52% of institutions have replaced a derivative product with an ETF (see 1 below). Efficiency, precise exposures, improved flexibility and low cost are all features that have contributed to ETFs assuming a more prominent role alongside traditional derivatives. 

The 2018 Guide to ETFs and Derivatives:

• …

This 279-page compendium of papers, published by CFA Institute Research Foundation, provides a detailed and fascinating look at the history of financial markets. Each section, which has been authored by prominent industry professionals, discusses a different facet of financial markets including risk and return over the long…

Factor investing is as old as the hills. Yet it has only recently become a widespread practice. What is behind this sudden change in the investment management industry? What do analysts at firms that engage in factor investing do? What results might investors using these techniques expect? Here is a hugely important read to…

Authored by Savvy Investor and sponsored by Robeco, this 24-page special report is designed as a go-to resource for anyone interested in factor investing, covering a host of different factor investing issues in a short timespan.

The report explains the academic underpinning to factor investing, and describes how a…

Collected interviews with high-profile factor investing experts, who bring an original contribution to the discussion. The concept of factor investing dates back to the 1970s, but it has only been gaining traction over the past few years. Factor-based allocation has its roots in the vast amount of empirical findings,…

Some veterans of the asset management distribution industry describe the current environment as the most competitive of their careers. Investors are demanding much more, and turnover rates have reached almost 20%, with many firms forced to further institutionalize and professionalize their teams. This latest report, "Talent…

Between the 1980s and the 2000s, the largest ever positive labour supply shock occurred, resulting from demographic trends and from the inclusion of China and eastern Europe into the World Trade Organization. This led to a shift in manufacturing to Asia, especially China; a stagnation in real wages; a collapse in the power…

New bfinance data reveals falling fees in several sectors, especially where providers have been under pressure from cheaper competitors or the investment landscape has evolved. Meanwhile, many asset managers have seized the opportunity to launch fashionable products at a premium to their conventional equivalents, with…

This 22 page report from Michael Page details average remuneration (salary plus bonus) for a range of front office banking and fund management positions, including compensation for asset managers, quants, investment strategists, equity analysts, multi-asset portfolio managers, debt and credit analysts, and those in research/…

As more investors seek new sources of returns less correlated with the downward swings of the equity and bond markets, liquid alternative strategies have emerged as one of the more viable, and popular, investment options. Investors and their financial advisors are conditioned to select managers based on the asset class they…

The fourth in a series from Citi GPS, this edition examines 10 more innovative technologies and new products which are disrupting their sectors. This edition covers:

1. Big Data Disruption - The Big Data Revolution in Energy
2. Contextual Commerce - What is Contextual Commerce?
3. Direct-to-Consumer…

Authored by Cliff Asness and others from AQR Capital, this paper examines the "myths" surrounding momentum investing, using results from a variety of academic studies. The paper aims to clarify the facts with regard to the efficacy of trend-following strategies and to document the practical value of momentum within the…

There is growing agreement that Blockchain technology, though overhyped, is here to stay. This excellent report from Robeco explains the distributed ledger technology, transaction flows and the eco-system. It then examines the ways in which it might transform the asset management industry in the future. 

In this paper, Professor Aswath Damodaran examines ways of estimating equity risk premiums (ERP). He begins by considering the economic determinants of ERP, including information uncertainty, perceptions of macroeconomic risk and risk aversion by investors. This is the 9th edition of this paper. It has been produced annually…

Formal meetings with investment consulting firms can be make-or-break moments for asset managers. Strengthening relationships with consultants and ultimately winning a prized spot on their selective shortlists hinges on a manager’s performance in face-to-face formal meetings.

Our recently released white paper, Best…

In this paper, Stacy Schaus and Ying Gao argue that the best strategy for creating a retirement income stream is for retirees to keep savings in their Defined Contribution plan. Doing so may include access to institutional investments, fiduciary oversight and attractive pricing. Such a strategy is also designed to keep up…

This excellent 120 page report from Patpatia & Associates provides a comprehensive guide to investment practices and policies within US and global insurance asset management. The document analyses the variations in strategy for different business lines, such as life & annuity business, property & casualty, and…

This thirty page report is based on a survey of over one hundred hedge funds. The report explores investment compliance, hedge fund product design and hedge fund marketing. It suggests that as fee and fund structures become increasingly customized, hedge funds will position themselves more and more as solution providers.

This paper demonstrates that for investment professionals and investors, true success lies beyond the industry's traditionally accepted norms, including not only the production of alpha, but more importantly, helping investors reach their long-term goals sustainably.

This influential paper is Mebane Faber's update to his 2006 version. It incorporates new data from the period 2008-2012. The paper investigates how well the original work has held up since publication. Faber finds that overall, the models achieve equity-like returns with bond-like volatility and drawdowns, which was his…