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Latest issue of Financial Investigator now online

Mon, 25 May 2026 06:03:59 +0200

_{This preface was originally written in Dutch. This is an English translation.}

Remarkable resilience

Robeco: Opkomende markten staan op pole position in de grondstoffenrace

Mon, 25 May 2026 00:03:43 +0200

Door Jan de Bruijn, Client Portfolio Manager bij Robeco

Nu de belangrijkste grondstoffen voor AI-infrastructuur en hernieuwbare energie vooral te vinden zijn in opkomende economieën in Latijns-Amerika, Afrika en Azië-Pacific, denken wij dat beleggers in opkomende markten de vruchten plukken van de wereldwijde strijd om grondstoffen.

PIMCO: A new Fed chair, a new tone but familiar anchors

Fri, 22 May 2026 14:49:35 +0200

By Richard Clarida, Global Economic Advisor at PIMCO

This week, Kevin Warsh becomes chair of the U.S. Federal Reserve Board of Governors. We expect he will take a thoughtful but distinctive approach to monetary policy and seek, over time, to shift Fed strategy in several areas. But any change will be evolutionary, not revolutionary.

Riverside builds Cryptomathic with TrustSkills add-on

Fri, 22 May 2026 12:49:14 +0200

The Riverside Company (Riverside), a global investment firm focused on the smaller end of the middle market, has announced that Cryptomathic, a portfolio company of its affiliated European fund, has acquired TrustSkills, a Danish software company specialising in certificate lifecycle management.

L&G: Sustainable investing – time for private markets to step up

Fri, 22 May 2026 10:03:45 +0200

Despite market headwinds, asset owners are reaffirming that long-term economic growth depends on systemic risk management and sustainability-driven value creation. Private markets must now step up.

By Amelia Tan, Head of Responsible Investment and Stewardship, L&G

Ethenea: Two central bankers, two approaches

Fri, 22 May 2026 09:23:38 +0200

The Fed is facing its most significant change in leadership in decades. With Warsh comes not just a different person, but a different understanding of what a central bank should do.

Swissquote: Pricing Mars

Fri, 22 May 2026 09:03:35 +0200

By Ipek Ozkardeskaya, Senior Analyst, Swissquote

Yesterday morning in Europe, the news that Iran wanted enriched uranium to remain in Iran echoed negatively across markets, pushing oil prices and yields higher while sending equities lower.

Han Dieperink: Wars drive innovation

Fri, 22 May 2026 06:02:04 +0200

^{This column was originally written in Dutch. This is an English translation.}

War is terrible, but the need to win drives innovation in a way that peace rarely manages to achieve.

By Han Dieperink, written in a personal capacity

Ocorian: Cautious optimism is driving European infrastructure lending

Thu, 21 May 2026 11:30:28 +0200

Military and defence and energy transmission are seen as clear leaders for lending opportunities. European infrastructure lending and investing are set for moderate growth but there is no prospect of a boom, new research from Ocorian Nordic Trustee show.

Federated Hermes: Navigating competing definitions of the lower mid-market

Thu, 21 May 2026 10:01:12 +0200

In the absence of consensus on what the lower mid-market is, investors are approaching this segment of private equity with vastly differing approaches that lead to vastly different outcomes.

By Brooks Harrington, CIO, Federated Hermes Private Equity

Swissquote: Mind the gap

Thu, 21 May 2026 08:55:00 +0200

By Ipek Ozkardeskaya, Senior Analyst, Swissquote

The beat goes on at Nvidia. For the 14th straight quarter — if I’m not mistaken — the company crushed expectations again. Revenue came in above $81bn, up 20% from the previous quarter and an impressive 85% from a year ago. Gross margins held near a stunning 75%, right in line with expectations, and the company also announced $80bn in stock buybacks.

Nuveen: Implications of the Dutch pension transition

Thu, 21 May 2026 06:04:30 +0200

With almost € 2 trillion of pensions assets on the move, the Dutch pension transition is raising fundamental questions for pension providers. What are the implications for different asset classes?

By Gül Poslu, Managing Director, Head of Benelux, Global Client Group, and Asbjörn Friederich, Senior Research Analyst, both at Nuveen

Amundi: A new world order, a new investment approach?

Wed, 20 May 2026 12:14:41 +0200

The recent crisis is not yet over, but looking beyond the short-term reactions, this period has revealed several trends that long-term investors cannot afford to ignore.

Aberdeen: UK has not yet overcome its inflation problems

Wed, 20 May 2026 12:09:40 +0200

Luke Bartholomew, Deputy Chief Economist at Aberdeen, comments on the UK inflation figures released this morning:

Nickel: Institutional investors are confident in crypto regulation

Wed, 20 May 2026 12:04:39 +0200

Institutional investors and wealth managers are confident regulators are committed to robust action in the crypto and digital assets sector, according to new global research by London-based Nickel Digital Asset Management.

Rick van der Ploeg: Climate transition still being undermined by misguided incentives

Wed, 20 May 2026 10:01:33 +0200

^{This article was originally written in Dutch. This is an English translation.}

Rick van der Ploeg, an economist and professor at the University of Oxford, argues that there are still many blind spots in global climate policy. In conversation with Financial Investigator, he explains why the true costs of CO₂ are many times higher than politics and the market suggest, and why, without strong incentives and social compensation, the transition risks stalling.

By Harry Geels

DNB: Why inclusion drives performance

Wed, 20 May 2026 09:26:22 +0200

‘Inclusion is not a policy. It is a culture. And culture is built by all of us’, said Olaf Sleijpen at a meeting of central banks as part of the International Day Against Homo/Bi/Inter/Transfobia (IDAHOBIT). He talked about why diversity and inclusion makes organizations stronger, and what every employee can do to create a better workplace.

BLI: The tail that wags the dog

Wed, 20 May 2026 09:21:21 +0200

By Guy Wagner, Chief Investment Officer at Banque de Luxembourg Investments (BLI)

There was a time when the stock market reflected the economy. It moved up and down as a consequence of underlying business conditions: profits, investment, productivity, and growth. The economy was the “dog,” and the market was the “tail.” That relationship has quietly reversed.

Swissquote: Nvidia day!

Wed, 20 May 2026 09:06:17 +0200

By Ipek Ozkardeskaya, Senior Analyst, Swissquote

It’s the same story, different day. Trump yesterday first called off an attack on Iran, then said he would resume strikes if they can’t agree on a deal. NATO said it could help secure shipping routes around the Strait of Hormuz if disruptions persist into early July. Europeans reportedly eased some sanctions on Russia as energy security concerns remain high.

Columbia Threadneedle: LDI 2.0 - three trends that are redefining matching portfolios

Wed, 20 May 2026 06:04:44 +0200

^{This article was originally written in Dutch. This is an English translation.}

Now that the dust has settled on the first wave of the Wtp transition, the outlines of a new generation of LDI strategies are emerging, with a different focus than usual. Three trends are currently influencing the development of matching portfolios.

By Jan Willemsen, LDI Client Portfolio Manager, Columbia Threadneedle Investments

Edward Roozenburg: AI agents as a prime target for hackers

Tue, 19 May 2026 14:16:52 +0200

_{This column was originally written in Dutch. This is an English translation.}

By Edward Roozenburg, Senior Risk Management Consultant, Probability & Partners

If you’re not careful with AI agents, you’ll be handing them the keys to the pension fund and letting them write down the safe combination straight away. Just what a hacker needs!

Harry Geels: The end of banking (as we know it)

Tue, 19 May 2026 12:28:29 +0200

_{This column was originally written in Dutch. This is an English translation.}

By Harry Geels

Professor Campbell Harvey recently announced the end of the bank as a business model, citing four key developments. It is an interesting view, but things are unlikely to happen that quickly. Regulatory inertia and political interests will keep banks afloat for a long time to come.

AF Advisors: To gain control of the Wtp chain, a guaranteed TOM is required

Tue, 19 May 2026 10:36:09 +0200

_{This column was originally written in Dutch. This is an English translation.}

By Ed Vermeulen, Director of Organisational Consultancy, and Dirk-Jan Gerrits, Partner, both at AF Advisors

During the roundtable discussions on SPR implementation organised by AF Advisors, it became clear once again just how important a shared target operating model (TOM) is for pension funds.

Ocorian: Family offices are becoming increasingly professionalised

Tue, 19 May 2026 10:36:37 +0200

New global research from Ocorian shows family offices are becoming increasingly professionalised on governance, structuring and investment portfolio management.

Aberdeen: Interest rates hike unlikely under these circumstances

Tue, 19 May 2026 09:10:53 +0200

Luke Bartholomew, Deputy Chief Economist at Aberdeen, comments on the UK unemployment figures released this morning: