Those well known investment experts, Simon and Garfunkel, way back in 1970 stressed the importance of keeping the customer satisfied. It’s a point that shouldn’t be lost on investment managers. I imagine most managers think they have a clear sense of what their customers want from them. Fact-finds, for example, may give them a good senseContinue reading “What do Fund Investors really want?”
Category Archives: Ethical
ESG funds in Ireland – What’s the Story?
Not all ESG funds are the same We all know that there has been a seemingly never-ending avalanche of investment funds that fall into the wide ESG, sustainable, impact, climate, renewable etc. bracket launched in recent years. It’s a broad church. There are so many variations on this theme in the market place. Some areContinue reading “ESG funds in Ireland – What’s the Story?”
Sustainability Faces Headwinds
Last week, European Fund Managers down-graded nearly €50 billion worth of investment funds on grounds of sustainability. In total, nearly 10% of the premium rated sustainable funds have moved their rating down a notch since early November. And these are not peripheral players. Among the fund management groups to make these moves have been Amundi,Continue reading “Sustainability Faces Headwinds”
Pension Funds and the Big Question
Three Facts This year, 830 million people will go hungry. We waste 40% of food globally. Pension Funds can help. After steadily declining for a decade, world hunger is on the rise, affecting nearly 10% of people globally. Of the 830 million going hungry, 50 million are facing absolute famine. This set-back is driven largelyContinue reading “Pension Funds and the Big Question”
The Global Food Crisis and Pension Funds
We are in a global food crisis. While food prices have eased somewhat from the highs of March April, they are still 43% higher than 2020 levels (as measured by the FAO index). Though the rise is widespread, grains have been to the fore in pushing higher. In lower income countries, where food makes upContinue reading “The Global Food Crisis and Pension Funds”
Irish Financial Services – can you trust them?
You can’t go the distanceWith too much resistance Trust in Irish Banks and other financial institutions is on the floor. And the disappointing thing is that in the last two years things don’t appear to have got any better. And trust matters. A 2021 survey across 28 countries and 59,000 customers revealed trust as theContinue reading “Irish Financial Services – can you trust them?”
What investors are buying now
Investors ran for cover in March, as financial markets swooned in the face of the oncoming pandemic, and in some areas we saw significant selling of investment funds. As markets bounced back in April and May, we saw a full reversal of those investor outflows. The ebb and flow of economic and public health data haveContinue reading “What investors are buying now”
What’s all this Diversity carry-on…..?
Prove it. That seems to be a mantra among those who struggle a bit with the seismic shift we are seeing today in the role of Environmental Social and Governance factors (ESG) in asset management. For issues such as climate change or global warming which may not be observable, up close and personal, inContinue reading “What’s all this Diversity carry-on…..?”
ESG: Stop! Look Listen
ESG investing (i.e. incorporating environmental, social and governance factors in investment decision making) seems to be everywhere. FTfm every week is guaranteed to have at least two pieces on it! Most asset managers will include an ESG option in their product range. Most investment conferences have an almost obligatory ESG session. There is largescale lobbyingContinue reading “ESG: Stop! Look Listen”
Tradewinds 