Craig Mowll

The loss of momentum in Europe and the absence of any new potential driver to push European equity markets to new highs will see retail investors increasingly turn to Asia over the next 12 months according to Louis Vincent Gave, COO and Chief Risk officer of GaveKal Capital, on the eve of his Australian visit.

With little to keep retail investors and the marginal investment dollar in Europe, Asia looks well positioned to capitalise on Europe’s loss, particularly with the MSCI Asia index now outperforming the MSCI World for the first time since the first quarter of 2010. Adding to this woe Eurozone equities are now underperforming cash, gold, local bonds, international bonds and international equities.

Mr Gave commented, “Unfortunately for Europe, the marginal investment dollar is more often than not highly momentum-driven and chases performance. That’s because it is usually provided by the retail investor, and retail investors have a long track record of being momentum jockeys.”

This also mirrors the attitudes of investors in Australia according to GaveKal’s Australian partner, Certitude Global Investments. CEO Craig Mowll commented, “Our monthly investment Index, the CGIII, surveys the attitudes of Australian investors and our last report echoes this sentiment. In fact Asia was one of the few regions to stand its ground when investors were asked which international markets they were most keen to invest in over the next 12 months. Most other major markets saw a decline in investor appetite.”

But both GaveKal and Certitude have cautioned investors that not all boats will rise with the tide and country divergence is ever more important. There are widespread differences between the emerging markets within Asia, they agreed.

Mr Gave expanded, “Between 2003 and 2010 there was a high correlation between Asian equity markets driven by the emergence of China as an economic powerhouse, the quintupling of energy prices and the GFC and recovery, but since then the correlation has loosened tremendously. China, Hong Kong and South Korea have been underperformers as growth in China has decelerated. Meanwhile political developments in India, the Philippines and Indonesia have been drivers of the markets.”

The recent CGIII lends further support to this. Mr Mowll added, “We saw in the August CGIII that within Asia the attitudes to each country vary enormously. We saw appetite for Asia increased on the whole, however on an individual basis, interest in China was down slightly while India and Japan were on the increase. The balance of payment surplus and good inflation levels in the Philippines will also make this a stand out for investors.

“Asia is not a homogenous group and investors will increasingly look for managers that act on this and factor this into their portfolio construction.”

One of the key themes of Mr Gave’s Australian visit will be stock selection and he is expected to suggest that the days of casting a wide net are also over, with individual stock selection more important in light of the tremendous divergence within markets. Mr Gave explained, “There is a focus now to concentrate the portfolio on strong conviction ideas to add more value. If we look at Chinese internet stocks versus SOEs or Japanese banks versus exporters these are clear cases in point.

Mr Mowll concluded by saying that investors are increasingly seeking the expertise to give them the confidence to invest in Asia.

He concluded, “Australian investors are informed enough to know that Asia is not one homogenous emerging market but they may not have the time to understand the impact of demographic profiles, political and economic developments on the performance of individual markets. This is why they turn to an investment manager that is nimble enough change the portfolio quickly as the region evolves.”

Louis Vincent Gave will be visiting Australia as a guest of Certitude next week.

The post Europe’s investment loss will be Asia’s gain appeared first on AdviserVoice.

Craig Mowll

Certitude Global Investing Intentions Index Report shows overall investor confidence has fallen across domestic and international markets amongst most asset classes but high net worth (HNW) and advised investors are bucking this trend.

While overall demand by Australian investors for most investments has slowed, HNW investors are showing little of the same nervousness of the broader investment community, according to the August Certitude Global Investing Intentions Index (CGIII).

The CGIII, which collates the views of over 600 actively engaged leading investors and measures their net demand for global investments, recorded a slight month-on-month decline of 2% in net demand for international investments in addition to a sharp fall in confidence around Australian equities.

The CGIII also compared high net worth investors (HNWs, $1m+ in investable assets) to the broader investor community and reported a marked difference in attitudes and confidence levels. Among the broader investor sample the overall net demand for global investments fell 2%, however amongst the HNW investor group the overall net demand for global investments continued to climb – settling at a level roughly equal to the six month high.

Commenting on the findings, Craig Mowll, CEO of Certitude Global Investments pointed to the role of advice in helping investors to protect themselves from panic, enabling them make measured and considered investment decisions. “We know that HNW investors are significantly more likely to be taking expert advice, for example they are likely to be considering international managed funds covering multiple regions in their portfolio. And further, when we look at the split between advised versus non-advised investors, the disparity in levels of confidence is even more marked. Advised investors have maintained the same levels of net demand for global investment over the last four months while non-advised investors have become very nervous.”

Although overall demand fell for both Australian and International shares, the popularity of these investments continued to outstrip other asset classes, such as property, term deposits and exchange traded funds. And looking specifically at the levels of interest in international investments over the next 12 months, the CGIII reported most global asset classes to have declined or to have remained steady, with the notable exception of fixed income (10%, up 4% pts). Appetite for this more defensive investment option increased to a 12-month high as it continued its surge in popularity for investors seeking out safer investment options.

Mr Mowll expanded, “Results from the CGIII in August suggest that investors are cautious about most equity markets and the slight decline in appetite for international investments is symptomatic of this nervousness. While high net worth investors buck this trend, the average investor is turning to lower risk asset classes such as global fixed income to maintain exposure outside Australia in what is considered a safer investment product.”

Mr Mowll continued, “For the first time the CGIII asked investors about specific concerns and the responses give further light and shade on this lack of confidence. The greatest concern for investors was the fear of another GFC or market crash, a factor cited by almost half (49%) of investors while the top ten concerns featured a mix of global and domestic factors. Geo-political events such as turbulence in the Middle East (41%) in addition to the slowdown in China (38%) weighed on the minds of investors. Of equal concern were factors closer to home such as a lack of confidence in the Australian economy (34%) and high levels of national debt (25%), and this has contributed to general dampening of investor confidence across the board amongst the unadvised investor community.”

Interest in multiple region managed funds continued to make gains

When investors were asked, specifically, which international markets were of most interest over the next 12 months, the US/North America (42%) again came in as the clear favourite among those planning to invest overseas, even though the level of interest was down significantly (by 9% pts).

The other winner was international funds covering multiple regions (31%). This option was once again investors’ second choice after the US/North America, with demand up 4% pts month-on-month.

Lending further support to the argument for expert advice in turbulent times, the intention to gain international exposure via actively managed funds increased by 6% pts to 39% overtaking ‘direct purchase of overseas shares’ (37%) which fell by 4% pts.

Overseas investment timeframes shorten, particularly amongst HNW Investors

The CGIII also saw the intended timings for overseas investments shorten considerably. Among those investors planning to invest overseas, 43% plan to do so within the next three months, an increase of 5% pts and a seven month high. Looking again at HNW investors, the timeframes are shorter still with 55% planning to invest offshore over the next three months.

Commenting on the increase in demand for managed funds investments overseas, Mr Mowll said, “In addition to higher levels of confidence among those who are seeking expert advice, we can also see that this group is more decisive. Again this shows that advisers are in the box seat to help their clients navigate the myriad of factors that may or may not impact investment outcomes and provide guidance over specific timeframes. The benefit of expert advice is not exclusively for HNW investors, rather an adviser can provide all investors with access to experienced investment managers, capable of structuring a portfolio across multiple regions to achieve the best investment outcomes for clients.

Mr Mowll concluded: “Although we are seeing an overall slowdown in demand for Australian and international shares, we continue to see desire for an asset allocation less heavily skewed to Australian equities with advised and high net worth investors leading the charge. The increasing popularity of managed funds demonstrates this and we would expect to see this trend continue, particularly if advisers play a more prominent role in helping navigate clients through uncertain times.”

August CGIII – Other key Findings

The post Australians’ intentions to invest overseas reduces however high net worth and advised investors remain optimistic appeared first on AdviserVoice.

Mr Akele was appointed from within the Certitude ranks, previously serving as State Manager of Global Solutions for New South Wales, since commencing at Certitude in 2010. In this new role, Mr Akele will take ownership of the Northern region of Australia, including New South Wales, Queensland, and country responsibility for New Zealand. He will be responsible for supporting Certitude’s growth in these areas by strengthening and developing Certitude’s relationships with advisers and investors.

With over 25 years’ experience in the financial planning and funds management industry, Mr Akele is a seasoned veteran. Prior to joining Certitude, he consulted to boutique fund managers on their sales and distribution strategies to enhance inflows into their managed funds. He has also held a number of senior positions which included NSW State Manager for Australian Unity Investments, National Business Development Manager for Morningstar Research and Senior Business Development Manager for Challenger Financial Group.

Craig Mowll, Chief Executive Officer of Certitude commented, “Since inception the business has grown steadily and our capable people have played an important role in achieving success.

“Over the past few years the adviser market has become more sophisticated, as the demands on advisers to provide global capability to clients increases. We’re constantly investing in the growth of our people and team to ensure Certitude is continuously delivering the best value to advisers. This new role has been created to enable Certitude to meet those more sophisticated client needs.

“With Michael’s extensive knowledge of the business and long term relationships he has already established in NSW, he is well placed to build on and expand on our service and sales proposition to the adviser market in these additional areas and we are currently building the teams in both states to manage this.”

Mr Akele commenced his role on 1 July, reporting directly to Craig Mowll.

The post Certitude strengthens service and sales capability with new appointment appeared first on AdviserVoice.

In this role, Mr Williams will be responsible for the development and maintenance of Certitude’s relationships with its financial advisers and investors.

Prior to joining Certitude, Mr Williams was employed by SuperIQ as a client services officer to its large SMSF client base. During the course of his career in financial services Mr Williams has served as client relationship manager and fund administrator across several leading organisations including CSR, Commonwealth Bank and Cover More Travel Insurance. Before making his move into the financial services industry Mr Williams was a Royal Marines Commando in the UK’s Ministry of Defence.

Craig Mowll, Chief Executive Officer of Certitude commented, “Tim’s appointment is very much indicative of our great success this year. The business has gone from strength to strength and as we expand and our client base grows, the quality and skill of our people will be a key factor in our continued success.

“We continue to attract very high calibre people to Certitude which is a testament to the standard of our current team and our growing position in the market. Each new person to our business adds greater capacity and a stronger client focus to exceed adviser needs and our future growth. An important part of our value proposition to our clients is about delivering the best; across service, products and people. With his extensive experience in client relationship management, Tim brings a wealth of knowledge and capability that our clients will certainly benefit from. He is a great addition to an already robust and versatile team and we welcome him to his new role.”

Mr Williams commenced his role on 5 May and will report to Craig Mowll.

The post Certitude bolsters client service team with new appointment appeared first on AdviserVoice.

Craig Mowll

Certitude Global Investments (Certitude) has awarded Link Market Services (Link), a leading share registry and financial services provider in Australia and New Zealand, the contract to provide managed fund registry services to Certitude’s broad retail investor base, as well as supporting their financial advisers.

Link will provide Certitude with registry services for its managed funds including online reporting services for clients that will enable them to retrieve all necessary information to manage their investments with Certitude, such as transaction details and tax statements. Link’s system will also enable investors to more efficiently transact in Certitude funds, particularly by allowing applications and redemptions to be completed online.

Certitude singled out Link’s leading technology offering as superior to other registry service providers it considered as part of the review process it undertook. The online investor and adviser access was found highly accessible and functional, in addition to the straight through processing capabilities to streamline processing and improve timeliness and accuracy.

In Australia alone, Link manages over 10 million account records and processes more than $60 billion in payments every year.

Craig Mowll, Chief Executive Officer of Certitude commented, “Certitude has experienced continued growth and with this ongoing expansion we need a platform that can support us into the future. We see increased sophistication across the adviser, direct investor and SMSF client segments; these investors are demanding more so we believed in delivering best technology and systems that would suit their needs.”

“We concluded that Link had the best web solution with user friendly navigation that would really assist our clients. Its ongoing commitment to investment in its technology and systems provides a sophisticated and of the minute service to meet our clients’ needs.

“Client satisfaction has always been of utmost importance to us. We are focused on maintaining quality service and solutions as the business expands. We believe Link understands this and is committed to delivering the same high standards, which is why they are an ideal provider for us.”

Phillip Muhlbauer, CEO of Link Market Services added, “We are delighted with this positive feedback from Certitude. We continue to invest heavily in technology to ensure we offer funds market leading solutions and it is pleasing to see managers of Certitude’s calibre acknowledge our capabilities and the benefits of partnering with Link.”

The post Certitude Global appoints Link as service registry provider appeared first on AdviserVoice.

Craig Mowll

Certitude Global Investments (Limited) has appointed BNP Paribas Securities Services as custodian and administrator for 14 unit trusts. The trusts have almost $1 billion in assets under management.

Certitude is an independent provider of global investment manager skill, selecting leading active investment managers from around the globe and bringing their expertise to Australian investors. These include Threadneedle Investments (UK), Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC (US) and GaveKal Capital Limited (Hong Kong) and Columbia Management Investment Advisers LLC (US).

“As Certitude continues to expand its global manager partnerships and product suite BNP Paribas is very well positioned to support us and our growing client base”.

Peter Baker, head of BNP Paribas Securities Services Australia and New Zealand, said: “We are delighted that Certitude chose us. Our commitment to Certitude, and all of our clients, is to partner with them to optimise their operations, minimise their risks, enhance their performance wherever possible.

“We look forward to supporting Certitude’s future growth in Australia and globally as well as supporting the local asset management sector.”

The post Certitude Global Investments appoints BNP Paribas as custodian and administrator appeared first on AdviserVoice.

Craig Mowll

After a volatile start to 2014, appetite for overseas assets was up with the March Certitude Global Investing Intentions Index (CGIII) jumping by 15% to the second highest level since inception (June 2013). This just one month after intentions to allocate off-shore hit a low in February.

The Certitude Global Investing Intentions Index (CGIII) collates the views of over 500 actively engaged leading¹ investors and measures their net demand for global investments. It forms part of the larger Certitude Global Investing Intentions Report produced each month by Investment Trends.

According to the Report, demand for international shares is likely to be driving the increase in intentions to invest globally. The net percentage of investors intending to allocate to international equities rose to 16% in March (up from 14% in February). Meanwhile, intentions to increase exposure to Australian equities waned, dropping from 29% in February to 23% this month.

Craig Mowll, CEO of Certitude Global Investments said: “These results suggest that investors are rethinking their geographic allocation to take advantage of international investment opportunities, shifting assets from domestic to international equities. This is a smart diversification move for many Australian investors who historically are overweight domestic equities, meaning their portfolios carry a lot more risk should our economy experience a downturn.

“This month we also saw that investors’ concern level with global markets was just slightly above the all-time low from January 2014, despite many investors expressing concerns over China’s economic stability and the situation between Russia and Ukraine. The slightly lower fear level corresponds to the high demand we’re seeing for international shares.”

Managing volatility a theme for investors

The report also revealed an uptake of investors looking to use hedge funds to gain entry into the international market. Equities continue to be the asset class of choice for a large majority of those intending to allocate offshore, according to this month’s findings. However, March saw a pickup in interest for hedge funds, which rose 5 percentage points. 7% of those looking offshore said they are interested in hedge funds to gain global exposure.”

Commenting on this rise, Mr Mowll said, “A number of findings this month confirm that managing volatility is central to investors’ decision making when thinking about global and domestic opportunities. The increased intentions to allocate to hedge funds for global exposure is indicative of this; hedge funds allow investors to benefit from market upswings but protect on the downside, helping investors manage the volatility in their portfolios – which is a commonly cited concern each month in the Report.

“In fact, the findings from the CGIII Report on the appeal of hedge funds are congruous with the trend we’re seeing in the Certitude business. The LHP Global Long/Short Fund experienced one of the highest months ever in terms of inflows and this has largely been related to its low volatility, low beta and consistent performance throughout many market cycles over the past 14 years.

When asked how they plan to obtain international exposure, more investors are looking to actively managed funds (39%) than through directly purchasing shares of global companies (which decreased 4 percentage points to 35%). Mr Mowll commented that the findings indicate investors would prefer to leverage the expertise of a fund manager to make global investment decisions, rather than go it alone.

The most commonly named barriers to investing offshore provide further confirmation that volatility is a central concern of investors. Market volatility was the top barrier to investing overseas (24%), followed closely by investors’ lack of knowledge (22%) and exchange rate volatility (22%).

Regional investments appear to be more popular than a country-specific approach as revealed by trends in the CGIII Report. The US/North America remains the most popular region for investors looking offshore, rising 5 points to 48%. International funds covering multiple regions is the second most popular (stable at 28%), followed by Asia (23%) and Western Europe (22%), which both saw a rise in March. Meanwhile, China declined in popularity by 5 percentage points to 12%

Mr Mowll concluded: “Managing volatility risk will always be a key challenge for investors trying to construct a portfolio suited to their risk profiles. It is promising to see that Australian investors are looking at different ways to diversify their investments and still achieve an appropriate level of risk, bymaking regional investment plays (as opposed to country-specific), looking at actively managed funds, including hedge funds, and weighting portfolios away from a domestic bias.”

March CGIII – Key Findings

The post Investors going global to manage risk appeared first on AdviserVoice.

Ms Savedra steps into the newly created role, with responsibility for the development and maintenance of Certitude’s relationships with its investors and advisers in Victoria. Ms Savedra will also support Certitude’s growth further into the institutional space. Previously Ms Savedra served in a number of senior business development roles in Freehold Investment Management and Mutual Trust, part of Treasury Group, during her 20 year career in financial services.

The move by Certitude to hire Ms Savedra follows a period of rapid growth for Certitude in Victoria, with adviser demand in Certitude fuelled by the success of products such as the Threadneedle Global Equity Income Fund, launched in 2012.

Mr Mowll commented “Victoria is currently our fastest growing geography so we are delighted to be able to hire such a skilled and experienced business development executive to join our Melbourne team.” he said.

Ms Savedra took up the role on March 25^th and will report into head of the Victorian business Geoff Koudelka and Certitude CEO, Craig Mowll.

The post Certitude Global Investments expands Melbourne team appeared first on AdviserVoice.

Craig Mowll

Equity income strategies may have performed well in the last few years, but as quantitative easing is wound back and growth accelerates, can yield stocks really continue to deliver?

Absolutely, says Stephen Thornber, Fund Manager, Global Equity Income at Threadneedle Investments, who explained why investing for income can add performance over time, regardless of wider macroeconomic or stock market conditions.

“We believe there are fundamental reasons why high dividend companies outperform over the long term. Dividends demonstrate a commitment to creating shareholder value, promote long-term decision making, and reduce the risk that management makes poor investments.”

“Successful income investing is about identifying businesses that are paying high and growing dividends while sustaining a robust financial position. In a rising interest rate environment the importance of focusing on dynamic growing companies cannot be understated,” Mr Thornber explained.

“There is a misconception that performance of dividend stocks is closely linked to interest rates. In fact the majority of dividend stocks are priced by the market on a ‘total expected return’ basis against other stocks with similar prospects.”

“The exception to this is stocks we call ‘bond proxies’, typically companies that offer little or no growth, but a reliable income stream”. Regulated utilities or REIT’s would be good examples. These stocks are interest rate sensitive, and challenged by rising rates.”

Given the strong performance of the past few years, there is concern that equities may now be overvalued, and that investors should exercise caution.

Mr Thornber said that in his view equities remain attractive given valuations are at or below long term averages, and earnings are set to accelerate as a global recovery takes hold.

“High-dividend paying companies are trading at a discount to the broader market in every major market” he explained. “We are taking particular care when selecting companies in the US, where valuations are higher, but having said that, we feel the strong prospects for the US economy support higher valuations,” he said.

Mr Thornber continued by saying that dividend investing remains a sound investment approach for a number of reasons.

“For a start, current dividend payout levels are set to rise because corporates are in good health. In stark contrast to governments, corporates have done a good job of repairing their balance sheets in recent years. Cash generation is good, and because there is still reluctance to commit to large-scale capital expenditure, companies are using their cash in shareholder-friendly ways, such as dividend increases, special dividends and share buybacks,” he said.

In conclusion, Mr Thornber said that a global approach to equity income investing provided investors with a wider opportunity set.

“By adopting a global approach, investors gain access to economies which may be growing more quickly than their domestic economy.

“When managing portfolios, we aim to tilt the portfolio towards the fastest-growing industries and economies, spreading risk and increase total returns for our investors,” he said.

Threadneedle’s partner in Australia, Certitude Global Investments, reaffirmed that an equity income strategy is a particularly apt solution for local investors looking for international diversification.

CEO of Certitude, Craig Mowll said: “Australia represents only a small fraction of all investment opportunities, and local investors have recognised the need to diversify offshore. However, volatility in global markets is a concern for many Australian investors who want to preserve capital ahead of their retirement years. An equity income solution is therefore well-suited for investors who are looking to capture growth opportunities beyond our shores but still benefit from income that these dividend paying stocks provide.”

The post Investing for equity income stands the test of time appeared first on AdviserVoice.

Results from February’s Certitude Global Investing Intentions Index (CGIII) Report indicate that advised investors are more bullish in their intentions to invest offshore and they also hold much more stable views towards global investments than their non-advised counterparts.

The Report, produced each month by Investment Trends, collates the views of over 700 actively engaged leading investors and measures their net demand for global investments.

The latest CGIII Report reveals that non-advised investors’ net demand for international assets went from a high of 187 in November to a current low of 131 in just three months. Meanwhile, the intentions of advised investors remain stable by comparison, sitting at 167 in February.

This month, overall net demand for global investments decreased fifteen per cent to 154 from its peak in January. Despite the decrease, a large proportion of Australian investors still recognised a need to increase their global diversification with 39% agreeing that they need more international investments in their portfolio.

Global equities is by far the most popular asset class to obtain this exposure – 81% of investors who intend to invest overseas are interested in global equities when allocating offshore. By comparison, international property increased in popularity this month and is the second most popular asset class with those planning to invest globally, sitting at 17% (up from 9%).

Craig Mowll, CEO of Certitude Global Investments, said: “In January, investors signalled a very strong interest in investing globally when net-demand reached a peak. An interesting finding we saw in February is that the proportion of investors currently holding shares in overseas companies has increased significantly (37%, up 16% pts from January), which may be a reflection of last month’s intention turning to action.

“This month’s results also highlight a trend we’ve seen that investors with a financial adviser have steadier intentions when it comes to investing overseas than non-advised investors. This may suggest that advised clients are making more long-term considered decisions rather than having ‘knee-jerk’ reactions to market movements.”

Barriers to global investing

Behind the decrease in the Index are investors’ most commonly cited barriers to investing offshore – exchange rate volatility was cited as a concern for 23% of investors along with market volatility (21%) and lack of knowledge (21%). Since the inception of the CGIII Report (May 2013), these three barriers have consistently been the most frequently named by investors.

Mr Mowll commented, “The anecdotal comments we got from investors in this month’s Report corroborate these results. Investors name fears like loss of capital, uncertain markets and conflicting forecasts for market performance. It’s unsurprising then that advisor lead investors feel more positively about global investment opportunities than others and remain more stable in their intentions – they have the benefit of an advisers’ insight and experience of market cycles to manage volatile times. They are therefore more likely to stay the course of exploring the diversifications benefits from investing globally.”

USA remains top region, but decreasing its lead

Of the top three regions investors plan to increase exposure to, both the US/North America and Asia declined in popularity while international funds covering multiple regions remained steady. The US/North America is a perennial top choice region for investors looking to allocate offshore; this month 43% of those planning to invest overseas say US/North America is of interest, down from 52%in January. Asia too, which has consistently been among the top three, fell by 10 % pts to 18%.

Meanwhile appetite for international funds covering multiple regions remains strong, with 28% of investors considering such funds to gain broad global exposure. Mr Mowll commented that investors may be attuned to recent chatter of a downturn in Asian markets.

February CGIII – Key Findings

The post Knowledge is power for investors looking overseas appeared first on AdviserVoice.