Investment management fees enter new downward phase as pricing pressure spreads to private markets, finds bfinance study

Wed, 24 Jun 2026 21:10:06 +0000

Olivier Cassin

bfinance, the award-winning investment consultant, has published new analysis revealing that investment management costs appear to be entering a new downward phase. A near two-decade decline in public market fees is spreading out to private markets in the ‘turbulent twenties’, according to the latest instalment of the consultancy’s Fee and Cost Insight series.

A new cost-compression front opening up in private markets

Private market fees had been broadly stable at the start of the 2020s, even as public market costs declined. That stability is now much less assured, and it appears that the near two-decade decline in public market fees since the Global Financial Crisis (GFC) may now be broadening out across the wider investment management industry.

The nature of today’s pressures constitutes a departure from most of the post-GFC era, explains Olivier Cassin, Managing Director at bfinance. “Fee declines in the 2010s were largely driven by public market passive competition, smart beta adoption, and the low-rate environment. Today’s pricing pressures are more closely linked to private markets performance challenges, fundraising difficulties, and evolving competitive dynamics.”

Simultaneous to building pressures in private markets, public markets look to be confronting new ones. A higher-for-longer interest rate environment, for instance, is presenting challenges for active bond managers. It is stimulating growth in the active fixed-income ETF sector – there are parallels here to the impact that a low-rate environment had in spurring the growth of passive equity products.

Various bfinance sources are now pointing in the same direction

Drawing on its manager search work, fee analysis and survey data, bfinance has identified meaningful cost reductions across several public and private asset classes since the early 2020s.

In public markets, the median quoted fee discovered in the process of bfinance searches for global emerging market pooled equity funds ($100 million allocations) has fallen by approximately 13%, from 69 basis points (bps) in 2021-22 to 60 bps in 2025-26. Although the consultancy has observed pricing pressure in global equities, the factors driving this are more nuanced, both from the perspective of the funds being promoted, and investor demand.

“Private markets are experiencing a growing divergence between stated fees and actual fees available to investors,” explained Kieren Bussey, Senior Associate, Portfolio Solutions. “Managers are increasingly using discounts, fee holidays, first-close incentives and other mechanisms that may not be visible in benchmarking data. In many cases, real pricing is moving faster than formal fee schedules suggest.”

In addition, the report finds a widening gap between investor segments. Large, established institutional allocators are best positioned to benefit from enhanced negotiating leverage, while smaller institutions and newer wealth-sector entrants have less access to favourable terms.

Semi-liquid funds marketed to wealth clients are materially more expensive than equivalent institutional products, even after intermediary-negotiated discounts are factored in, raising pointed questions about value for money for a client segment that is already less able to access favourable terms.

Savings are available but not everyone is capturing them

So, despite widespread evidence of fee compression, transparency stays a major obstacle, particularly in private markets where complex frameworks and limited disclosure can obscure true costs.

“The conversation is no longer simply about whether fees are falling,” Cassin added. “The more important question is who is benefiting, where the real savings are occurring, and whether investors have the visibility needed to assess value for money. As pricing structures become more complex, robust benchmarking and governance remain critical.”

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bfinance hires Olivier Cassin as global head of investments and research

Tue, 14 Mar 2023 20:40:52 +0000

Olivier Cassin

bfinance, an independent investment consultancy, has announced the appointment of Olivier Cassin, who will lead the firms research and investment teams following bfinance’s recent management buyout.

Mr Cassin returns to the firm in the newly created role of Head of Investments and Research, having previously worked at bfinance from 2000 to 2014. He arrives from BNY Mellon, where he was Head of EMEA Client Solutions and previously managed the UK and European institutional sales team.

In the new position, Mr Cassin, who is based in the firm’s London office, will head up all research activities globally including manager selection across all asset classes, portfolio design, ESG advisory, risk analytics, monitoring and fee benchmarking. As well as overseeing the delivery and quality of the firm’s existing services, Mr Cassin will also focus on new product innovation and supporting business development for next phase of the firm’s growth.

This appointment is part of several strategically significant hires for bfinance as the firm embarks on its next phase of growth following a management buyout supported by Beach Point Capital Management. Staffing levels have expanded steadily through recent years, with particularly marked increases in technology (where headcount has quadrupled since 2020), portfolio solutions and private markets.

David Vafai, Chief Executive Officer at bfinance, said: “I am pleased to welcome Olivier back into the bfinance family. He was pivotal in our early expansion, and it is a privilege to once again be able work with him in this exciting new post-MBO phase.”

Olivier Cassin, Head of Investments and Research at bfinance, said: “I am delighted to rejoin bfinance, a company that has grown so impressively over the past few years through the quality of its teams, the strength of its research and its total dedication to bringing clarity to sophisticated investors.”

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