Together with the Office for Economy Canton Schwyz and Finanz und Wirtschaft, Swiss Finance Institute (SFI) hosted this yearly conference for asset managers in Switzerland―an event that brought together more than 250 financial industry professionals and academics to discuss the triggers and solutions that will bring asset management to the next level.

Climate Change
Prof. Thomas Stocker, University of Bern, highlighted, during his keynote address, the facts regarding climate change and how it is impacting our everyday lives. The discussion was then extended to financial risks and opportunities for the asset management business, during the panel discussion with Guido Fürer, Swiss Re, Frédéric Hoogveld, Amundi, and René Weber, State Secretariat for International Finance.

Goal-Based Investment
The concrete goals of clients move center stage in the investment process of goal-based investment. An introduction to goal-based investment as well as an in-depth analysis for pension funds was provided by Prof. Pierre Collin-Dufresne, SFI & EPFL. Matthias Wyss, swissQuant Group, and David Strebel, Thurgauer Kantonalbank, then presented their experiences in this field.

Compliance and Performance: Why Asset Managers Should Mind “Governance Correctness
Felix Haldner, Partners Group and SFAMA, devoted his keynote address to the fact that the asset management industry is being hit by a wave of regulation, and showed that listed companies too are under pressure from an increasing number of rules.

The Alpha versus Beta Debate
Digitalization and data analytics are reshaping the asset management value chain and redefining the meaning of information for investment decisions. They set the debate over active versus passive investment approaches on a new qualitative level. SFI Adjunct Prof. François-Serge Lhabitant, Kedge Capital, shed light on this topic from a hedge fund perspective, while Prof. Amit Goyal, SFI & UNIL, Roger Hilty, LGT Capital Partners, Dr. Anja Hochberg, Credit Suisse, and Dr. Graham Robertson, Man AHL, shared their views on the subject during a panel discussion.

The conference was rounded off by an networking aperitif at which participants were able to continue their discussions and knowledge exchanges. Additional conference videos can be viewed here.