“Only when all stakeholders join forces in this critical endeavour will they be able to shape an even more attractive market place,” says the report commissioned by EFAMA, the representative association for the European investment management industry.
The financial crisis caused record-breaking declines in the financial assets of European
individual investors and aggravated long-standing issues in the areas of long-term savings and the distribution of retail investment products.
It calls for an investorcentric industry to be a prerequisite for the sustainable long-term success of the wider financial industry. The asset management industry cannot drive the necessary
change alone and success will depend on the help of European legislative bodies as well
as regulators.
The report made a number of recommendations.
Long-term saving
- Increase total European retirement savings by encouraging governments to introduce compulsory long-term saving schemes (with opt-out clauses), that are organised with employer and/or industry scheme support.
- To Increase the consumer-friendliness of long-term investments by introducing a personal retirement plan (referred to as “Officially Certified European Retirement Plan” (OCERP))that has consistent certification standards across Europe.
- Give all product providers equal access to suitable and efficient OCERPs in order to foster competition for the best investor solutions.
Retail investment product distribution
- Harmonise distribution standards for packaged retail investment products (PRIPs) across product categories.
- Improve quality and transparency of activities at the point of sale.
- Promote further confidence in Ucits as a trustworthy investment vehicle.
- Recommended industry actions to underpin improvements
- Promote financial literacy and competence of individual investors and financial advisers
- Set industry aspirations for better business conduct and performance.
The report is a distillation of opinions expressed to McKinsey & Company by 23 chief executives or equivalent individuals in leading European asset management firms, consultancies, pension funds, or investor associations from across Europe
