Asset Allocation

Leading thematic manager, Capital Group, is confident that the market downturn of 2020 was short-lived and entirely related to the COVID-19 outbreak, according to vice-chairman and president, Rob Lovelace.   Expanding on this point, he says that the “the powerful upswing in equity prices since then is simply a continuation of the bull market we’ve…

2022 was a pivotal year for managed discretionary accounts (MDAs). Funds under management surpassed the magical $100 billion mark for the first time, as the uptake among financial advisers was boosted by Covid-19. According to the Institute of Managed Account Professionals (IMAP), estimates are for funds under management to cruise past the $200 billion mark…

The second half of 2021 has produced a mixed bag of results for global growth equity funds. A mass rotation away from China and high bond rates impacting valuations saw global growth funds skewed towards Asia and US tech, underperform. Those tilted towards the US more generally outperformed. Looking at the Hyperion Global Growth Fund,…

From being a ‘crypto critic’, Australia has quickly transformed itself to soon be a ‘crypto leader’ by proposing a framework for managing cryptocurrencies and crypto companies, in the biggest shakeup in the country’s payment systems in 25 years. Covid-19 showed us how quickly society digitised its payments systems with the onset of Afterpay and its…

Melbourne-based global equity manager, Bell Asset Management, best known for its small and mid-cap equity strategies, has a launched a new ‘sustainable’ equity strategy. The Bell Global Sustainable Fund will add to the firm’s growing suite of products and offer another option for diversification, as a number of leading equity managers continue to underperform. With…

As we enter a post-Covid world, interest rates remain at all-time lows with seemingly no immediate respite. To compound matters, the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has given “a very low probability” to the current surge in inflation triggering an early increase in official rates. Inflation has risen somewhat, but in underlying terms the rate…

A quiet announcement from one of Australia’s leading industry/union super funds at the beginning of December piqued my interest. The announcement came amid a busy week for investment announcements, with nearly every investor offering up an outlook statement. But this one was much more straightforward and delivered without any fanfare. It was the decision by…

The team at Evergreen Consultants has released cutting-edge research that reveals the direction markets will take with higher inflation. The 2021 issue of Evergreen Consultants’ Long-Term Expected Returns Framework has made ground-breaking projections that dispel inflationary concerns. Projections show the Australian and global equity markets outpacing most other asset classes in the decade ahead. Evergreen…

L1 Capital has taken out the prestigious ‘Alternative Investment Manager of the Year Award’ at the annual Australian Alternative Investment Awards for 2021. The award presentations were held in conjunction with the 20th anniversary Hedge Funds Rock charity dinner in Sydney last Friday night (December 10). They represented a welcome and lively return to normality…

And just like that, the year is almost over. As 2021 comes to an end, there’s a lot to celebrate, both good and bad. The pandemic is largely behind us, with multiple vaccines administered across the world, but at a great cost and a hefty debt bill. But there is light at the end of the…

Since their adoption, the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have been a mixed bag with a long list of lessons learned by United Nations member states and private market investors alike.  The 17 SDGs present an opportunity to invest in the sustainable future of people and the planet. The opportunities cover a wide array of…

The Responsible Investment Association of Australasia delivered an early Christmas present for ESG investors and trustees alike, confirming the long-debated question as to whether ‘green’ or ‘responsible’ super funds outperform. The answer was a resounding yes for those funds that are categorised as leaders according to the RIAA’s extensive survey and due diligence process. The…