White papers and articles discussing issues related to investment consulting and actuarial consultants. The most recurrent theme amongst our top papers is the subject of delegated investment management services, with fiduciary management surveys and reports on investment outsourcing (OCIO) being frequently downloaded. Reports on the role of investment consultants in... manager selection have also proved popular, covering topics such as investment consultants' recommendations of fund managers, investment consultant alpha, and how to get on the approved list of managers for selection. Other top research in this section covers trends within the investment management industry, actuarial assumptions, and the role that investment consultants play in alternative investments. Further documents consider the risk tolerance of boards, institutional decision-makers, fee structures and risk premia.
The 2018 CFA Societies Financial Compensation Survey seeks to provide access to this vital information. This report is a compilation of the results from a survey on compensation practices in Madison and Milwaukee conducted earlier this year; 227 professionals completed the survey.
The best opportunity is rarely the most obvious one. For investors caught up in the day-to-day maelstrom of constant change, choosing the right path can be difficult. Compounding that challenge are large secular ‘supertanker’ trends, such as artificial intelligence (AI) and climate change. With both of these secular trends,…
This 42-page report provides a detailed look into the U.S. asset management industry. It focuses on a variety of issues, including: (i) regulation; (ii) public and private investment funds; (iii) the industry's risk exposures; (iv) current industry trends and policy issues, and more.
Over the past two decades, sustainability reporting frameworks have proliferated around the world, aiming to improve company transparency and comparability on environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices relevant to investors and, to a varying extent, other stakeholders. This report focuses on four of the most…
This report affirms that fiduciary duty requires the incorporation of environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues into investment analysis and decision-making processes. It's the final installment of the four-year Fiduciary Duty in the 21st Century programme at the UN Principles for Responsible Investment.
Wealth and asset management has seen a lot of good news and a little bad in recent years, reflecting the ups and downs of global markets. Overall, however, the leading firms have increased their profits, while the rest have fought over scraps. Today’s leading firms didn’t outperform their peers by cutting costs but by…
Why do some committees generate better investment outcomes than others; is it because they are just better investors, or are there group dynamics at work that can systematically rob a committee of its ability to make consistently strong decisions? Committees that lack diversity, fall prey to groupthink, or fail to adequately…
This report examines (in impressive detail) the asset management industry around the world. At 25 chapters, it covers select jurisdictions including Austrlia, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Lebanon, Norway, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Switzerland, the UAE, the UK, the US, and more.
The EFAMA Asset Management in Europe report aims at providing facts and figures to gain a better understanding of the role of the European asset management industry. It takes a different approach from that of the other EFAMA research reports, on two grounds. Firstly, this report does not focus exclusively on investment funds…
Investment consultants advise on how trillions of dollars are invested worldwide, but most consultants are failing to consider the role that environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues play in investment performance – despite growing evidence demonstrating the financial materiality of ESG issues to portfolio value.…
A key determinant of the latest rankings by Z-Ben Advisors was how China-specific business risks and probabilities were approached by global managers. That was understandably so, as the past year was clearly weighed down by the yoke of uncertainty on multiple fronts. For the vast majority, the choice made was either to defer…
This primer describes the most common fee and profit sharing arrangements associated with private market investments. It attempts to answer common questions when considering an investment across the range of private market asset classes, including private equity, private debt, infrastructure, real estate, and natural…
These FAQs address the possible UK position post-Brexit, i.e. after the conclusion of the exit process under Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty. The exit negotiations, and the position in respect of cross-border financial services, are still evolving and will depend upon the final relationship negotiated between the UK and the…
Any venture into the future is bound to be hazardous. Such an ambitious title - “The Future of Asset Management” - runs the risk of sounding arrogant: how can a 15-year old company write about what its industry will look like in the years to come? Yet we are making just such a venture this quarter at a point when the asset…
The 2019 Global Survey of Accounting Assumptions for Defined Benefit Plans is the 30th annual Willis Towers Watson survey of assumptions selected by major corporations for their defined benefit (DB) plans around the world. In broad terms, accounting standards aim to enable employers to approximate the cost of an employee’s…
The Society of Actuaries (SOA) is pleased to present historical U.S. population mortality rates by gender and single year of age for calendar years 2000-2017.
The asset and fund management industry has grown significantly in the last decade and its importance to the world financial system is increasingly recognized. The industry and regulators are coming under pressure from a range of “external” voices – demanding investors and consumer groups, clamoring political and economic…
Around £80 billion has already been transferred from UK DB schemes since the pension freedoms were introduced over four years ago. In the first of a three-part series by Hymans Robertson, this paper attempts to examine what the future holds for such schemes.
