The Asset Manager Arms Race Has Only Just Begun It was a banner year for mergers in money management as the continuing fee war squeezes margins. Don’t expect it to slow down in 2021.
Brian Chappatta | Dec 16, 2020
(Bloomberg Opinion) For years, the asset-management industry has braced itself for shocks. In 2018, $369 billion poured out of long-term mutual funds in favor of exchange-traded funds, a record at the time. In 2019, the case for traditional actively managed mutual funds became even harder to make when Charles Schwab Corp. jump-started a race to the bottom among online brokerages by eliminating commissions for ETFs along with U.S. stocks and options.
Dotcom deja vu?
The recent launches have been largely focused on climate and energy transition.
The L&G Clean Energy Ucits is designed to invest in companies that are at the forefront of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 7; whereas the JP Morgan Carbon Transition Global Equity Ucits ETF will track the proprietary JP Morgan Asset Management Carbon Transition Global Equity Index.
Meanwhile, Robeco has launched two fixed income strategies focused on climate – the Luxembourg-domiciled RobecoSAM Climate Global Credits and RobecoSAM Climate Global Bonds.
Earlier in the year, there were Paris Agreement-aligned ETF launches from Amundi and Lyxor.
Anyone who remembers the proliferation of technology funds launched during the height of the 1990s technology boom may be looking at these launches with some trepidation, remembering the slew of dotcom launches that characterised the last bubble.
Morgan Stanley Investment Management launches ESG fixed income fund
Submitted
By Hugh Leask | 14/12/2020 - 12:35pm
Morgan Stanley Investment Management is rolling out a new ESG-focused fixed income fund, which aims to tap into sustainability themes by trading a range of ‘best ideas’ credit opportunities across the capital structure in developed and emerging markets.
The Morgan Stanley UK Sustainable Fixed Income Opportunities Fund will target risk-adjusted absolute returns using a sustainability-based top-down selection process. The portfolio will comprise an assortment of investment grade, high yield, emerging market, convertible, securitised and government bonds.
Specifically, the investment process aims to curb exposures to ESG (environmental, social, governance) risk and negative sustainability impacts by screening out controversial sectors such as weapons, tobacco, and certain fossil fuels, as well as international norms violations.
Aberdeen Standard, JPMAM and MSIM unveil sustainable strategies as ESG deluge continues
Trio of asset managers add to the $1.25trn sustainable funds universe
Three large asset managers have brought sustainable products to market, including two emerging markets equity and one fixed income strategy, as the deluge of ESG funds continues.
Aberdeen Standard Investments and JP Morgan Asset Management unveiled sustainable emerging market equity funds on Monday, while Morgan Stanley Investment Management has launched a UK sustainable fixed income strategy.
According to Morningstar data, the total number of funds in the European sustainable fund universe stands at 2,898 and 3,774 on a global basis, as of end of September. Overall, global assets in these strategies hit $1.25trn in Q3 this year.
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