the past 12 months on
rising global equity markets,
at the same time that
retail investors have been
pushed towards investment
funds now that banks are
paying almost nothing for
funds on deposit.
What is more, notes
Katrina Hart, an analyst
at Canaccord Adams who
covers the listed UK asset
managers, there is “a lot
of demand for global strategies,
particularly global
equities and emerging
market strategies” as investors
in the UK, Europe and
the US seek greater exposure
to such emerging markets
as China and India.
For most retail investors,
investment funds are
the only practical way
such exposure may easily
be accessed, whether it’s
through an open or closedended
fund, or an ETF.
Also, these companies
are pretty well diversified
by asset classes and strategies,
so it is not like they
have got all their eggs in
one basket,” adds Hart.
l Funds not firms
Oriel Securities analyst
Keith Baird is among those
who believe that what
consolidation the industry
will see over the next few
years will be mostly that of
funds, rather than the companies
that own them.
“There are deals around
– BlackRock acquired BGI,
Henderson acquired New
Star – but I would not see
them as part of a wholesale
trend towards consolidation,”
he says.
For one thing, he says,
the business of integrating
fund management
groups is “famously tricky”.
Instead, Baird says he
looks for consolidation
occurring mainly at the
fund level, along the lines
of Aberdeen’s recent purchase
of funds from Royal
Bank of Scotland’s asset
management operation.
Deals such as sales by
private equity groups, as
with the recent Gartmore
IPO – where banks and
insurers seek to sell off
non-core investment fund
operations to fund specialists
– are seen as an area
For top performing Global Equity funds,
all roads lead to M&G.
Since tenure
quartile ranking
M&G Global Basics Fund 1
Top decile
M&G Global Dividend Fund 1
Top decile
M&G Global Emerging 1
Markets Fund Top decile
M&G Global Growth Fund 1
Top decile
M&G Global Leaders Fund 1
VIEWPOINT ASSET MANAGER CONSOLIDATION
of continued activity by
Baird and others.
Mungall, meanwhile,
notes that while it is important
not to invest in funds
whose managers are constantly
being distracted
by organisational issues,
investors must avoid wasting
too much time trying
to fathom what is going on
in the boardrooms of the
companies whose funds
they hold.
“You are better off
acknowledging that the
risk [that the situation
could change] does exist,
and manage that risk by
having, for example, several
funds in one portfolio,
or several managers – or a
multi-manager – running
those funds.”
“
There are deals
around – BlackRock
acquired BGI,
Henderson
acquired New Star
– but I would not
see them as part
of a wholesale
trend towards
consolidation
”
Keith Baird, analyst, Oriel
Securities
Many investors now believe the future lies in global
equities. But for M&G investors the future is already
here. Already offering a choice of top-performing funds,
each with a distinctive investment strategy. Already
delivering the sort of results that some other funds can
only aim for. Making M&G, already one of Europe’s largest
asset management companies and the UK’s No. 1 choice
for investments.
Focused expertise. Global reach.
Find out more call 0800 328 3191 or
visit www.mandg.co.uk/ifa
For Financial Advisers only. Not for onward distribution. No other persons should rely on any information contained within this advertisement. Source of performance: Morningstar,
Inc. as at 31.12.09, bid to bid with net income reinvested, Sterling Class A Shares, IMA Global Growth sector except for M&G Global Emerging Markets which is in the IMA Global
Emerging Markets sector. Graham French has managed the M&G Global Basics Fund since 17.11.00. Stuart Rhodes has managed the M&G Global Dividend Fund since 18.07.08. Michael Godfrey
and Matthew Vaight have managed the M&G Global Emerging Markets Fund since 06.02.09. Greg Aldridge has managed the M&G Global Growth Fund since 30.04.07. Aled Smith has managed
the M&G Global Leaders Fund since 30.09.02. Source of the UK’s No. 1 choice for investments: Lipper FMI, based on net sales in the UK as at end of September 2009. This Financial Promotion is
issued by M&G Securities Limited which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority and provides investment products. The registered office is Laurence Pountney Hill, London
EC4R 0HH. Registered in England No. 90776. FEB 10 / 28354
To view a Ceros magazine you need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser and have the flash player 8 or higher installed. To install the latest flash player, click the icon above, install the flash plugin and then click here to refresh this page.