UK institutional investors favour local asset managers

Local managers perform strongly in almost all asset classes and management styles, according to research by Fundamental Media

Key points:

• Institutional investors in the UK prefer local brands, with seven local managers present in the top ten of the strongest asset management brands.
• Brand recall is positively correlated to propensity to buy, with 82% of companies mentioned in propensity to buy also being recalled for specific asset classes and management styles.
• On average, most respondents are very familiar or quite familiar with a third of the asset managers prompted.

Institutional investors in the UK prefer local brands, with seven local managers present in the top ten of the strongest asset management brands, research by Fundamental Media found.

This is one of the key findings from the UK Institutional Global Brand Survey 2024, which is based on the responses from 86 institutional investors in the UK. To understand their perception of asset managers’ brands, we have developed a Brand Equity Index using a combination of quantitative and qualitative methods across four pillars: recall, familiarity, propensity to buy and distinctiveness.

Institutional investors were asked which managers they associate with 15 different asset classes and management styles. Three or four local managers were in the top five of recalled companies in all of these, apart from North American equities, emerging market equities, passive management and smart beta. However, a few international players are also strongly positioned in most asset classes and management styles.

Brand recall is positively correlated to propensity to buy, with 82% of companies mentioned in propensity to buy also being recalled for specific asset classes and management styles. However, only 27% of the 136 recalled brands were also mentioned in propensity to buy. This suggests that while being on top of mind is key, the number of companies considered in requests for proposals (RFPs) is limited, and other factors will also play a crucial role.

On average, most respondents are very familiar or quite familiar with a third of the asset managers prompted. The top three brands are well known among more than 70% of respondents.

Institutional investors were asked to mention up to three asset managers which they are likely to consider for RFP over the next 12 months, which was used to calculate each manager’s score for propensity to buy. We also asked respondents what values they attribute to those managers and what makes them want to consider them for RFP. This revealed that the brands with the highest propensity to buy scores had the most comments on ‘product/know-how’ (61%).

For more information on our Global Brand Survey and to obtain a copy, please visit our dedicated webpage.