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In the ever-evolving world of finance, over-the-counter (OTC) derivatives are the hidden gems within portfolios of savvy managers, offering both complexity and opportunity. Initially developed to meet specific hedging needs, OTC derivatives have grown significantly in both volume and importance, now playing a crucial role in global finance. These instruments offer the unique ability to
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Process Based Attribution: Getting to the Heart of Value Add
INTRODUCTION Our previous papers in the asset owner series dealt with a variety of topics in the performance value chain. The first paper discussed valuation challenges posed by higher allocations to private markets, external asset management, and managing multiple books of record. Our second explored multiple return methodologies to provide meaningful performance returns. In the
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Change Management: Forgotten? Afterthought? Or Strategic Investment for Success?
INTRODUCTION The significance of change management cannot be overstated in today’s evolving business landscape. Do you genuinely value change management? How do you effectively drive change? What strategies do you employ to ensure success? Often, organizations miss the crucial opportunity to integrate change management at the optimal stage of their projects. When the tide of
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The Front-to-Back Operation Movement in Investment Process: Evolution and Integration
In recent years, the asset management industry has undergone a noteworthy evolution towards a “Front-to-Back” (F2B) movement. While this concept is not entirely new, it has historically been dominated by a single provider for over a decade. The primary driving force behind this evolution is the realization among Asset Managers that their legacy fee structures
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Navigating Consolidation and Technological Integration in Financial Services
In the ever-evolving landscape of financial services, the industry is increasingly adopting the approach of acquisitions and advanced technological integration. These trends, driven by a multitude of factors, have profound implications for the industry by altering the strategies and resources required for success in the market. Factors to Consider During Consolidation in Financial Services MARKET
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Unlocking GIPS® Compliance Benefits for Asset Owners
Introduction For asset owners, the investment performance function effectively serves the Chief Investment Officer (CIO) and Risk, both of whom have a vested interest in overseeing and optimizing the fund’s total performance and maintaining a cross-asset class view. The lack of access to complete and reliable data from asset class silos can hinder cross-firm evaluations
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Balancing Art and Science: Returns & Benchmarking Processing for Asset Owners
In the first paper of our asset owner series, we explored the unique business drivers, valuation methodologies, and considerations for private market and external manager processing. Now, in our second installment, we shift our focus to returns and benchmarks.
Asset owners often invest across a diverse mix of private and public market asset classes. But should the same return methodology be applied to both the asset class and the total fund level? Are there acceptable deviations?
Sophisticated benchmarking capabilities are essential for accurately consolidating returns at the total fund level. The complexities of substitution and benchmark specific overrides present challenges driven by various underlying factors. What are these factors, and how can best practices help overcome these challenges? Read on to discover our perspectives and practical solutions
Cash Drag or Collateral-Derived Alpha: The Choice Is Yours
Generating alpha is hard enough, so why let cash drag stifle returns? With derivative-laden portfolios in a high-interest rate environment, collateral presents opportunity to improve returns. The decade-long period of low-interest rates created detrimental habits with a default cash collateral model. Asset owners face challenges in diversifying collateral beyond cash due to existing infrastructure that
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Charting the Course: Enhancing Performance Through Effective Private Market and External Manager Practices
Asset Owners¹ play a pivotal role in the institutional side of the investment landscape, utilizing capital markets to fulfill the long-term needs of beneficiaries. Their objectives are intricately tied to liquidity requirements and investment horizons, overseen by stakeholders such as Boards, Trustees, and Investment Committees. Given the diverse asset classes involved, a blend of internal
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Data Mesh – Investment Industry Trend or Unicorn?
Recently, we attended a financial data industry event and listened to one company after another share their experiences in their data governance and management journey. That day, we learned that only a few had moved forward with a data mesh save for leaders in the industry. Those leaders shared their implementation stories, and we will share this question with you. What came to our minds at the time was whether Data Mesh was a unicorn in the investment industry. Is the self-service data platform a myth or a reality? With that question in mind, we spoke to several firms at the gathering and interviewed others afterward to learn about the data mesh ‘state of the union’ in the investment industry.
by Andrew Jacob, CFA
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