two most commonly cited tail risks, corroborated by light EU and bond positioning.
On corporate investment, a record number of investors (net 74%) think companies are currently under-investing.
54% of investors, up from 44% last month, think the rotation to cyclical styles and inflationary sectors will continue well into 2017, supported by a strong USD and higher rates.
Allocation to US equities improves to 2-year highs of net 15% overweight from net 4% overweight in November.
Allocation to Japanese equities jumps to 10-month highs, from net 5% underweight in November to net 21% overweight in December; this is the biggest month-over-month jump in FMS history.
Investors are underweight Eurozone equities for the first time in 5 months, at net 1% underweight in December from net 4% overweight last month.
Eurozone inflation in November was confirmed at 0.6% y-o-y in the final reading, one notch higher than in October (0.5%). Energy deflation intensified slightly (from -0.9% to -1.1%) as pump prices declined over the month. According to Fabio Balboni, European Economist at HSBC, this was offset by slightly higher food prices, particularly unprocessed food (from 0.2% to 0.7%), albeit still at very low levels. Core (0.8%) and services (1.1%) inflation remained flat for the fourth consecutive month. And core industrial goods inflation was also stable at 0.3% for the fourth consecutive month, down from a local peak of 0.7% in January 2015, suggesting that the impact of previous EUR depreciations might already be waning.
Across countries, the harmonised inflation rate remained stable in Germany (0.7%) and Spain (0.5%), but it increased in France (from 0.5% to 0.7%). HICP finally moved into positive territory in Italy, from -0.1% in October, to 0.1%, although it is still lagging behind the other Big 4 members. In November, there were only four countries still in deflation in the eurozone: Slovakia, Greece and Ireland (-0.2%) and Cyprus (-0.8%).
“In the coming months, with the base effects from energy fading, the oil price up 15% the past month, and the EUR having fallen below 1.05 against the USD, we expect inflation to rise fast. Pump prices were already 2% higher in the first half of December and are likely to rise further in the second half, benefiting from the festive season. We could also see a reversal of the recent slowdown in core industrial goods prices, with the latest PMIs pointing to output prices finally starting to rise. These elements could push eurozone inflation to 1% y-o-y in December. We then expect it to continue to rise, peaking at 1.8% in February, and possibly above 2% in Spain also thanks to some tax increases on alcohol and tobacco agreed by the government.” He says.
All of this, Balboni believes, could cause a bit of a headache for ECB Governing Council in the coming months, with inflation peaking in some countries at close to (or even above) 2%. However, the need to continue to provide fiscal support in countries where the output gap is still wide, and where wage growth is still slowing (the latest print was 1.2% in Q3 for the eurozone) are likely to keep underlying inflationary pressures muted. “We won’t have to worry about a possible early tapering of QE already next year. In December, ECB’s head Mario Draghi was quick to accept the offer on the table of a nine-month extension – albeit at a slower pace – still slowing until the end of 2017. This should allow the ECB to look through the inflation peak in the first half of next year before having to make a decision on a possible further extension of QE.” He concludes.
Pixabay CC0 Public DomainFoto: Kai Stachowiak, Public DomainPhotos. Los temas y riesgos que darán forma a los mercados en 2017
Each year BlackRock strategists and portfolio team members assemble to discuss the outlook for the coming 12 months. The major takeaway from our discussions this year: We believe three major themes—and a few key risks—are poised to shape markets in 2017, as we write in our new Global Investment Outlook 2017.
Theme 1: Reflation
We expect U.S.-led reflation—rising nominal growth, wages and inflation—to accelerate. Yield curves globally are liable to recalibrate to reflect this “reflationary” dynamic, and we see steeper yield curves and higher long-term yields ahead in 2017. We believe we have seen the low in bond yields—barring any big shock. Steepening yield curves suggest investors should consider pivoting toward shorter-duration bonds less sensitive to rising rates.
Expectations for global reflation are also driving a rotation within equities. See the chart below. Bond-like equities such as utilities dramatically undershot the broader market in the second half of 2016. Global banks, by contrast, have outperformed along with other value equities on expectations that steeper yield curves might boost their net interest margins—the gap between lending and deposit rates. We see this trend running further in the medium term, albeit with the potential for short-term pullbacks. We could see beneficiaries of the post-crisis low-rate environment—bond proxies and low-volatility shares—underperforming. We see dividend growers—companies with sustainable free cash flow and the ability to raise their payouts over time—as most resilient in a rising-rate environment. Our research suggests they perform well when inflation drives rates higher.
We see structural changes to the global economy—aging populations, weak productivity and excess savings—limiting growth and capping rate rises. Still-low rates and a relatively subdued economic growth trend are taking a toll on prospective asset returns, especially for government bonds.
This is one reason we believe investors need to have a global mindset and consider moving further out on the risk spectrum into equities, credit and alternative asset classes. U.S.-dollar-based investors should consider owning more non-U.S. equities and emerging market (EM) assets over a five-year time horizon while reducing exposure to government bonds, our work suggests.
Theme 3: Dispersion
The gap between winners and losers in the stock market is likely to widen from the depressed levels of recent years as the baton is passed from monetary to fiscal policy. Under extraordinary monetary easing during the post-crisis years, a rising tide lifted all boats. Fiscal and regulatory changes, by contrast, are likely to favor some sectors at the expense of others. The dispersion of S&P 500 weekly stock returns—the gap between the top and bottom quartile—recently hit its highest level since 2008. Other markets are likely to mirror the U.S. trend as major central banks approach the limits of monetary easing. Rising asset price dispersion creates opportunities for security selection. Yet the risk of sharp and sudden momentum reversals in sector leadership highlights the need to be nimble while staying focused on long-term goals.
At the same time, we are seeing a regime change in cross-asset correlations that challenges traditional diversification. Long-held relationships between asset classes appear to be breaking down as rising yields have led to a shakeup across asset classes. Bond prices are no longer moving as reliably in the opposite direction of equity prices. Similarly, asset pairs that have historically moved in near lockstep—U.S. equities and oil, for example—have become less correlated. This means traditional methods of portfolio diversification, which use historical correlations and returns to derive an optimum asset mix, may be less effective. Bonds are still useful portfolio buffers against “risk-off” market movements, we believe. Yet we see an increasing role for equities, style factors and alternatives such as private markets in portfolio diversification.
Key risks
2017 is dotted with political and policy risks that have the potential to shake up longstanding economic and security arrangements. There is uncertainty about U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s agenda, its implementation and the timing. The UK has vowed to trigger its exit from the European Union (EU) by the end of March, while elections in the Netherlands, France and Germany will show to what extent populist forces hostile to the EU and euro are gaining sway. At the same time, expectations are building for the Federal Reserve to step up the pace of rate increases after a stop-and-go-slow start, and China’s Communist Party will hold its 19th National Congress, at which Xi is expected to consolidate power.
China’s capital outflows and falling yuan are also worries, as the trade-weighted U.S. dollar’s surge to near-record highs raises the risk of tighter global financial conditions. Rapid dollar gains tend to cause EM currency depreciation, apply downward pressure on commodity prices and raise the risk of capital outflows from China.
For more on these themes and risks, as well as a detailed outlook for sovereign debt, credit and equity markets, read the full Global Investment Outlook 2017 in the following link.
Build on Insight, by BlackRock, written by Richard Turnill
