The UK’s trade body for asset managers, The Investment Association (IA), has told the industry that it has a life beyond Brexit.
In a note issued yesterday, Jorge Morley-Smith, the IA’s business support and promotion director, says the industry will remain globally relevant, with millions of savers across the world and 40% of its business already coming from overseas.
Brexit could be the “biggest single change that our industry has ever faced”, he wrote, but he listed reasons why the exit from the EU should not halt the industry’s progress internationally.
Among these is the fact that the UK is a bigger centre for asset management than Europe’s next three biggest centres – Germany, France and Italy – combined, he wrote.
And he pointed out work with government continued to support international growth of the sector. This included the UK and China last year committing to “exploring mutual recognition” of UK and Chinese funds, and the possibility of new market access through a London-China stock connect mechanism.
There are also planned discussions with other countries and regions that are key to the future growth of the UK asset management overseas, such as India and Latin America, as well as more established markets such as the US and Australia, Morley wrote.
He described international trade as being “woven into the fabric of the nation” and said “our industry has a key role to play” in future trade deals.
“Brexit is obviously on the tip of everyone’s tongue at the moment and is the biggest challenge and opportunity ahead for all industries, but the UK’s asset management industry is a global powerhouse and Brexit should not distract us from this.”
Last week, Funds Europe reported a call from within the French asset management industry for Britain to lose its financial services passport.
The French regulator recently began trying to attract UK fund firms to base themselves in Paris, though said this was not related to the Brexit vote.
©2016 funds europe
