Nordea and Robeco have risen to rank among the top ten most favoured brands for fund selectors in Europe, research shows.
The two firms stormed into the top ten ‘Fund Brand 50’ list, while Franklin Templeton and Carmignac Gestion fell out of it.
Pictet Asset Management, meanwhile, jumped six places within the top ten.
But the top three brands – BlackRock, JP Morgan and Fidelity – maintained their leads, with BlackRock extending its number one position over its main rivals.
The full ‘Fund Brand 50’ list from Fund Buyer Focus is:
Group name Change
BlackRock –
JP Morgan AM –
Fidelity –
Pictet +6
Schroders +1
Invesco +1
Deutsche AM +1
Nordea +14
M&G –4
Robeco +4
Nordea’s brand success was linked mostly to its appealing investment strategy – one of the ten criteria that about 1,000 fund selectors were asked about, along with client focus and innovation.
Nordea’s Stable Return fund was cited, but fund selectors also displayed a strong recognition that the group’s investment approach transcended just this fund, said Diana Mackay, joint-CEO of MackayWilliams, which owns Fund Buyer Focus.
She also said that fund buyers had provided asset managers with some clear signals on the types of companies and brands they wanted to work with.
“More than ever before, asset managers need to establish enduring differentiation through the emotional appeal of their brands. Delivery of product at the right price is no longer enough,” Mackay said.
Innovation and client focus were the drivers behind the rising groups, displacing managers without replacements for fading blockbuster products.
Also, investor appetite for thematics and socially responsible investments featured heavily among selectors.
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