In Depth – Page 5
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FeaturesChange is required as populations age
During a recent weekend in the artsy California mountain town of Idyllwild, my wife and I enjoyed a performance of a local band. Seated near us was a gentleman wearing a T-shirt proclaiming, We the People ARE PISSED OFF. The message on this shirt caught my attention.
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InterviewsHSBC Asset Management puts team culture at the fore in growth strategy
It’s often said that timing is everything. Nicolas Moreau sees an element of luck in the timing of his appointment to the helm of HSBC Asset Management in September 2019. This gave him a six-month head start in his role as CEO by the time the COVID pandemic arrived in early 2020.
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FeaturesNAV finance takes hold as a niche form of private credit
Private equity investments are by their nature illiquid, which is why PE general partners (GPs) raising a new fund only call on the committed capital when it needs to be deployed in a new investment – and that may be up to a few years after the fund closes.
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FeaturesIPE Quest Expectations Indicator - September 2024
Kamala Harris’ candidacy has turned the political mood in the US. The two candidates are very close together in the polls but while Trump’s score is stable – except for a worsening favourability – Harris’ statistics all show a positive trend.
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FeaturesAnalysts push back on rate cuts
Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell’s June press conference was, like most careful central bank-speak, open to interpretation. It was possibly slightly dovish with a hint of hawk. However, in the aftermath of the press conference, and following a few busy days of US economic data releases, many analysts have pushed back their forecasts for the number of interest rate cuts this year.
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InterviewsAustralia’s Challenger takes credit and affiliates global
Some 2.5 million Australians are set to retire over the next decade, according to the country’s Treasury. This ageing population has challenged Australia’s A$3.6trn (€2.3trn) superannuation fund sector, and the industry as a whole is pivoting more heavily towards the decumulation phase.
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FeaturesThe next Magnificent Sevens are hiding in plain sight
Like the so-called FANGs that preceded them, one could argue that the Magnificent Seven group of US tech mega-caps that accounted for a large portion of market performance in 2023 are now a part of Wall Street’s history books. Besides two names that have continued to pull away from the pack, the group is no longer commanding investors’ undivided attention.
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FeaturesCyber catastrophe bonds make a debut as insurers offload risk
Cyber catastrophe bonds may be the new kid on the insurance-linked securities (ILS) block, but they have been talked about for years. The jury is out, though, as to whether they will follow the same trajectory as their natural cat bond peers. While some analysts believe they have the potential to go mainstream, others cite concerns over modelling and lack of diversification.
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FeaturesIPE Quest Expectations Indicator - July 2024
Both US presidential candidates are slowly losing popularity, while staying very close in the polls. Trump seems to have more trouble than Biden getting through to the undecided. Trump’s legal troubles may yet hinder his candidacy, in particular among independents.
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FeaturesIPE Quest Expectations Indicator - August 2024
Joe Biden’s weakness was a lucky stroke for Donald Trump, who has shown similar symptoms for years. It remains to be seen what effect Kamala Harris has on the polls. Trump and his chosen VP are both proponents of weakening the USD.
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FeaturesT+1 settlement rules pose challenges for fund managers
A global move to compress settlement cycles – that is, the time between when a transaction is agreed and executed and when the transaction is completed and the securities and cash are exchanged – is underway. While the aim is to deliver lowered risk and cost savings, investors and market participants face challenges due to the increasingly interconnected nature of financial markets.
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FeaturesMarket predicts US soft landing - June 2024
A combination of Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell’s press conference and a slightly weaker-than-expected US April non-farm payrolls outcome succeeded in flipping the market back to a soft-landing narrative for the US economy. US Treasury bonds rallied sharply, taking other markets with them, while the yen weakened significantly against the dollar before recovering.
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InterviewsPGIM looks to grow private credit
Like other managers, PGIM has grown its private assets and alternative credit franchise as clients – both within the group and external – have broadened their allocations across the real assets and alternative credit universes.
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FeaturesWhy investors should focus on Scope 3 emissions
The investment industry is preoccupied with reducing Scope 1 and 2 emissions in portfolios to meet net-zero commitments. However, this focus will not provide a way to effectively manage climate transition and physical risk.
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FeaturesCorporate transition plans need to spell out net-zero dependencies
Corporate climate transition plans are gaining momentum globally. Essentially, these are reports about how a company plans to achieve emission reduction targets, but the idea is that the company will have engaged in strategic thinking and planning to produce such a plan, rather than just churn out more disclosures.
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FeaturesIPE Quest Expectations Indicator - June 2024
Trump and Biden are both losing to undecided voters, a group that is now unusually large and may be sensitive to Trump’s legal troubles. Biden’s approval rate is below his score in presidential polls, while Trump’s score is the same in presidential polls and those measuring voters’ opinion of him. In the UK, the Conservatives took another drubbing in the local elections.
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FeaturesUK creates social factors template for pension investors
Environmental and governance risks receive much attention, but UK and other European institutional investors have focused less on social factors and their complexities.
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FeaturesPrivate credit secondaries come of age
Since the secondaries market came into existence, private equity has been the dominant asset class, but the tide is turning. It is finally time for private equity’s more youthful counterpart, private credit, to receive more of our attention. The private credit secondaries market borrows various elements from its older sibling, including best practices and deal structures, and it is now demanding the spotlight as awareness of the asset class increases.
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FeaturesUS economy continues to surprise
The resilience of the US economy continues to confound observers. The Federal Reserve’s 11 hikes in interest rates over the course of 2022 and 2023 were implemented to rein in economic strength and to stifle inflation. Scroll forward to the second quarter of 2024 and both inflation and economic activity are still higher than expected.
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FeaturesModelling shows net-zero investing can be profitable
Since the acceptance of the Paris Agreement in 2015, which bound nations to a legal commitment to reduce global temperatures, there has been a clear shift towards net-zero investing. While socially responsible investments are crucial for the mitigation of climate change, recent calls to row back on ESG funds suggest some hesitation.
