BNP Paribas Securities Services would like to comment on your article (I&T News, December 6) regarding our appointment as custodian to the Insurance Commission of Western Australia (ICWA).
We are delighted to have been appointed as ICWA’s custodian following a competitive tender process. However, we would like to point out a number of inaccuracies in your article: • ICWA has confirmed to us that its decision to appoint BNP Paribas Securities Services as custodian was not based on price, but on a determination that the high level of service and technology supporting our custody service was superior to that of our competition; • While we are committed to providing clients with value-for-money, we are not aggressively pricing business – our deal pricing is governed by global guidelines to ensure that certain profitability hurdles are met on all business written; • NSW Treasury Corporation has confirmed to us that it is not intending to review its custodial arrangements next year; and • Consistent with our strong growth, we have indeed increased staff numbers over the past year, however, such hiring has not been aggressive. We are receiving a huge number of unsolicited resumes from our competitors and other industry participants – feedback we receive in the market is that people want to be part of a successful and growing organisation. Gail Burke Managing director and head of Australasia BNP Paribas Securities Services
A managed investment scheme holding 20 per cent or more in unlisted assets is deemed an illiquid scheme and is restricted from providing frequent liquidity, but there is no formal limit on how much super funds can allocate to these asset classes. The Conexus Institute writes this is a special privilege given to APRA-regulated super funds that should not be taken for granted.
David Bell and Geoff WarrenFebruary 6, 2025