European regulated funds see inflow of money
In a further sign that the worst of the financial crisis has passed, Europe’s regulated investment funds saw a net inflow of money during the first three months of 2009.
According to the European Fund and Asset Management Association, about €22bn flowed into so-called UCITS funds during the first quarter of the year – a reversal from 2008, when €142bn flowed out in the fourth quarter as panicking investors tried to hoard cash.
The Association acknowledged that the bulk of the money now coming back in to the industry was going into money market funds and that the pattern differed to some extent between different countries.
But the association said that there had also been a “deceleration” in outflows from equity and bond fund and it believed a turning-point had been reached. “We can say that the bleeding has stopped,” it commented.
Equity and bond funds did see some positive inflows in January, but market turbulence then made investors more cautious in February and March. The outflows, however, were described as “small” by comparison with the mayhem of the previous autumn.
Even so, total net assets in UCITS funds – which excluded more lightly-regulated segments of the fund management industry, such as hedge funds and private equity funds – fell by 1.4 per cent in the first quarter to reach €4,499bn.
The assets of Europe’s entire investment fund market – so including both UCITS (Undertakings for collective investments in transferable securities) and non-UCITS funds – was down by a similar percentage at €6,022bn.
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Source: FT.com
