Products April 27, 2009

Mercer Introduces Global Asset Class Research Boutiques

Mercer announced the creation of global asset class research boutiques within its investment consulting business.
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The new boutiques will initially cover fixed income, equity, bond, real estate, and alternative assets, according to an announcement. The move will primarily serve larger funds whose complex strategies require a high level of detailed knowledge, but the added resource and depth of research will also benefit Mercer’s broader client base, Mercer said.

“With our large clients, the real competition is increasingly from specialist research firms who put all their resource into researching single asset classes,” said Andrew Kirton, global head of Mercer’s investment consulting business, in the announcement. “By creating our own specialist teams we are taking our global manager research to the next level and will be able to compete with specialist boutiques, as well as provide our larger clients with a more comprehensive service.”

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The new structure means a significant investment will be made in people and infrastructure, including plans to more than double staff numbers in the real estate and alternatives areas, Mercer said.

Data & Research April 27, 2009

Fund Investors Say Advisers Made Difference

The extent to which investors delegate investment decisions to their advisers seems to shape how much investors value the relationship, according to the Investment Company Institute (ICI).
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Generally, fund investors who chose to work with advisers indicated that the relationship improved their chances of growing their money and gave them peace of mind about their investments, according to ICI’s latest “Investment Company Fact Book.” (See “ICI Puts Stats to Downturn’s Impact on Retirement Assets.”) Respondents cited several tangible benefits of the investor/adviser relationship, expressing the common theme that using professional financial advisers provided a level of expertise that enhanced their investment decisionmaking.

Seventy-one percent of shareholders with ongoing advisory relationships cited the need for guidance in understanding their total financial picture, while 74% wanted help with asset allocation, ICI said. Seventy-three percent also required explanations of the wide variety of investment options, and 71% wanted to make sure they were saving enough to meet their financial goals. Sixty-five percent cited making sure their estate was in order as a major reason for their advisory relationship, according to ICI.

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ICI survey findings indicate that the more shareholders rely on their advisers for investment decisionmaking, the greater the value they place on the advisory relationship. For example, roughly three-quarters of shareholders who delegated or made investment decisions together with their advisers indicated that they used advisers for their financial expertise.

The The 2009 “Investment Company Fact Book” is available here.

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