To comply with changing international privacy requirements, ICI informs its visitors that we use cookies on our web site. ICI only uses cookies to allow subscribers and members to more easily use our site and to record site utilization. No personal or private information is gathered or stored. More details, including how to disable cookies, can be found on our privacy and cookie policy page. If you disable cookies, you will see this message on future visits to our site. Please click the enable button to consent to accepting cookies.
  • ICI Global
  • Independent Director's Council
Sign In  |  Forgot Password?
Advanced | Tips
  • Home
  • Policy Priorities
    • Fund Regulation
    • Retirement Security
    • Trading & Markets
    • Fund Governance
    • Taxes
    • ICI Comment Letters
  • Research & Statistics
    • Industry Research
    • Investor Research
    • Retirement Research
    • Statistics
  • Government Affairs
    • Financial Services
    • Retirement Security
    • Tax
    • Testimony
  • Industry Operations
    • Fund Accounting, Financial Reporting, and Valuation
    • Fund Distribution, Fund Clearance, and Settlement
    • Operations, Transfer Agent Servicing, and Recordkeeping
    • Portfolio Security Operations
    • Resource Centers
    • Technology, Business Continuity, and Information Security
  • News & Media
    • Media Contacts
    • News Releases
    • Blog: ICI Viewpoints
    • Speeches & Commentaries
    • Opinions & Responses
    • Videos
    • Podcasts
  • Publications & Resources
    • Resource Centers
    • Frequently Asked Questions
    • Fact Books
    • Research Publications
    • White Papers
    • Annual Reports
  • Events
    • ICI Events
    • ICI Global Events
    • IDC Events
    • Past Event Highlights
    • Sponsorship Opportunities
    • Event Contacts
  • About ICI
    • Mission & History
    • Board & Leadership
    • Membership
    • Annual Reports
    • ICI Education Foundation
    • Business Continuity
    • Careers
    • Contact Us

TOPICS

401(k)
Bond Fund
Bonds
COVID-19
Commodity Investments
Corporate Bonds
Cybersecurity
Equity Fund
Equity Investing
Europe
Events
Exchange-Traded Funds
Federal Reserve
Financial Markets
Financial Stability
Fixed Income
Fund Governance
Fund Regulation
GMM
Global
Government Affairs
ICI Global
IDC
IRA
Index Fund
Interest Rate
International
Investment Education
Investor Research
Money Market Funds
Mutual Fund
Operations and Technology
Policy Research
Proxy Voting
Retirement Policy
Retirement Research
Savings
Shareholder
Target Date Funds
Taxes
Trading
Treasury

ARCHIVE

  • 2021
    • February
    • January
  • 2020
    • December
    • October
    • September
    • August
    • July
    • June
    • May
    • April
    • March
    • February
    • January
  • 2019
    • December
    • November
    • October
    • September
    • August
    • July
    • June
    • May
    • April
    • February
    • January
  • 2018
    • December
    • November
    • October
    • September
    • August
    • June
    • May
    • March
    • February
    • January
  • 2017
    • December
    • November
    • October
    • September
    • August
    • July
    • June
    • May
    • April
    • March
    • February
    • January
  • 2016
    • December
    • October
    • September
    • August
    • July
    • June
    • May
    • April
    • March
    • February
    • January
  • 2015
    • December
    • November
    • October
    • September
    • August
    • July
    • June
    • May
    • April
    • March
    • February
    • January
  • 2014
    • December
    • October
    • September
    • August
    • July
    • June
    • May
    • April
    • March
    • February
    • January
  • 2013
    • December
    • October
    • September
    • August
    • July
    • June
    • May
    • April
    • March
    • February
    • January
  • 2012
    • December
    • November
    • October
    • September
    • August
    • July
    • June
    • May
    • April
    • March
    • February
    • January
  • 2011
    • December
    • November
    • October
    • September
    • August
    • July
    • June
    • May
    • April
    • March
    • February
    • January
  • 2010
    • December
    • November

Home Viewpoints

Untitled Document

SUBSCRIBE

Receive an email notification every time a new ICI Viewpoints is posted.

2020 Annual Report to Members: Roundtable: The Fund Industry’s Response to COVID-19

By Patrice Bergé-Vincent, Marty Burns, and Susan Olson

January 19, 2021

For the 2020 Annual Report to Members, three members of ICI’s leadership sat down to share their thoughts on how the Institute and the fund industry have navigated the COVID-19 crisis.

Below is an abridged version of their discussion. To read the full roundtable, please see ICI’s 2020 Annual Report to Members.

Patrice Berge-Vincent Marty Burns Susan Olson
Patrice Bergé-Vincent
Managing Director
ICI Global
Marty Burns
Chief Industry Operations Officer
ICI
Susan Olson
General Counsel
ICI

COVID-19 has ushered in a new everyday reality for the fund industry. Take us back to those hectic weeks in March. How did ICI engage with policymakers to support members and their shareholders during this uniquely challenging time?

Olson: Those early weeks were unlike anything we had ever been through—and they certainly came at us fast. But our approach didn’t stray too far from how we’ve handled other challenging situations.

By that I mean, huddling with members to discuss what they were seeing in the markets—what funds and their shareholders were experiencing—and then meeting with policymakers to share that on-the-ground perspective.

This approach guided our engagement with senior officials at Treasury and the Federal Reserve Board, which helped inform their efforts to calm the markets. Same for our discussions with the SEC [Securities and Exchange Commission] and staff, which helped us secure relief to give funds another tool to manage their liquidity, just in case they needed it.

Bergé-Vincent: Here in Europe, we were engaged with policymakers in a wide range of areas. But none more important, I think, than our work to keep financial markets from closing in response to the volatility triggered by the pandemic and the shutdowns of economies.

As the crisis ramped up, we stood shoulder-to-shoulder with other market participants against calls for the markets to close, and led a global effort urging policymakers to commit publicly to keeping them open.

Our thinking here was that such a commitment would assure citizens and businesses that they wouldn’t lose access to funding when they needed it most. And we’re grateful that, in the end, not a single European country closed its markets.

What about supporting members’ own responses to the crisis? ICI was quite active there as well.

Burns: Very much so. Every week—and often more frequently than that—our committees were holding calls for pretty much every area of the industry. Operations, law, the risk officers, the compliance folks—everyone. At times we had several hundred people on a single call—from firms of every size and style you can think of.

Having this holistic view of the fund complex—of the fund business—ensured that our support would reach the entire membership, not just parts of it. Plus, in working with other trade groups, we were able to minimize any bottlenecks that might have disrupted the transaction process or kept the delivery of services to shareholders from running smoothly.

Olson: I would add that our frequent member surveys also played a key role here. Members told us regularly that having a broad understanding of the challenges brought on by the crisis—and responses to it—helped them better assess and improve their operations and compliance efforts.

Why do you think you were able to draw such robust participation?

Burns: You know, members have long turned to our committees as a place for practical, productive discussion to enhance operations for the benefit of fund shareholders.

In times of crisis, this type of forum becomes even more critical. And I think so many folks joined, one, because they were eager for information to bring back to their firms, and two, because they wanted to be a part of the regulatory and operational solution themselves—and turn this information into action.

Data security has been huge.

Burns: You’re telling me. Our members are always working with highly sensitive information, and they never stop working to ward off cyberattacks.

But the number of attacks we’ve seen since the crisis hit—the sophistication of them—it’s all been on another level. So members have had to dedicate an enormous amount of energy and resources to shore up their cyberdefenses, get them in place at people’s homes, and reinforce sound cyberhygiene practices among their staffs.

I’d like to now fast-forward some, and zoom out a bit beyond the fund industry. Because even as markets have calmed, economies continue to reel.

Patrice, that’s certainly true in Europe, which is suffering its worst economic shock since World War II. What role can regulated funds play in Europe’s efforts to restore economic growth, and how is ICI engaging here?

Bergé-Vincent: Well, we’ve been saying it since long before the pandemic. The key to unlocking the EU’s economies is a robust Capital Markets Union—one that promotes a greater role for market-based financing and encourages more retail-investor participation.

The same is true now, only the need is even more urgent. And regulated funds—because they’ve proven so useful for growing household savings and channeling investment to businesses—are well positioned to address this need.

We’ve emphasized these points to the European Commission in recent months. And the Commission’s new Capital Markets Union Action Plan would suggest that our recommendations haven’t gone unnoticed.

A lot remains to be done, though. The EU’s recovery plan relies for the time being on financing from bank loans and taxpayer money. Those are important sources of financing—don’t get me wrong—but they alone won’t be nearly enough to deliver a lasting recovery. So our advocacy looking forward will center on showing policymakers why increased retail investor participation in EU capital markets through regulated funds is the missing piece.

You’ve all worked in and around the fund industry for quite some time, and navigated ICI through more than a few challenges. But I have to ask—what has this crisis taught you about the industry?

Burns: What I’ve learned is, the industry is even more resilient than we thought. Thinking about that shift to remote work, few of us had ever contemplated something at such a scale and speed.

Yet everyone—and I mean, everyone—really stepped up to ensure that service to shareholders wouldn’t suffer.

Bergé-Vincent: It’s kind of like everyone in the industry has been put through this big test—a test of tests, if you will. The fact that we’re still going strong should give us all confidence that whatever challenges come our way, we can overcome them. Together, we are stronger. That’s the big lesson for me.

Olson: And I think that’s heartening. Over the past 80 years, funds have evolved constantly to meet the needs of their shareholders, but the industry had never had to navigate something like this.

Now, we know that wholesale change doesn’t have to be scary. It doesn’t have to worry us. Instead, it can be a spark for serving shareholders even better in the future.

Susan Olson is general counsel and Marty Burns is chief industry operations officer at ICI. Patrice Bergé-Vincent is managing director of ICI Global.

Permalink: https://www.ici.org/viewpoints/21_view_arroundtable

TOPICS: Financial MarketsFinancial StabilityFund RegulationGlobalGovernment AffairsICI GlobalIndex FundInternationalInvestor ResearchMutual FundPolicy ResearchRetirement PolicyShareholder

2020 Annual Report to Members: A Conversation with Paul Schott Stevens

By Paul Schott Stevens

January 14, 2021

Paul Schott Stevens, ICI’s longest-serving chief executive, retired at the end of 2020. As he neared the end of his 16 years of service, he sat down with ICI staff to discuss the events of his tenure.

Read more…

TOPICS: Financial MarketsFinancial StabilityFund RegulationGlobalGovernment AffairsICI GlobalIndex FundInternationalInvestor ResearchMutual FundPolicy ResearchRetirement PolicyShareholder

2020 Annual Report to Members: A Letter to ICI’s Membership

By George C. W. Gatch

January 11, 2021

2020 will go down in history as a year that none of us can ever forget. It was a year of turmoil, fear, and reckoning. Yet for the regulated fund industry, it also proved to be a year of resilience, transition, and great hope.

Read more from ICI Chairman George C. W. Gatch’s letter that was released in ICI’s 2020 Annual Report to Members.

Read more…

TOPICS: Financial MarketsFinancial StabilityFund RegulationGlobalGovernment AffairsICI GlobalIndex FundInternationalInvestor ResearchMutual FundPolicy ResearchRetirement PolicyShareholder

Value Is in the Eye of the UCITS Holder

By Giles Swan

December 3, 2020

ICI research shows a steady decline in the cost of UCITS investing. European regulators are looking beyond just declining cost, however, by requiring UCITS managers to justify the value of these funds to investors. But how do investors assess value relative to cost, and what is the role of regulators? 

Read more…

TOPICS: Equity InvestingEuropeFund RegulationICI GlobalInternationalShareholder

A New Benchmark for Distribution Oversight

By Ahmed Elghazaly

July 21, 2020

On June 1, the fund industry achieved a milestone for global cooperation. In an industry-led agreement, fund distributors and fund managers of Undertakings for the Collective Investment in Transferable Securities (UCITS) and alternative investment funds (AIFs) joined together to issue a common protocol for distribution oversight.

Read more…

TOPICS: EuropeFund GovernanceFund RegulationGlobalICI GlobalInternationalOperations and TechnologyShareholder

ICI Members Are Monitoring the New Coronavirus Outbreak

By Peter Salmon

January 31, 2020

Earlier this week, ICI’s Industry Operations Department surveyed members of the Institute’s Technology Committee to better understand the measures being taken by ICI members to protect their employees and maintain business continuity in the face of the new coronavirus outbreak.

Read more…

TOPICS: GlobalInternationalOperations and Technology

2019 Annual Report to Members: ICI's International Work

By Miriam Bridges

November 21, 2019

With the industry's interests bound ever more tightly to global trends, ICI pursues an active international agenda through its international arm, ICI Global. ICI’s international work in 2019 was a period of vigorous effort on a host of issues....

Read more…

TOPICS: CybersecurityExchange-Traded FundsFinancial MarketsFinancial StabilityGlobalICI GlobalInternationalOperations and TechnologyRetirement Policy

2019 Annual Report to Members: A Letter to ICI's Membership

By George C. W. Gatch and Paul Schott Stevens

November 14, 2019

What follows is an abridged version of a letter by ICI Chairman George C. W. Gatch and ICI President and CEO Paul Schott Stevens that was released in ICI’s 2019 annual report. To read their full letter, please see ICI’s 2019 Annual Report to Members....

Read more…

TOPICS: Financial MarketsFinancial StabilityFund RegulationGlobalGovernment AffairsICI GlobalIndex FundInternationalInvestor ResearchMutual FundPolicy ResearchRetirement PolicyShareholder

Alibaba’s Joseph C. Tsai in Conversation with Paul Schott Stevens

By Lauri Bearce

June 24, 2019

The world’s two largest economies, the United States and China, need to collaborate on technological innovation to do good for society and to have global impact, Joseph Tsai, Alibaba Group cofounder and executive vice chairman, said at ICI’s 61st General Membership Meeting.

Read more…

TOPICS: GMMGlobalInternational

Global Leaders Discuss Building a Competitive European Union

By Jean-Claire Perini

June 12, 2019

EU policymakers need to have a global mindset if the European Union is to compete and thrive in today’s interconnected marketplace. That’s according to an informative panel at ICI’s 2019 General Membership Meeting in Washington, DC, featuring ICI President and CEO Paul Schott Stevens, Honorary Director General of the European Fund and Asset Management Association (EFAMA) Peter De Proft, and former Secretary General of the International Organization of Securities Commissions David Wright....

Read more…

TOPICS: GMMICI GlobalInternational

Parag Khanna Talks Asia at ICI’s GMM

By Miriam Bridges

May 30, 2019

How can powerful nations continue to thrive? By being more connected to Asia, said Parag Khanna, the founder and managing partner of the advisory firm FutureMap. The noted global strategist and author shared this argument and more from his latest book, The Future Is Asian, with the guests at ICI’s 61st General Membership Meeting in Washington, DC, highlighting that Asia is becoming an ever-more important destination for investment....

Read more…

TOPICS: GMMICI GlobalInternational

Asset Management Leaders Talk Shop on Markets and Trends—and the Industry’s Gender Divide

By Rob Elson

May 31, 2018

A panel of four leading women in asset management took the stage at ICI’s 60th annual General Membership Meeting last week to share their insights on market outlooks, industry trends, and gender diversity....

Read more…

TOPICS: EventsGMMInternationalMutual Fund

2017 Annual Report to Members: A Message from the Chairman

By William F. “Ted” Truscott

November 13, 2017

This letter by ICI Chairman Ted Truscott was released in our 2017 Annual Report to Members.

Every day, I’m reminded that each of us in the fund industry is driven to deliver ever-greater value for our fees and keep improving service to fund shareholders. Investors are demanding more from every asset manager—and the resulting competition drives us to innovate, find new efficiencies, and offer even better solutions for investors’ needs.

Read more…

TOPICS: Financial MarketsFinancial StabilityFund RegulationGlobalGovernment AffairsICI GlobalIndex FundInternationalInvestor ResearchMutual FundPolicy ResearchRetirement PolicyShareholder

Simulating a Crisis

By Sean Collins

August 15, 2017

The Bank of England (BoE) recently published a paper detailing results from a simulation intended to “stress-test” open-end investment funds. The paper suggests that under “severe but plausible” assumptions, investors could redeem so heavily from open-end investment funds (e.g., mutual funds or UCITS funds) during a period of market stress that they could cause “dislocations” in corporate bond markets.

Read more…

TOPICS: Bond FundEuropeFinancial MarketsFinancial StabilityFixed IncomeFund RegulationGlobalInternationalMutual FundPolicy Research

Industry Leaders Highlight Opportunities Presented by Industry Change

By Miriam Bridges

June 1, 2017

Shifts in demographics, regulation, investor preferences, and new product offerings are creating a range of opportunities for the asset management industry. In conversations exploring these evolving trends, industry leaders offered their perspectives on how to succeed in these new environments during two insightful sessions on the second day of ICI’s 59th General Membership Meeting, held May 3–5 in Washington, DC.

Read more…

TOPICS: EventsFund RegulationGMMInternationalMutual Fund

Top Investment Strategists Sound Optimistic Notes amid Headwinds

By Rob Elson

May 25, 2017

Opportunities abound in today’s market and macroeconomic environment, and it’s up to fund managers to help their investors capitalize on them. That’s the outlook from a panel of world-class investment strategists sharing their insights at ICI’s 59th annual General Membership Meeting, held earlier this month in Washington, DC.

Read more…

TOPICS: EventsExchange-Traded FundsFinancial MarketsGMMInternationalMutual Fund

Jeff Immelt and GE’s Bid to Own the Future

By Rob Elson

May 4, 2017

“I just couldn’t explain why we owned NBC.”

In only eight words, GE’s Jeff Immelt summed up one of the major catalysts for his transformation of the company during his nearly 16 years as president and CEO. His enlightening, lighthearted conversation with ICI President and CEO Paul Schott Stevens at ICI’s 59th Annual General Membership Meeting—which began yesterday in Washington, DC—dove deep into Immelt’s thinking behind this transformation, the company’s major decisions during his tenure, and his big plans for the company’s future.

Read more…

TOPICS: EventsGMMInternational

Retired General Stanley McChrystal: Service, Connection, and Flexibility

By Todd Bernhardt

May 3, 2017

When General Stanley McChrystal took over the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) in 2003, he was fully steeped in the US Army’s command-and-control philosophy. But he soon learned the need for adaptation. At the 59th annual General Membership Meeting, the retired general spoke of the importance of service, connection, and flexibility.

Read more…

TOPICS: GMMInternationalMutual Fund

What's the “Exposure” of Money Market Funds to Europe?

By Sean Collins

January 26, 2017

At the American Economic Association (AEA) meetings in Chicago early this month, speakers and attendees at several sessions asked: do money market funds pose systemic risks?

Read more…

TOPICS: EuropeFederal ReserveFinancial MarketsFinancial StabilityFund RegulationInternationalMoney Market FundsMutual Fund

Matching Models to Reality: Doomsayers Are Disappointed—Again—as Funds Weather Brexit Shock

By Paul Schott Stevens

July 13, 2016

On Thursday, June 23, the electorate of the United Kingdom voted in a referendum on the country’s membership in the European Union. The result—51.9 percent in favor of “Brexit,” 48.1 percent in favor of “Remain”—went against pollsters’ and pundits’ expectations and surprised the world.

Read more…

TOPICS: Bond FundEuropeFinancial MarketsFinancial StabilityFund RegulationICI GlobalInternationalMutual Fund

When Investor Protection Becomes Protectionism

By Patrice Bergé-Vincent

June 14, 2016

Today, Europe is facing two related needs: to provide its citizens with efficient, lower-cost vehicles for savings and investment, and to bolster economic growth.

Read more…

TOPICS: EuropeFinancial MarketsFund RegulationICI GlobalInternationalMutual FundTaxes

Conducting Business in a Rapidly Changing World

By Jeanne Arnold

June 1, 2016

The global operating environment is evolving and it is critical for corporations to understand the changes afoot if they are to succeed in the 21st century, said Kevin Kajiwara, co-president of Teneo Intelligence, a division of global advisory firm Teneo. Speaking on the final day at ICI’s 58th General Membership Meeting (GMM), Kajiwara gave an overview of the economic and political shifts taking place around the world during his session, “Geopolitical Risks and the Global Economy.” After the overview, he engaged in an insightful question-and-answer session with Tom Faust, chairman and CEO of Eaton Vance Corp.

Read more…

TOPICS: EuropeGMMInternationalMutual FundTrading

SEC Chair White Expects Continued ‘Bright Spotlight’ on Asset Management

By Rachel McTague

May 20, 2016

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is contemplating several new initiatives governing registered funds, in addition to adopting rules this year on reporting modernization, liquidity management, and the use of derivatives, SEC Chair Mary Jo White announced at the opening session on the final day of ICI’s annual General Membership Meeting (GMM).

Read more…

TOPICS: CybersecurityEventsExchange-Traded FundsFinancial MarketsFinancial StabilityFund RegulationGMMInternationalMutual FundShareholder

Derivatives—Please Don’t Let Them Be Misunderstood

By Shelly Antoniewicz

February 22, 2016

Derivatives are important portfolio management tools that provide funds with many potential benefits, including the ability to:

  • hedge risk;
  • enhance liquidity, because derivatives can be more liquid than traditional physical securities;
  • gain or reduce exposure to unique markets or to asset classes when access through other instruments is difficult, costly, or impossible;
  • manage or equitize cash; and
  • reduce cost.

 

Read more…

TOPICS: Bond FundBondsEuropeFinancial StabilityFund RegulationInternationalMutual Fund

Cybersecurity at Work: Creating Passwords That Are More Secure

By Peter Salmon

February 17, 2016

Welcome to the first in a monthly series of ICI Viewpoints focusing on sound practices in cybersecurity.

Read more…

TOPICS: CybersecurityInternationalOperations and Technology

U.S. and European Fund Investors Continue to Take Long View on EM Economies

By Chris Plantier

February 12, 2016

In an ICI Global Research Perspective last year, we showed that U.S. and European registered funds held $1.7 trillion in emerging market (EM) stocks and bonds at the end of 2014 (this total counts Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, and Taiwan as emerging markets). Of that, $1.27 trillion was estimated to be in equities and $431 billion was in bonds. We also showed that this $1.7 trillion was spread widely, across 80 different EM countries, and that fund net purchases of EM securities explained little of the variability of capital flow to EM countries.

Read more…

TOPICS: Bond FundEuropeFinancial MarketsICI GlobalInternationalMutual Fund

Liquidity Risk Management Must Be Done Right

By Paul Schott Stevens

January 15, 2016

The following ICI Viewpoints is a lightly edited version of a letter that ICI President and CEO Paul Schott Stevens sent to U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Mary Jo White, as part of the Institute’s overall response to the SEC’s liquidity risk management proposal. 

Read more…

TOPICS: Financial StabilityFund GovernanceFund RegulationInternationalMutual FundOperations and TechnologyShareholderTrading

How the SEC’s Six-Bucket Approach Could Provide a False Picture of Liquidity

By Brian Reid

January 14, 2016

As I explained in a previous post, I filed a letter on January 13 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in response to its liquidity risk management proposal and to Liquidity and Flows of U.S. Mutual Funds, a study by the Commission’s Division of Economic and Risk Analysis (DERA). My letter was one of four components of ICI’s multipart response to the SEC proposal.

Read more…

TOPICS: Financial StabilityFund GovernanceFund RegulationInternationalMutual FundOperations and TechnologyShareholderTrading

The SEC’s Liquidity Proposal: Good Goals, Unintended Consequences

By Brian Reid

January 13, 2016

On January 13, I filed a letter with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), in response to the SEC’s liquidity risk management proposal and to Liquidity and Flows of U.S. Mutual Funds, a study by the SEC’s Division of Economic and Risk Analysis (DERA). My letter was one of four components of ICI’s multipart response to the SEC proposal.

Read more…

TOPICS: Financial StabilityFund GovernanceFund RegulationInternationalMutual FundOperations and TechnologyShareholderTrading

New York Times Paints False Picture of Funds’ Emerging Market Investments

By Mike McNamee

August 24, 2015

With the global market turmoil over the past week, it’s no surprise that journalists are looking for hot stories of panic, investor flight, and impending crisis. Either they believe that investors are inherently flighty and panic-prone, or they believe that “this time is different” and investors who have not panicked before will panic now.

Read more…

TOPICS: Bond FundBondsEquity InvestingEuropeFinancial MarketsFinancial StabilityFixed IncomeICI GlobalInternationalMutual Fund

The IMF on Asset Management: Handle Empirical Results with Care

By Chris Plantier

July 15, 2015

In this ICI Viewpoints series, we’ve examined the wide range of data errors, inconsistencies, results that don’t bear statistical scrutiny, and misinterpretations in the International Monetary Fund’s most recent Global Financial Stability Report (GFSR)—specifically, the chapter on “The Asset Management Industry and Financial Stability.” Those problems primarily involved poor understanding of funds and their investors. We didn’t need advanced statistical methods to uncover them.

Read more…

TOPICS: EuropeFinancial StabilityFund RegulationICI GlobalInternationalMutual FundTreasury

ICI Welcomes IOSCO’S Call to Focus on Products and Activities in Asset Management

By Paul Schott Stevens

June 17, 2015

ICI President and CEO Paul Schott Stevens today issued the following statement in response to the communiqué released today by the Board of the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO)

Read more…

TOPICS: Financial StabilityFund RegulationICI GlobalInternationalMutual Fund

Navigating Regulatory Developments and Meeting Investors’ Needs in a Global Industry

By Jeanne C. Arnold

June 9, 2015

There is a great opportunity for capital markets to develop all over the world, presenting a huge opportunity for the mutual fund industry, according to David Wright, secretary general of the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO).

Read more…

TOPICS: EventsFinancial StabilityGMMInternational

The IMF on Asset Management: Sorting the Retail and Institutional Investor “Herds”

By Sean Collins

June 4, 2015

Part of a series of ICI Viewpoints about problems in the IMF’s analysis of the asset management industry.

In this ICI Viewpoints series, we’re examining the wide range of data errors, inconsistencies, results that don’t bear statistical scrutiny, and misinterpretations in the International Monetary Fund’s April 2015 Global Financial Stability Report (GFSR)—specifically, the chapter on “The Asset Management Industry and Financial Stability.” These problems undercut the IMF’s conclusion that “Even simple investment funds such as mutual funds can pose financial stability risks.”

 

Read more…

TOPICS: Bond FundBondsEuropeFinancial StabilityFund RegulationGovernment AffairsICI GlobalInternationalMutual FundPolicy Research

The IMF on Asset Management: Which Herd to Follow?

By Sean Collins

June 1, 2015

Part of a series of ICI Viewpoints about problems in the IMF’s analysis of the asset management industry.

In April 2015, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) published its most recent Global Financial Stability Report (GFSR), which included a chapter titled, “The Asset Management Industry and Financial Stability.”

We have heard suggestions from more than one observer that the IMF’s GFSR Chapter on asset management provides a wealth of charts, tables, and data to support regulators’ case that regulated funds or asset managers could pose systemic risks.

Read more…

TOPICS: Bond FundBondsEuropeFinancial StabilityFund RegulationGovernment AffairsICI GlobalInternationalMutual FundPolicy Research

The IMF on Asset Management: The Perils of Inexperience

By Sean Collins

May 28, 2015

Part of a series of ICI Viewpoints about problems in the IMF’s analysis of the asset management industry.

In April, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) released its most recent Global Financial Stability Report (GFSR), including a chapter on “The Asset Management Industry and Financial Stability.”

Read more…

TOPICS: Bond FundBondsEuropeFinancial StabilityFund RegulationGovernment AffairsICI GlobalInternationalMutual FundPolicy Research

Build Bridges, Not Walls: An Admiral’s Perspective on Global Security

By Rob Elson

May 27, 2015

If we are to strengthen global security, retired U.S. Navy Admiral James G. Stavridis says, we cannot continue to build walls—we must build bridges instead.

Read more…

TOPICS: EventsGMMInternational

SEC Chair White Affirms Agency Has Tools to Address Risks in Industry

By Rachel McTague

May 8, 2015

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has the tools it needs to address systemic risks to the extent they exist in the asset management industry, said SEC Chair Mary Jo White at the opening session on the final day of ICI’s annual General Membership Meeting (GMM). White also announced that David Grim—who had been serving as acting director of the SEC’s Division of Investment Management—has just been named director of the division. White said she is thrilled that Grim, a 20-year veteran of the SEC in the investment management area, is taking the reins at a time when the Commission is moving forward to implement proactive regulations for the industry.

Read more…

TOPICS: BondsCybersecurityEuropeEventsExchange-Traded FundsFederal ReserveFinancial MarketsFinancial StabilityFund RegulationGMMGovernment AffairsInterest RateInternationalMutual FundShareholderTreasury

Nooyi’s Purpose, Pepsi’s Performance

By Rob Elson

May 7, 2015

We all have a moral compass. But for PepsiCo’s Indra Nooyi, “the moral compass of our lives must also be the moral compass of our livelihoods.”

Stirring words from the company’s chair and chief executive—and just a few of the many she delivered in a lively Q&A with Vanguard Chairman and CEO Bill McNabb at ICI’s 57th General Membership Meeting, which began yesterday in Washington, DC.

Read more…

TOPICS: EventsGMMInternationalShareholder

ICI Global Welcomes the Announcement of More Stock Connects in Asia Pacific

By Qiumei Yang

April 22, 2015

In response to the announcement about a launch date for the Taiwan Stock Exchange and Singapore Exchange trading link, and recent reports of a possible Shenzhen–Hong Kong Stock Connect, ICI Global’s Qiumei Yang offers the following comment:

Read more…

TOPICS: ICI GlobalInternationalTrading

The IMF Quietly Changes Its Data, but Not Its Views

By Chris Plantier

April 21, 2015

On Friday, April 10, we pointed out that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) apparently had vastly overstated the size and growth of bond fund holdings of emerging market bonds in its latest Global Financial Stability Report (GFSR).

Read more…

TOPICS: Bond FundBondsEuropeFinancial StabilityFund RegulationICI GlobalInternationalMutual FundTreasury

The IMF Is Entitled to Its Opinion, but Not to Its Own Facts

By Sean Collins and Chris Plantier

April 10, 2015

On Wednesday, the International Monetary Fund released its latest Global Financial Stability Report (GFSR), including a chapter on the asset management industry and financial stability.

Read more…

TOPICS: EuropeFinancial StabilityFund RegulationICI GlobalInternationalMutual FundTreasury

Plenty of Players Provide Liquidity for ETFs

By Shelly Antoniewicz

December 2, 2014

A recent article in the Financial Times’ FT Alphaville blog (“Lies, Damned Lies, and Liquidity Expectations”) focused on a paper published by the Committee on the Global Financial System, an organization that monitors developments in global financial markets for central bank governors.

Read more…

TOPICS: Exchange-Traded FundsFederal ReserveFinancial MarketsFinancial StabilityInternationalTrading

The IMF Makes All of OFR’s Mistakes—And More

By Sean Collins and Chris Plantier

October 10, 2014

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) just released its latest Global Financial Stability Report. In the immortal words of Yogi Berra, it is déjà vu all over again.

The IMF report bears more than a passing resemblance to Asset Management and Financial Stability, published by the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Financial Research (OFR) in September 2013. The OFR report was met with widespread criticism for its misinformed discussion of hypothetical “vulnerabilities” posed by mutual funds and other asset managers.

Read more…

TOPICS: EuropeFinancial StabilityFund RegulationICI GlobalInternationalMutual FundTreasury

Bloomberg Ignores the Evidence on Bond ETFs

By Mike McNamee

September 26, 2014

In response to “Pimco ETF Probe Spotlighting $270 Billion Market Vexing FSB,” we posted the following comment on Bloomberg News’ website:

Read more…

TOPICS: Bond FundBondsExchange-Traded FundsFederal ReserveFinancial MarketsFinancial StabilityFund RegulationInterest RateInternationalTrading

Why Regulated Funds Are a Relatively Stable Source of Foreign Investment for Emerging Economies

By Chris Plantier

September 26, 2014

The press and policymakers focus a great deal of attention on flows to U.S. and European regulated mutual funds and exchange-traded funds (ETFs), in part because these funds are perhaps the most easily observed and readily measured players in capital markets.

Read more…

TOPICS: EuropeFinancial MarketsFinancial StabilityFund RegulationICI GlobalInternationalMutual Fund

“Preemptive Runs” and Money Market Fund Gates and Fees: Theory Meets Practice

By Sean Collins and Chris Plantier

August 20, 2014

A recent post on the blog of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York discusses the possibility that new rules by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) allowing money market funds to temporarily impose fees or gates during times of market instability could increase the risk of preemptive runs on such funds during times of stress, rather than helping to limit destabilizing withdrawals, as the SEC intended.

Read more…

TOPICS: EuropeFederal ReserveFinancial StabilityFund GovernanceFund RegulationGovernment AffairsInternationalMoney Market FundsTreasury

Sizing Up Mutual Fund and ETF Investment in Emerging Markets

By Chris Plantier

August 18, 2014

In coming decades, emerging market (EM) economies will need substantial new capital to accompany and sustain their rapid growth.

Read more…

TOPICS: Bond FundBondsEquity InvestingEuropeExchange-Traded FundsFinancial MarketsFinancial StabilityFixed IncomeFund RegulationICI GlobalInternationalMutual Fund

“The Age of Asset Management”—Less Risk, Not More

By Brian Reid

July 24, 2014

The following was written by ICI’s chief economist, Brian Reid, and published on FT Alphaville on July 23. For more information on ICI’s views and research on financial stability, please visit our Financial Stability Resource Center.

Read more…

TOPICS: Federal ReserveFinancial MarketsFinancial StabilityFund RegulationGovernment AffairsICI GlobalInternationalMutual FundTreasury

Industry Leaders Address Evolving Industry Challenges and Opportunities

By Miriam Bridges

June 9, 2014

In conversations exploring outcome-oriented investing, the globalization of the fund industry, and the next generation of retirement plans, industry leaders offered their perspectives on serving investors in an evolving world during several insightful sessions at ICI’s annual General Membership Meeting, held in Washington May 20–22.

Read more…

TOPICS: 401(k)EventsGMMInternationalMutual FundRetirement PolicySavingsShareholder

Errors of the Times: Getting the FSOC Debate All Wrong

By Mike McNamee

May 23, 2014

New York Times columnist Floyd Norris makes a number of fundamental errors in his Friday column about the House Financial Services Committee hearing and the broader debate about the Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC) and its review of asset management.

Read more…

TOPICS: Federal ReserveFinancial MarketsFinancial StabilityFund RegulationGovernment AffairsICI GlobalInternationalMutual FundTreasury

Headlining ICI’s GMM, Blair Talks of Tough Challenges, Vast Opportunities

By Rob Elson

May 21, 2014

Challenges abound in our increasingly global world, said Tony Blair, former prime minister of the United Kingdom. Yet our future could be brighter than ever, he insisted.

Blair’s stirring words came during a keynote speech at ICI’s 56th General Membership Meeting (GMM). After his opening remarks, Blair sat down with ICI Chairman Bill McNabb, Chairman and CEO of The Vanguard Group, to discuss a range of issues. The session headlined the three-day meeting, which began yesterday in Washington, DC.

Read more…

TOPICS: 401(k)EventsFinancial MarketsFund RegulationGMMInternationalMutual Fund

GMM Policy Forum: BlackRock’s Larry Fink Speaks with ICI’s Paul Stevens

By Todd Bernhardt

May 21, 2014

The fund industry needs to stop focusing on the moment and start focusing on outcomes when advising investors on their resources, said Laurence D. Fink, chairman and CEO of BlackRock, at ICI’s Annual Policy Forum, part of the Institute’s 56th General Membership Meeting (GMM).

Read more…

TOPICS: 401(k)BondsEventsFinancial MarketsFund RegulationGMMInternationalInvestment EducationMutual FundRetirement PolicySavingsShareholderTreasury

For Concerns About Risk, a Better Way Forward

By Mike McNamee

May 16, 2014

Since the financial crisis, regulators in the United States and abroad have been looking for ways to prevent a repeat. But recently it seems they’ve gone off course.

Read more…

TOPICS: Financial MarketsFinancial StabilityFund RegulationGovernment AffairsICI GlobalInternationalMutual FundTreasury

Overseas Overreach

By Mike McNamee

May 15, 2014

The Financial Stability Board (FSB)—composed of financial regulators and central bankers from around the globe—is proposing a flawed methodology that inappropriately puts regulated U.S. funds under scrutiny for possible designation as global systemically important financial institutions—or G-SIFIs.

Read more…

TOPICS: Financial MarketsFinancial StabilityFund RegulationGovernment AffairsICI GlobalInternationalMutual FundTreasury

Who Are the FSB 14?

By Mike McNamee

May 13, 2014

In their search for ways that investment funds can pose risks to the financial system, regulators and central bankers from around the globe have proposed an arbitrary threshold: any investment fund with assets of more than $100 billion should automatically be subjected to further examination and consideration as a possible “global systemically important financial institution,” or G-SIFI.

Read more…

TOPICS: Financial MarketsFinancial StabilityFund RegulationGovernment AffairsICI GlobalInternationalMutual FundTreasury

The Market Crash That Never Came

By Mike McNamee

May 12, 2014

U.S. and international banking regulators, in their search for ways that mutual funds and their managers could threaten financial stability, have come up with a simple story: fund investors and asset managers “crowd or ‘herd’ into popular asset classes or securities” and thus “magnify market volatility.”

Read more…

TOPICS: Federal ReserveFinancial MarketsFinancial StabilityFund RegulationGovernment AffairsICI GlobalInternationalMutual FundTreasury

Size by Itself Doesn’t Matter—Leverage Does

By Mike McNamee

May 9, 2014

Second in a series of Viewpoints postings on funds and financial stability.

The threshold set by the Financial Stability Board (FSB) for examining whether a regulated fund could pose risk to the financial system should be redrawn—or better yet, withdrawn.

Read more…

TOPICS: Federal ReserveFinancial MarketsFinancial StabilityFund RegulationGovernment AffairsICI GlobalInternationalMutual FundTreasury

SIFI Designation for Funds: Unnecessary and Harmful

By Mike McNamee

May 8, 2014

U.S. and international regulators are examining whether asset managers or the investment funds that they offer could be sources of risk to the overall financial system and should thus be designated as systemically important financial institutions (SIFIs).

Read more…

TOPICS: Federal ReserveFinancial MarketsFinancial StabilityFund RegulationGovernment AffairsICI GlobalInternationalMutual FundTreasury

ICYMI: "The Feds Target Money Managers"

By Mike McNamee

May 7, 2014

Yesterday’s editorial in the Wall Street Journal, “The Feds Target Money Managers,” neatly summed up the case against treating asset managers as systemically important financial institutions (SIFIs) and subjecting them to bank-style regulation.

Read more…

TOPICS: Federal ReserveFinancial MarketsFinancial StabilityFund RegulationGovernment AffairsICI GlobalInternationalMutual FundTreasury

ICYMI: Congress Asks Questions About SIFI Designation and Asset Managers; SEC Chair White Provides Telling Answers

By Mike McNamee

April 30, 2014

DC scene setter, 2013–2014: The Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC) is examining asset managers for possible “systemically important financial institution” (SIFI) designation, which would bring with it enhanced prudential regulation from the Federal Reserve. Such “bank-style” regulation is foreign to U.S. capital markets.

Read more…

TOPICS: Federal ReserveFinancial MarketsFinancial StabilityFund RegulationGovernment AffairsICI GlobalInternationalMutual FundTreasury

ICI Statement: FSOC Seeking “Pretexts” to Designate Funds

By Mike McNamee

April 24, 2014

ICI President and CEO Paul Schott Stevens today made the following statement in response to media reports that the Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC) has stepped up its review of major asset managers—which could lead to their designation as “systemically important financial institutions,” or SIFIs—based on boilerplate metrics.

Read more…

TOPICS: Federal ReserveFinancial MarketsFinancial StabilityFund RegulationGovernment AffairsICI GlobalInternationalMutual FundTreasury

ICI Responds to the FSB Consultation on Systemic Risk and Investment Funds

April 8, 2014

In early January, the Financial Stability Board (FSB)—an international group of financial authorities—published a consultation paper on the issue of systemic risk and investment funds.

Read more…

TOPICS: Federal ReserveFinancial MarketsFinancial StabilityFund RegulationGovernment AffairsICI GlobalInternationalMutual FundTreasury

ICI Response to Bank of England Haldane Speech on Asset Management and Potential Risk

By Mike McNamee

April 4, 2014

Today, ICI President and CEO Paul Schott Stevens made the following comment in response to a speech by Andy Haldane, currently executive director of the Bank of England and slated to become its chief economist in June.

Read more…

TOPICS: Federal ReserveFinancial MarketsFinancial StabilityFund RegulationGovernment AffairsICI GlobalInternationalMutual FundTreasury

Why Asset Management Is Not a Source of Systemic Risk

By Paul Schott Stevens

March 17, 2014

This Viewpoints post is a summary of a speech given by ICI President and CEO Paul Schott Stevens at the Mutual Funds and Investment Management Conference. The entire speech is now available.

Since September, U.S. and international regulators have released reports suggesting that asset managers or the funds that they offer may be sources of risk to the overall financial system. ICI does not agree that the asset management sector poses systemic risk. Nonetheless, these reports could be the predicate for new, bank-style prudential regulation of the asset management industry—which could significantly harm funds and the investors who use them.

Read more…

TOPICS: Federal ReserveFinancial MarketsFinancial StabilityFund RegulationGovernment AffairsICI GlobalInternationalMutual FundTreasury

A Growing Urgency: FATCA Agreements in the Asia-Pacific Region

By Keith Lawson

February 21, 2014

Questions are swirling as the 1 July 2014 effective date for the US Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) draws closer.

Read more…

TOPICS: Government AffairsICI GlobalInternationalTaxes

Creating a Globally Workable Compliance Framework for Financial Account Tax Information

By Keith Lawson

February 13, 2014

By developing a global standard for collecting customer information from financial institutions and exchanging that information between governmental taxing authorities worldwide, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has taken an important step to enhance tax compliance. This common reporting standard (CRS) for the automatic exchange of information (AEOI), which was announced by the OECD on 13 February 2014, will be presented to the G20 at their 22–23 February 2014 meeting in Sydney.

Read more…

TOPICS: Government AffairsICI GlobalInternationalTaxes

Column Makes the Same Mistakes as OFR

By Paul Schott Stevens

January 20, 2014

In recent months, both the U.S. Treasury Department's Office of Financial Research (OFR) and international regulators such as the Financial Stability Board (FSB) have examined whether asset managers pose risks to financial stability. One report is deeply flawed; the other offers a more informed view. Unfortunately, Gretchen Morgenson’s New York Times column (“Bailout Risk, Far Beyond the Banks,” January 12) veers toward the flawed report.

Read more…

TOPICS: Federal ReserveFinancial MarketsFinancial StabilityFund RegulationGovernment AffairsICI GlobalInternationalTreasury

The Status of Global Retirement Savings: Taking Stock, Moving Forward

By Dan Waters

December 20, 2013

Around the world, as systems for building retirement resources come under increasing pressure, countries of every size and economic situation are facing long-term savings challenges. To meet these challenges, it is critical that pension industry experts, policymakers, and fund industry representatives learn from one another and share solutions that put the needs of savers first.

Read more…

TOPICS: EventsICI GlobalInternationalRetirement PolicyRetirement Research

Navigating a Changed—and Global—Industry

By Jeanne C. Arnold

May 23, 2013

Navigating the ever-changing landscape and increasingly global nature of the fund industry took center stage during several panels at ICI’s 55th General Member Meeting (GMM). 

Read more…

TOPICS: CybersecurityEventsGMMInternational

ICI Global Welcomes Improvements in Final FATCA Regulations

By Ianthe Zabel

January 18, 2013

Read more…

TOPICS: InternationalTaxes

UCITS V—Significant Changes for European Funds and Fund Managers

By Giles Swan

July 3, 2012

Today the European Commission adopted a proposal for revisions to the Undertakings for Collective Investment in Transferable Securities (UCITS) framework, which governs cross-border retail investment funds in Europe.

Read more…

TOPICS: Fund RegulationICI GlobalInternational

Proposal to Implement Volcker Rule Raises Significant Issues for Regulated Funds Globally

By Dan Waters

February 14, 2012

Congress enacted the provision of the Dodd-Frank Reform Act known as the Volcker Rule to restrict banks from sponsoring and investing in hedge funds (so-called covered funds) and using their own resources to trade for purposes unrelated to serving clients—something known as “proprietary trading.”

Read more…

TOPICS: Fund RegulationICI GlobalInternational

A New Voice for Global Investment Funds

By Paul Schott Stevens

October 10, 2011

Over the past two decades, the world has witnessed the rise of asset managers as global financial intermediaries. The fund industry has been at the forefront of this movement, vigorously expanding its international reach and offering investors opportunities to diversify and to access new markets.

Read more…

TOPICS: ICI GlobalInternational

Cracking Down on Tax Evaders Without Cracking Up U.S. Capital Markets

By Keith Lawson

June 15, 2011

The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) is a law designed to ensure that U.S. persons holding assets through accounts in foreign financial institutions comply with their U.S. tax obligations. In other words, the law aims to crack down on tax evasion through offshore investments. It is set to apply to payments made beginning January 1, 2013.

Read more…

TOPICS: InternationalTaxes

Switching to International Accounting Standards Wouldn’t Likely Benefit U.S. Fund Investors, ICI Tells SEC

By Gregory M. Smith

June 14, 2011

A key issue for ICI’s Operations team is regulator interest in harmonizing worldwide accounting standards. As Donald Boteler, ICI’s Vice President for Operations and Continuing Education, said in ICI’s latest annual report, “It’s a noble purpose, but it’s a big, big challenge.”

Read more…

TOPICS: InternationalOperations and Technology

Pursuing Sound Financial Regulation for International Markets

By Ari Burstein

February 25, 2011

Whether at home or overseas, ICI works to ensure that regulators pursue the creation of consistent and sensible rules for the financial markets. Internationally, we recently provided input to the European Commission, which is taking a comprehensive look at ways to reform regulation of European financial markets.

Read more…

TOPICS: Financial MarketsInternational

U.S. Retirement Success Can Aid in EU Pension Modernization

By ICI Viewpoints

November 15, 2010

Understanding the successes of the U.S. retirement savings framework can aid European regulators as they consider reform of pension systems in the European Union, ICI said in a comment letter.

Read more…

TOPICS: Fund RegulationInternational

Pages 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26


top
  • About ICI
  • About IDC
  • About ICI Global
  • Privacy and Cookie Policy
  • Apply for User Account
  • Business Continuity
  • Contact ICI

Copyright © 2021 by the Investment Company Institute