European asset managers will face a wave of competition from fast-growing Asian rivals in the next five years, according to private banks, retails banks and financial advisers.
To date Asia’s nascent fund groups, most of whom are currently dwarfed by their big US and European rivals, have largely concentrated on attracting assets from domestic investors. But they are expected to launch an assault on the European marketplace.
“They will grow a lot and become more serious competitors for the Europeans over the next five years,” said Hans Jürgen Schmolke, managing director of Berlin-based Fund Buyer Focus, which identified the trend in a survey of 340 fund distributors in 10 European countries.