The revolutionary chatbot caught the public’s attention in a way seldom seen before, dominating headlines and seemingly ushering in a future where AI-driven innovation would influence practically all areas of industry.  This enthusiasm went on to fuel a significant rally in technology stocks, despite the fact the Fed was midway through a rate-hiking cycle, an economic backdrop which does not typically favour growth companies. Deep Dive: Investors urged to look beyond ‘pure’ AI plays as bubble concerns linger Ultimately, a handful of tech stocks, subsequently dubbed the Magnificent …

The strategy, which currently holds about £10.6m in assets under management across 161 holdings, reached its peak with £12.8m in November 2022, according to data from Morningstar Direct. Launched in February 2021 by then-Aberdeen Standard Investments in partnership with The Big Issue Group, MACS committed to sharing 20% of the net revenue generated by the fund to support TBIG’s social causes. Retail investors were able to access the vehicle directly through ethical and impact investing platform The Big Exchange, which rates the fund as an Impact Leader, despite noting that “reporting …

The stock exchange announcement on Thursday (16 May) follows the firm’s statement on 9 May that its latest $1.25 per share offer for the trust would not be increased upon. Concord’s decision followed an increased bid by Blackstone of $1.30 per share in late April, valuing the fund at more than $1.57bn, which was unanimously recommended by the board to shareholders.  Concord sticks with $1.51bn offer for Hipgnosis Songs Fund The bidding war for SONG began in mid-April when Concord, through the Apollo-backed Concord Chorus, launched an opening bid of $1.40bn, or $1.16 per share for t…

The £203m trust will target capital growth and income, and includes a new 4% dividend target set by the board to focus on dependable income. In addition, the board has introduced a new discount policy and will consider share buybacks if the discount reaches 10%. The relaunch came after shareholders voted in favour of the changes in a meeting on 16 April. The vehicle will be managed by a team of ten people led by Stephen Anness, Invesco head of global equities.  The team will pursue companies with a history of strong dividend yields, companies with low yields but clear per-share value …

And there is no clearer sign of this than its fondness for launching new funds. Every few years a new hot topic arrives – whether it be liability-driven investment, smart beta or ESG – which piques the interest of investment companies. The upshot is the market is then flooded with new funds all vying for the attention of end-investors. 

This time around that hot topic appears to be private debt, essentially credit extended by non-bank lenders, with asset managers falling over themselves to bring new products to the market.

Since the onset of the global financial crisis the private debt market has mushroomed. As banks curtailed their lending during the worst of the crisis in order to try and mend their own balance sheets, a vacuum was created that non-bank lenders neatly occupied. 

The result has been sizable growth of the private debt market, with assets jumping from less than $45bn (£35.6bn) at the end of 2000 to more than $1.5trn, according to the latest figures from data provider Preqin.

This rise has not been lost on asset managers. In the last few weeks alone a number of investment companies have launched private debt funds, including Goldman Sachs Asset Management, M&G, Nordea Asset Management and Legal & General Investment Management (LGIM), with many more sitting on the sidelines waiting to press the button on their own launches.

Matching supply with demand

The big question, however, is whether there is enough demand from end-investors to match the supply? According to one senior executive at a consultancy that advises pension funds on their investments, who asked to remain anonymous, the answer is no.

“It is hard to say but, no, I do not think so,” they said. “Yes, private debt offers something different, and it can be a good diversifier, but it is quite difficult to explain.”

Fidelity International eyes LTAF launch as private assets co-CIO exits

Robin Powell, a campaigner for what he calls positive change in global investing and the author of the blog, The Evidence-Based Investor, is more forthright. 

“Asset managers will sell whatever they can, and particularly products that generate high fees. The fashion for private debt funds is just another example of this.

“As so often happens, it is primarily the industry that is stoking demand for private credit funds rather than investors. The vast majority of investors do not understand what private debt is, let alone

Responsible for making decisions about the Bank Rate, the nine-member MPC sets and announces policy eight times a year –roughly once every six weeks– alongside regular meetings to consult on how the economy is progressing. The last time the MPC reached a unanimous decision on rates was September 2021, opting to hold at 0.1%. Since the current hiking cycle began, no decision has been made without at least one dissenting vote. At the latest meeting, seven voted to hold rates at 5.25% –governor Andrew Bailey, Sarah Breeden, Ben Broadbent, Megan Greene, Jonathan Haskel, Catherine Mann and…