For institutional investors, superannuation funds and fund-of-funds managers alike, it takes a lot of courage and trust to have lived through the 2008 dislocation and still have to allocate money. The key, according to Chicagobased Roxanne Martino, president and chief executive of Harris Alternatives which has $US10.1 billion in funds under management,12 per cent of which is from Australian investors, is to look at each funds manager individually and assess whether they stayed true to their strategy.
Opportunities abound for the stable and the strong
For institutional investors, superannuation funds and fund-of-funds managers alike, it takes a lot of courage and trust to have lived through the 2008 dislocation and still have to allocate money. The key, according to Chicagobased Roxanne Martino, president and chief executive of Harris Alternatives which has $US10.1 billion in funds under management,12 per cent of which is from Australian investors, is to look at each funds manager individually and assess whether they stayed true to their strategy.
Tail wags the dog – modelling tail risk in alternatives
When it comes to modelling the potential risks and returns of alternatives, trustees continue to rely on mean-variance approaches (such as expected average returns and annual return volatility), but acknowledge it is not the best solution as correlations are non-stationary (that is, can vary over time), and illiquidity and leverage create tail risk. In … Read more
Tail wags the dog – modelling tail risk in alternatives
When it comes to modelling the potential risks and returns of alternatives, trustees continue to rely on mean-variance approaches (such as expected average returns and annual return volatility), but acknowledge it is not the best solution as correlations are non-stationary (that is, can vary over time), and illiquidity and leverage create tail risk. In … Read more
The time is right for managed volatility strategies
There are not many strategies that have gone unscathed by the global financial crisis, indeed few people, places or things have gone unchallenged by this crisis and its effects. But one strategy that pre-dates the global financial crisis has proved its robustness by surviving, so far. Minimum variance (or managed volatility) strategies target volatility … Read more
The time is right for managed volatility strategies
There are not many strategies that have gone unscathed by the global financial crisis, indeed few people, places or things have gone unchallenged by this crisis and its effects. But one strategy that pre-dates the global financial crisis has proved its robustness by surviving, so far. Minimum variance (or managed volatility) strategies target volatility … Read more
Fundie IT budgets slashed, but not burned
Investit, a specialist administrative consultant to funds managers, has completed a survey on the IT budgets of 29global firms with $3.25 trillion under management and a combined IT spend in 2008 of $1.53 billion, and found that the smartest firms are doing more with the same or less. The head of Investit’s Australian office, Doug Neill, said the consultancy’s latest ‘IT Value Survey’ was conducted in late 2008 and focussed on the effects of the financial crisis. “Inevitably, as markets have contracted, budgets have come under pressure. However for IT, that’s not the full story,” Neill says.
Fundie IT budgets slashed, but not burned
Investit, a specialist administrative consultant to funds managers, has completed a survey on the IT budgets of 29global firms with $3.25 trillion under management and a combined IT spend in 2008 of $1.53 billion, and found that the smartest firms are doing more with the same or less. The head of Investit’s Australian office, Doug Neill, said the consultancy’s latest ‘IT Value Survey’ was conducted in late 2008 and focussed on the effects of the financial crisis. “Inevitably, as markets have contracted, budgets have come under pressure. However for IT, that’s not the full story,” Neill says.
As all else collapses, custodians come to the fore
While being far from immune from the financial crisis, asset servicing firms, such as custodians, have tended to fare better than many other financial institutions as the impact of the credit crunch permeated through the rest of the economy over the past 12 months. Custodians, in particular, which moved up the food chain in recent years to diversify their services in cash and foreign exchange management, have seen some business lines at record levels.
As all else collapses, custodians come to the fore
While being far from immune from the financial crisis, asset servicing firms, such as custodians, have tended to fare better than many other financial institutions as the impact of the credit crunch permeated through the rest of the economy over the past 12 months. Custodians, in particular, which moved up the food chain in recent years to diversify their services in cash and foreign exchange management, have seen some business lines at record levels.
Seizing the DAA: funds eye dynamic tilting
Jim Franks, director of investment consulting in Australia with Russell Investments, describes the market that his clients are confronting as “foreign in anyone’s experience”. Looking ahead, it “will be substantively different from what we’ve experienced in the last generation”. Funds have incurred losses in almost all asset classes, and the rigidity of long-term portfolio settings, which now demand rebalancing back into diminished equities portfolios, has made dynamic asset allocation (DAA) a subject of debate among investment committees in Australia.
Seizing the DAA: funds eye dynamic tilting
Jim Franks, director of investment consulting in Australia with Russell Investments, describes the market that his clients are confronting as “foreign in anyone’s experience”. Looking ahead, it “will be substantively different from what we’ve experienced in the last generation”. Funds have incurred losses in almost all asset classes, and the rigidity of long-term portfolio settings, which now demand rebalancing back into diminished equities portfolios, has made dynamic asset allocation (DAA) a subject of debate among investment committees in Australia.
