Happy 4th of July, and other things!
It’s a big week – as the USA heads off for a weekend of celebrations and BBQs, the UK will head to the polls, and France heads for the big unknown. What this will mean for markets is yet to be determined and volatility may be our summer friend and may give investors some time to reflect on their portfolios.
As displayed in our last newsletter, Mont-Fort’s client base of investment managers and GPs is 46% US and 25% UK, so at least 71% of our clients are either having fun or voting this weekend. We wish you all the best!
Private Wealth – the holy grail for distribution in 2024?
The Asset Management Association in Switzerland recently published their Swiss Asset Management Study for 2024. The study showed a return to growth for Swiss-based asset managers taking year-end AUM to CHF 3.1 trillion. One third of assets are managed for investors outside of Switzerland, which leaves a comfortable CHF 2 trillion managed for Swiss-based investors. The opportunity set for raising assets from the Swiss-based wealth management channel remains buoyant.
As confirmed by a recent Morgan Stanley study, estimating the global individual wealth market at approx. USD 70 trillion, and growing, this market is attractive for private markets funds as interest is high. Allocations, however, still remain low at less than 10%, highlighting the immense opportunity that exists here. The same study confirms that this investor segment’s main interest is yield, allowing for a lighter distribution process in comparison with institutional investors who tend to have a stronger technical focus on credit risk profiles. Structures such as evergreen funds will also be preferred, allowing for increased transparency on product offerings, and greater adaptability to investors that are often less familiar with drawdown structures and their inherent complexities.
Continued launches of products destined to the private wealth market confirm the level of interest, and there is still immense opportunity and potential. In depth understanding is needed for each market as cultural, regulatory and language barriers exist. Solutions can be provided for overcoming these, often by working with external providers. Let us know if we can be of help to make relevant introductions.
Mont-Fort Funds Update
In early July Mont-Fort Funds AG underwent a change in ownership, with Banque Cantonale de Genève (BCGE) in Switzerland acquiring 100% of the company’s share capital. Mont-Fort will become a subsidiary of BCGE whilst remaining independent from the bank. There are no operational changes foreseen. The existing management team remains in place and looks forward to serving clients in the usual efficient manner. The new institutional shareholder will enable the company to accelerate its development by providing additional services and streamlining paying agent services for Mont-Fort clients.
Please contact us for any questions you may have regarding this transaction.
Delegated distribution – In the EU as well as Switzerland
Mont-Fort assists its fund management clients in accessing Swiss and EU investors whilst ensuring regulatory compliance. In Switzerland, delegation of the initial outreach to prospective investors can be done by Mont-Fort, allowing you to not take on the client advisor register requirements whilst remaining fully complaint with Swiss rules when reaching out to opting-out professional investors. For more information please reach out to us here.
Within the European Union, Mont-Fort offers a regulatory solution for distribution through a Joint Venture with a MIFID-licensed entity in Luxembourg. This delegation model enables fundraising teams outside the EU to market their AIFs to EU clients in a MIFID-compliant manner. Over EUR 2.5 billion has been raised in the last 24 months using this setup. For more information please reach out to us here.
A deep-dive into the challenges and solutions of distribution in the EU in the latest edition of Insight/Out – click here for the full article. FinDeal analyses how non-EU sales teams can operate with the necessary regulatory coverage all the while maintaining their precious investor relationships.
