“An excellent year for Active Management”
Dr Mathias Bauer, CEO of Raiffeisen Capital Management, talks about the exceptionally good performance of the year 2009 and the prospects for the fund management industry going forward.
How did the fund management sector fair in 2009?
Dr Mathias Bauer: Following the severe disruptions to the fund management industry in 2008, which were caused by its direct dependence on the performance of the capital markets, the picture changed entirely in 2009. We can look back on what was a historically positive year in terms of performance; the fund industry is again enjoying strong inflows right across Europe.
How did this positive change come about in such a short time?
Dr Mathias Bauer: Several factors came into play here: First, there was a strong correction following the excessive second-quarter losses on the equity markets. This performance effect provided a significant boost to the fund industry, where growth is directly linked to developments in the capital markets. Suppliers of products that held firm during the difficult months of the financial crisis – and most investment funds certainly belong in that category – emerged from the turbulence stronger than before. Retail and institutional investors worldwide are sitting on considerable volumes of cash and, given the expected continuation of low interest-rate levels, are now looking for high-return investment opportunities.
What would you say was the highlight of 2009?
Dr Mathias Bauer: The positive development in 2009 was not only due to the impetus assured by the market – the year also provided some excellent evidence of what our active management approach can achieve even during positive capital market phases. Our funds outperformed the market and our competitors in almost all the relevant asset classes. Our star performer has been Raiffeisen-EmergingMarkets-Equities (Raiffeisen-EmergingMarkets-Aktien), which outperformed its benchmark by nearly 20 %. This performance resulted in several awards being conferred on us over the past two years – even in the difficult months of the financial crisis.
What do you expect to see in 2010?
Dr Mathias Bauer: All in all, the fund industry has weathered the extremely testing storm of the financial crisis very well, and is now returning to its long-term course of growth. Because we were able to react quickly to the crisis, Raiffeisen Capital Management is in a better and stronger position today than it was just a few months ago. For 2010 – the year in which we celebrate our 25th anniversary – we expect to see a volume increase of around 10 %. Performance momentum cannot continue at the same rates of dynamism as we saw in 2009, because that was an exceptional year, but it should still be attractive.
And your tips for investors?
Dr Mathias Bauer: Diversification is and will continue to be the key to successful investing. Investors should therefore spread their assets as broadly as possible – whether in traditional savings vehicles or higher-return mutual funds – and not put all their eggs in one basket, even if the potential returns appear exceptionally tempting.
Long-term investors, in particular, should increase their exposure to equities. Investments in Emerging Market regions should prove to be particularly attractive, as these countries will most likely make the strongest recovery and will probably enjoy above-average economic growth. Even if their performance will be less dynamic – as 2009 was a historically exceptional year in terms of performance – we can continue to expect an attractive return from equities.
The prospectuses published for the fund described on this website in their currently amended versions, including all amendments since the initial publication, are available to interested parties under “Downloads”.