Balanz has announced the launch of Balanz Capital USA, its broker-dealer for the North American market.
Its new broker-dealer, Balanz Capital USA, “will enhance the Group’s ability to offer the best possible user experience to its clients, including both individuals and institutions,” according to a statement accessed by Funds Society.
The new broker-dealer in the U.S. will be led by Fred Lucier, who joins from Axio Financial, where he served as Managing Partner.
“Balanz Capital USA will play a crucial role in the growth of our global wealth management business. With a highly robust digital infrastructure, the firm is well-positioned to meet the needs of a broad client base. The company has a global footprint, and our expanded capabilities and expertise in the U.S. will allow us to better serve both current and future clients,” stated Lucier.
The Group, which employs over 1,200 employees and serves 1,000,000 clients, is building on its more than 20 years of experience “successfully collaborating with its clients to help them manage their wealth,” the firm added.
“Through its five offices worldwide, Balanz offers clients the best tools and a variety of products to optimize their investments and protect their capital. The result is customized portfolios tailored to a wide range of investment profiles,” declared Claudio Porcel, President of Grupo Balanz.
Balanz established its first presence in the U.S. in late 2022, marking the next phase of its global expansion strategy. Headquartered in Argentina, the Balanz Group also operates in the United Kingdom, Uruguay, Panama, and the United States.
Balanz entered the U.S. market by opening a registered investment advisor, Balanz Advisors, hiring Richard Ganter as CEO.
RIA consolidators have grown significantly over the past decade, now representing $1.5 trillion in assets under management. This shift is altering the dynamics for strategic partners, asset managers, and especially RIAs themselves, according to The Cerulli Report – U.S. RIA Marketplace 2024.
While only 6% of advisors in the RIA channel were affiliated with a network in 2018, that number grew to 14% by 2023.
“This development is slightly surpassed by the growth in market share of assets, which reached 18%, a jump of 10 percentage points. RIA consolidators have been able to maximize this growth period by creating platforms that meet advisors’ needs while advancing the objectives of a larger, more integrated organization,” states the Cerulli report.
The study highlights that technology has become a central component of offerings designed to attract firms, potential advisors, and practices planning acquisitions. 55% of advisors say an integrated technology platform is one of the most valued services offered by networks seeking to bring firms on board.
“Essential to the needs of RIAs, technology tools have become a costly and complex component of advisory practices,” says Stephen Caruso, associate director.
Many consolidators have successfully built centralized technology platforms that provide advisors with access to best-in-class technology stacks managed by internal tech teams. By connecting their advisors to a single system of record, firms can achieve greater efficiency in integration and gain a more comprehensive view of their business, Caruso added.
Among other findings from the Cerulli research, succession planning is a highly valued service for 50% of respondents. Furthermore, 37% of RIA advisors are expected to retire within the next decade, which will put 35% of the channel’s assets into motion.
“RIA buyers have made significant inroads in this market, positioning themselves as a support system for advisory practices and RIAs that recognize the need for an exit strategy but have been unable—or unprepared—to execute it independently,” the Cerulli report explains.
Among RIAs, 74% consider succession planning or exit strategies a factor influencing their decision to join a large platform or RIA aggregator.
“As this wave of consolidation sweeps through the industry, advisors will increasingly face opportunities to sell their business or affiliate with a large RIA acquirer. RIA acquirers seeking to differentiate themselves can do so by creating a more robust framework of opportunities centered around the advisor,” concludes Caruso.
Racquel Oden, Head of International Wealth, Premier, and Global Private Banking at HSBC US, has announced Eric Ingber as the new Head of Ultra High Net Worth in the United States.
Ingber’s appointment is part of a strategy to support high-performing teams in sales,investment management, and compliance, according to the firm statement.
“We are delighted to welcome Eric to HSBC, where he will focus on delivering exceptional service to our U.S. and international clients,” Oden said.
Ingber brings over two decades of experience in wealth management. He joins HSBC from Bank of America, where he served as Managing Director and New York Market Executive.
Previously, he was a wealth advisor at A.W. Jones and began his career at JP Morgan Private Bank. He holds an MBA from Fordham University and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan.
Ingber’s addition to the U.S. International Wealth, Premier, and Global Private Banking team follows recent appointments, including Carly Doshi as the new Head of Wealth Planning and International Connectivity, Didi Nicholas as Regional Market Head, and Clark Pingree, who will support the Northern and Western markets, respectively.
XP Asset Management is betting on the growth of the ETF market in Brazil despite a challenging macroeconomic scenario. According to Danilo Gabriel, a partner responsible for index funds at XP Asset, the manager currently oversees BRL 3 billion (about USD 494 million) spread across eight ETFs. These figures represent a significant portion of the sector, which totals BRL 51 billion (USD 8.4 billion) in the country.
“We see a lot of room for the sector to grow in Brazil,” says Gabriel, noting that XP launched its first ETF in November 2020, the XFIX11, the first real estate ETF in Brazil. Today, Gabriel considers the market advanced but still developing, given the challenge of competing with the Selic rate.
“Many investors still prefer to earn between 10% and 13% on fixed-income assets without volatility in their portfolios, which makes funding ETFs more complex,” he said.
The index fund manager at XP AM explains that they aim to include sophisticated products in XP’s lineup while relying on foundational ones. “For example, we have an Ibovespa ETF. We knew we had to play this game,” he says. Gabriel notes that the industry in Brazil now offers about 100 products, 10 of which are ETFs listed on the Brazilian stock exchange.
However, XP sought a differentiator: cost.
Zero Fees and a Focus on Performance
BOVEX11, which replicates the Ibovespa, is the asset’s most famous ETF and the one with the highest funding. The secret lies in a differentiated cost strategy.
In this case, the manager adopts a zero-fee policy until the fund reaches BRL 1 billion in assets. After this milestone, a fee of 10 basis points (0.10%) will be charged.
“Our model is strategic. When the fund reaches BRL 2 billion, for example, the average total cost will be only 5 basis points (0.05%), as the first BRL 1 billion will remain free,” he explains. Additionally, the fund has an active stock lending structure, generating additional income for shareholders and surpassing the Ibovespa in terms of profitability.
Strong Performance and U.S. Exposure
This year, given the strong performance of U.S. stock markets, some asset products achieved returns exceeding 60%, attracting investor attention.
“We have a basic U.S. package that replicates the Nasdaq and S&P500 indexes, as well as a specific U.S. package,” says Gabriel.
“The Nasdaq has performed very well,” he notes, referring to the Nasd11 ETF, which rose 61.7% this year, reflecting the excellent performance of the world’s second-largest stock exchange, driven by global technological growth.
He adds that, while it is impossible to know exactly which investors are investing in the asset’s products since they are publicly traded, institutional investors are among their clientele.
“We have large pension funds investing and, at the same time, are actively working with our advisor network to promote ETF usage. We believe these are transparent, efficient, cheap, and highly liquid products, offering numerous benefits to the end client,” he says.
In addition to exposure to REITs, Ibovespa, and the U.S., XP also added ETFs with exposure to China and a gold ETF, the first in Brazil dedicated to the commodity, which Gabriel notes has become even more significant in recent years.
“It is focused on the gold market, even incorporating physical gold in its structure. With B3’s technical decision to stop operating gold tickets, our fund addressed this latent demand for a liquid, transparent asset dedicated to this sector,” he explains.
The Sector Benefits Different Investor Classes and Tends to Grow
According to Bruno Tariki, XP’s index fund manager, the asset class attracts various types of investors, offering distinct advantages to each.
“The liabilities of this fund tend to be more spread across these categories. Features like transparency and low costs, which favor long-term ownership, attract institutional investors. For retail, the ease of entering and exiting at any time, or earning extra returns by lending shares, is appealing,” says Tariki.
He notes that the Brazilian market has evolved significantly since the pandemic, growing from 14 to over 100 available products, but it still represents less than 1% of the country’s fund industry. “In comparison, in the U.S., ETFs already dominate 50% of the fund market,” he highlights.
Plans for 2025
While the primary goal is to consolidate existing products, XP is considering launching new ETFs aligned with global trends. “We are closely watching what’s happening in the U.S. market, such as cryptocurrency ETFs approved by the SEC, as well as local demands. We aim to be trendsetters, not just followers,” Gabriel concludes.
With a focus on transparency, efficiency, and low costs, XP Asset believes the ETF market in Brazil is just beginning to tap into its full potential.
Morgan Stanley Smith Barney (MSSB) has been fined by the SEC for failing to supervise four investment advisors and registered representatives who stole millions of dollars from client funds. The regulator announced that MSSB also failed to implement policies and procedures reasonably designed to prevent and detect such thefts.
As part of the settlement, MSSB agreed to pay a $15 million fine and comply with certain commitments.
“MSSB did not adopt or implement policies and procedures reasonably designed to prevent its financial advisors from using two forms of unauthorized third-party disbursements—Automated Clearing House (ACH) payments and certain patterns of wire transfers—to misappropriate funds from advisory client accounts and brokerage client accounts,” the SEC’s resolution stated.
The order concludes that MSSB financial advisors carried out hundreds of unauthorized transfers from client accounts for their own benefit.
“Safeguarding investor assets is a fundamental duty of every financial services firm, but MSSB’s failures in supervisory and compliance policies allowed its financial advisors to make hundreds of unauthorized transfers from client accounts and put many other accounts at significant risk of harm,” said Sanjay Wadhwa, Acting Director of the SEC’s Division of Enforcement.
The resolution also acknowledges MSSB’s cooperation with the SEC staff, as well as its remedial efforts, including compensating victims of the financial advisors and hiring a compliance consultant to conduct a comprehensive review of relevant policies and procedures, Wadhwa added.
According to the SEC, until at least December 2022, MSSB lacked a policy or procedure to review externally initiated ACH payment instructions for cases where an MSSB financial advisor assigned to the account had the same name as the ACH payment’s listed beneficiary.
The resolution found that this oversight led to MSSB failing to detect hundreds of unauthorized ACH transfers between May 2015 and July 2022, from client accounts to pay the financial advisor’s credit card bill or otherwise benefit the advisor.
Additionally, the statement notes that MSSB had previously reached agreements with affected clients to compensate them for their losses.
This year, Janus Henderson Investors celebrated its 90th anniversary, taking the opportunity to reflect internally on its values and what differentiates it from competitors. In this retrospective, Martina Álvarez, Head of Sales for Iberia, brought the conversation to the Spanish market, stating, “I am very proud of the results the Spanish industry is achieving.”
Álvarez cited Inverco data, highlighting that the Spanish investment fund market has tripled in size over the past decade (including both domestic and international fund managers), becoming the fastest-growing market in the Eurozone. She also noted that “the business is now extremely mature,” with clients showing more rational behavior thanks to advancements in financial education, such as refraining from making withdrawals during market downturns.
Despite this progress, with over €1 trillion still held in deposits, Álvarez sees a significant opportunity for the industry. She remarked, “Now is the time to move that money into funds,” especially as the impending cycle of interest rate cuts is likely to diminish the appeal of money market funds.
Janus Henderson’s assets under management (AUM) in Spain are now approaching €4 billion, a milestone Álvarez believes will soon be reached. She emphasized the increased presence of Janus Henderson’s products in more institutions and with more funds, reflecting a strong appreciation by Spanish entities for active, independent management.
When asked about the firm’s goals for 2025, Álvarez provided a straightforward response: “Reaching more places.”
One avenue involves pursuing mergers and acquisitions (M&A) “when it makes sense.” For instance, Janus Henderson has expressed a strong desire to expand its presence in the illiquid assets sector. This year, it acquired Victory Capital, a private credit firm, and NDK, an infrastructure platform focused on emerging markets, as part of this effort.
Another major strategic focus for 2025 is the firm’s active ETF segment, where Janus Henderson is already the fourth-largest provider in the U.S. According to Álvarez, the business receives $1 billion per month in inflows in the U.S. alone. The goal is to pioneer the expansion of this product line in Europe.
At the Madrid Knowledge Exchange event held in September, Nick Cherney, Janus Henderson’s Head of Innovation, projected that assets under management in Europe’s active ETFs market, currently at $50 billion, could grow to $1 trillion by 2030. This growth will be driven by tokenization and increasing client demand.
In the context of Donald Trump’s recent electoral victory in the United States, the Tax Annual Summit, the flagship event of Martín Litwak’s 1841 Foundation, took place in Zonamerica, Uruguay.
The jurist opened the meeting by criticizing the global trend of increasing taxes, which he characterized as a weakening of property rights and privacy.
Protectionism: Is Trump Serious?
Throughout the day, international experts debated global tax policies. Dan Mitchell, President of the Center for Freedom and Prosperity, presented “The Global Impact of the U.S. Presidential Election on Taxes and Privacy Rights.”
Mitchell questioned whether Trump is truly serious about his announcements of significant global tariff increases: “The best approach would be to use trade taxes to finance tax cuts that promote economic growth. But I think it’s nothing more than a fantasy to return to the 1800s in terms of trade.”
The expert also pondered what would happen if the next U.S. president ultimately implements these measures: “Will the world enter a race to raise taxes? That seems very dangerous to me.” Mitchell fears that if Trump does not deeply reform the system, it will all end with more debt and higher taxes.
Offshore Jurisdictions and Global Trends
David Saied Torrijos, a Panamanian economist and director at PWC for Central America and the Dominican Republic, presented a personal overview of offshore jurisdictions. Saied acknowledged that Panama had been marked by the Panama Papers scandal and defended the economic value of “offshore financial centers.”
Globally, Hong Kong and Singapore remain especially thriving offshore hubs, with Delaware in the United States emerging as the fastest-growing jurisdiction.
Saied believes that more taxes driven by the OECD are on the horizon, targeting the digital economy and cryptocurrencies. Currently, he noted, 24 countries are on the organization’s gray list and three on the blacklist.
Comparing Liberalism in Uruguay and Argentina
Hernán Bonilla, President and Founder of CED Uruguay, provided a theoretical overview of the different schools of liberalism around the world, outlining distinctions between the Chicago School, the French School, and the Austrian School, the latter popularized by Javier Milei in Argentina.
Bonilla compared the liberal ideologies on both sides of the Río de la Plata: Uruguay has a pragmatic liberalism, while Milei embodies a dogmatic libertarianism, he explained.
The styles of Uruguay’s current president, Luis Lacalle Pou, and his Argentine counterpart differ markedly: “Perhaps I am biased as a Uruguayan, but I believe that style matters. It’s not the same, and it must be said that Lacalle Pou will end his term without ever raising his voice.”
In terms of substance, Bonilla highlighted that Uruguayans support a state that helps those in need, in contrast to Milei, who seeks to dismantle it. Bonilla also acknowledged that one of Javier Milei’s achievements has been popularizing liberal ideas and that, without his radical style, it might have been impossible for him to gain power in Argentina.
Closing and Reflections
The day concluded with presentations by entrepreneur John Chisholm and attorney María Eugenia Talerico.
Martín Litwak reminded the audience why the Foundation uses the year 1821: “That was the year when there was no income tax anywhere in the world,” he explained. Before then, there were taxes on various things (soap, windows, dogs…), but according to Litwak, in 1821, the introduction of income tax generalized the state’s knowledge of individuals’ earnings, invading their privacy.
iCapital launched the new iCapital Growth Model Portfolio, enabling advisors to seamlessly integrate exposure to private equity investments alongside traditional public market investments, according to a statement from the firm.
The Growth Model complements the existing suite of model portfolios, both designed by iCapital and customized, providing financial advisors with an additional tool to construct alternative investment allocations with a holistic approach to portfolio building.
“Private equity has consistently outperformed public markets, and the demand for private equity funds continues to grow among wealth advisors. In partnership with top-tier managers, iCapital’s Growth Model Portfolio offers a curated program of private equity funds that provide diversification across strategies and investment styles,” the firm stated.
In addition, iCapital noted that when combined with Architect, its portfolio construction tool featuring advanced analytics and data visualization capabilities, “advisors can perform analyses to easily evaluate the impact of incorporating alternative investments alongside traditional portfolio holdings.”
“Well-designed model portfolios play an important role in the widespread and successful adoption of alternatives,” said Steve Houston, Managing Director and Co-Head of iCapital Solutions.
This announcement follows the launch of iCapital’s first model portfolio, the iCapital Balanced Model Portfolio, a pioneering solution for the wealth management industry introduced earlier this year, according to the firm.
“Developed using quantitative analysis by iCapital’s Research and Due Diligence team, the suite of model portfolios offers a comprehensive and flexible way for wealth advisors to incorporate alternative investments into their practices, catering to both qualified clients and accredited investors,” the statement concluded.
Jeff Seeley, CEO of iM Global Partner’s American business and Deputy CEO of the global company, recently visited Miami for an event showcasing six of the ten asset managers they work with. Attendees included selectors, advisors, and bankers from both the U.S. domestic and US Offshore businesses. Such an event, uncommon in Florida, might become a regular occurrence in the future.
In an interview with Funds Society, Seeley explained the rationale behind integrating the domestic and offshore sales structures of the firm in the United States. Joining the conversation were Alberto Martínez, Head of Iberia, Latam, and Offshore at iM GP, and Jeff Royal.
Last year, Seeley, Martínez, and Luis Solórzano—who leads offshore and Latin America efforts from Miami and reports to Martínez—met at an internal firm meeting to discuss clients and trends. They realized that Solórzano and Jeff Royal’s domestic sales team often presented the same strategy to the same client twice, highlighting inefficiencies. This observation led to the decision to unify both teams under one division. Now, each client has a single point of contact who can present a strategy with a fully agnostic product wrapper approach, whether it’s a 40 Act fund, a UCITS fund, an ETF, or, in the future, a UCITS ETF.
Over the past 15 years, the US Offshore advisory industry has evolved significantly. One notable shift is the increasing presence of family members from Latin American households who now reside in the U.S. for tax purposes. Additionally, following the pandemic, many entrepreneurs and professionals from states like California, Connecticut, and New York relocated to Florida, drawn by its superior quality of life and tax benefits. These individuals, as U.S. tax residents, often purchase 40 Act products.
As Miami Mayor Francis Suarez remarked, “When I attend meetings with mayors from around the world, everyone asks about two cities: Miami and Dubai. Even the mayor of Dubai asks about Miami.” Florida, once considered merely a vacation or retirement destination, is now recognized as a hub for both international savers and new domestic wealth, reshaping the financial advisory landscape.
“We can provide a centralized service and a single point of contact to advisors with both offshore and domestic clients because we offer a multi-product range for most of our partners’ strategies,” said Jeff Seeley. “Few asset managers can offer the same strategy in 40 Act, UCITS, or ETF formats. It’s a huge advantage, especially for advisors at the largest broker-dealers,” he added.
Since the integration of the domestic and offshore sales teams in May, offshore product inflows have surged dramatically for strategies and managers already well-represented in domestic advisor portfolios. For example, the UCITS fund version of Richard Bernstein Advisors’ global equity strategy, launched by iM Global Partner in February 2024, benefited from this integration. With 14 years of history and nearly $3 billion in AUM domestically, domestic advisors with offshore clients were already familiar with the product and could now incorporate it into non-resident client portfolios.
Luis Solórzano, based in Miami, serves both domestic and US Offshore clients in Florida. Similarly, the domestic sales team member in New York handles both domestic and offshore clients there. “Breaking down silos is always efficient,” Seeley emphasized, identifying US Offshore—including Latin America—and the UK as markets with the highest growth potential for iM Global Partner over the next three to five years.
Founded in 2013, iM Global Partner focuses on partnering with asset managers—always as a minority stakeholder—to support their distribution efforts. The firm now represents ten managers, operates with a team of 108 professionals across 11 global offices, and manages approximately $45 billion in AUM. Their range includes 21 UCITS funds, six 40 Act funds, and six U.S.-listed ETFs, with plans to launch their first offshore ETF soon.
Some of their asset managers, like Polen or RBA, are U.S.-based, while others, such as Zadig Asset Management and Trinity Street, are European. Their Luxembourg operations team, inherited from the acquisition of Oyster (the UCITS wrapper used by iM Global Partner), is highly efficient, capable of creating a UCITS fund for a U.S.-based strategy in just two weeks. This operational flexibility is a hallmark of the firm.
For their U.S. business, iM Global Partner has fully integrated sales, marketing, and events teams, with only compliance functions kept separate, split between the U.S. and Luxembourg.
By 2025, the company plans to expand its Miami office—currently staffed by Alberto Martínez, Luis Solórzano, and Melissa Álvarez—and grow its offshore ETF range, which is expected to reach five products in the coming months. Additionally, the firm aims to further develop the iMGP DBi Managed Futures range, which already includes a UCITS fund. Notably, their U.S.-listed managed futures ETF, launched nearly five years ago, was the first of its kind in the market and has since become the largest in its category by AUM in the U.S. market.
Public and private credit markets are converging in performance, with the trend expected to continue through 2025, according to a new report by S&P Global Market Intelligence.
In the recently published Public and Private Markets Outlook: Converging on Credit, part of the Big Picture 2025 Outlook Report Series by S&P Global Market Intelligence, analysts note that public debt markets have grown, but not at the expense of private markets, which currently represent $1.5 trillion and continue to expand rapidly.
“It may not be a coincidence that the decline in credit events in Credit Default Swaps (CDS) aligns with the growth in private credit provision. Many companies now have access to private credit lines at levels unseen in previous cycles. This trend is likely to persist into 2025, although it could raise questions about transparency and credit risk measurement in private credit funds, where exposure is ultimately transferred,” commented Gavan Nolan, Executive Director at S&P Global Market Intelligence.
The global private market, valued at $1.5 trillion, continues to see new activity as banks seek partnerships and fund managers aim to enter public markets through new investment vehicles.
Credit events in the CDS market have remained low, with only two credit event auctions—the CDS settlement mechanism—occurring in 2024. “This marks the fourth consecutive year with fewer than three auctions annually, reducing the three-year moving average to levels not seen since the credit bubble prior to the 2007-2008 global financial crisis,” the report states.
With the private credit market nearing $2 trillion in size, some regulators and investors are calling for more rules and transparency in this largely unregulated space.
Private credit markets are projected to continue their expansion, with some estimates suggesting that total assets under management could more than double by 2028, the report concludes.
