Geopolitics on center stage at this year's IMpower FundForum but ESG well integrated in targeted sessions.
Photo credit: ESG.Guide
Simon Weiler, e-fundresearch.com; Thomas Romig, Assenagon; Anja Hochberg, ZKB; Gerhard Beulig, Erste Asset Management, Mikael Safrana, Capital Y (from left)
What I saw and heard at this year’s IMpower FundForum confirmed that the asset management industry is entering a new phase where technology, geopolitics, and generational change are all converging to redefine strategy and relationships.
„Come on, AI is a 2-year-old baby. What can you expect? The baby will learn, and we will all learn with it - independent from our current age.”
The remark, shared by a veteran fund selector with over 25 years of industry
experience at this year’s IMpower FundForum, captured the spirit of a conference that felt like a bridge between past experience and future transformation.
Geopolitics and global trends in the asset management industry are traditionally important topics at this conference. This year, the geopolitical discussion centered
around the challenges for asset owners and asset managers in navigating periods of crisis.
Private banks, asset managers and distributors also explored lessons from the
rapid growth of neobanks (such as Revolut and Nubank) and neobrokers (like Scalable Capital and Trade Republic), debating how best to compete or collaborate with them. ETFs, private markets and infrastructure solutions were widely discussed across mutiple sessions.
A Broadridge survey highlighted that the quality of the fund management team remains the most important selection criteria for fund selectors ahead of pricing, reporting, and transparency. Investment strategy, support and relationship as well as risk management, followed behind.
Fund selector’s panels gave valuable insight into the evolving role of those
managing multi-manager portfolios, unit-linked insurance products, retail
platforms and financial advisor’s recommendation lists. The fund selection
profession is continuously evolving and adapting to changing environments and is embracing new technologies, such as digital platforms
including AI tools.
On the question of AI, the consensus was clear: AI will not replace the fund
selector, but the fund selector using AI will replace the one who doesn’t!
ESG, sustainability and impact investing were not as prominent this year but
remained present through targeted sessions. According to the Morgan
Stanley Sustainability Institute's Sustainable Signals 2025 report, interest in
sustainable investing remains strong, particularly among Gen Z (99%) and
Millennials (97%), contributing to an overall 88% interest rate among global
retail investors.
BNP Paribas presented their 2025 ESG survey of 420 asset owners, asset managers and private
capital firms, revealing that ESG commitment remains high, though less vocal.
87 % of respondents reported unchanged sustainability objectives, and 84 %
expect the pace of progress to continue or even accelerate through 2030.
Private banks based in Monaco and Switzerland discussed the new challenges and
necessary adjustments of strategies in complex times. The global wealth
transfer, compliance with multiple regulators and new technologies highlighted
both pressure and opportunities.
The topic of managing relationships with external managers is a regular theme at
FundForum conferences and valuable insights were presented. Today, larger
wealth management groups emphasized the need for asset managers to come forward with new ideas, solutions and show proactive engagement.
Long-term savings and funded retirement solutions represent one of the most important pillars for the asset management and service provider segment. New initiatives in Europe under the leadership of ALFI - Association of the Luxembourg Fund Industry and academic partners are preparing proposals for the European Commission.
The medium-term vision is a European pension fund landscape that provides the
EU and European citizens with options to move pensions across jurisdictions and
support the mobility of the European workforce to support growth. It is widely
recognized that the clock is ticking and demographic developments demand urgent
action from policy makers and politicians in Brussels and in member
states.
While AI is often seen as the game-changer and threat in many parts of the economy one gets the impression that the asset management industry is preparing for a wide-ranging adoption which can unlock substantial efficiencies and give
veterans of the industry as well as new entrants an opportunity.
In summary, the FundForum event has evolved significantly. This year’s agenda
represented a balance across many topics and fields. Without a single dominated
theme, though geopolitics represented the most challenging area
for asset managers who have to deal with less solid data and
volatile developments that require sophisticated scenario-planning and risk
management.