Opinion

The shift in focus from financial advisers to research consultants continues apace, both here and abroad, as asset managers follow the great money management migration.

In the Dixon’s inquiry vertical integration will not only be writ large, but it will have thousands of victims’ names attached to it. The practice has run relatively unfettered for years, but that may be about to change.

Australia’s sovereign wealth fund’s prediction of a tough year for investors didn’t come to pass, but they’re not the only well-resourced manager that missed the mark. For investors, this period is a reminder that investment patterns may exist, but markets certainly aren’t beholden to them.

The environment we’re heading into is one where economies will have more redundancies built into them so they can withstand exogenous geopolitical shocks, according to Ausbil.

Knowing how much personality to inject into a professional advice veneer is a skill that needs to be learnt by all advisers, but practices also have a role to play in setting up the right systems, processes and cultural settings so that advisers are comfortable being their true self.

For those who have recommended the Royal London’s Core Fund, especially, the incongruous management switch means they have to explain to clients why it will probably take on a completely different investment style.

The benefits of alternative investments are clear, but rapid growth in the product set has made the optimal use of alternatives in portfolios unclear. As markets reach all-time highs, it may be time to re-think how we treat the asset class.

There’s no crisis yet, but private wealth CIOs and asset consultants are keeping a close eye on markets after their sudden August selloff. Their advice: stay nimble, stay unconstrained, and look out for “the unbelievable opportunity to invest in a dislocation”.

A panel of investment managers and advisers from The Inside Network’s Investment Leaders Forum painted a relatively positive macroeconomic picture. While market risks remain, the ‘higher for longer’ rate mantra seems less convincing than it once did.

From gloomy retail clients to fretful global institutional providers, investment experts report a glaring disconnect between the risk appetite of investors and the overall economic outlook.

Despite latent geopolitical threats and a persistently hobbled commercial real estate sector, the market presents a fundamentally strong and stable picture according to the Melbourne-based investment consultants.

“Look at a country, a conflict, a region – whatever,” former US general and CIA director David Petraeus said. “And then ask whether it has anything to do with the global economy.”