JP Morgan Asset Management (JPMAM) has identified Australia as an emerging growth market as it seeks to double its assets under management in Asia Pacific in the next five years.
The firm’s APAC region currently has US$300 billion ($462 billion) in AUM, which is double the size of the business in the region back in 2019.
Dan Watkins, APAC CEO at JPMAM, said his goal is now to double this again over the next five years, and that Australia will be a key region for future growth.
Speaking at a conference in South Korea, he said: “Our ambition is to double the APAC business again over the next five years and our long-term goal is to grow it to a US$1 trillion business.”
The wider JPMAM business has US$3 trillion in AUM globally.
He went on to namecheck Australia – as well as Singapore, South-east Asia, and Korea – as being an emerging growth market where the firm is seeing “remarkable momentum and real growth potential”.
This contrasts with so-called established core markets for JPMAM, which exist in Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Japan.
Looking at specific products, the APAC CEO flagged growth in ETFs and alternative vehicles. In Australia, there are currently 14 ETFs available in the market covering areas such as global equities, equity income, and global bonds.
Watkins said: “Active ETFs, alternatives and product innovation are three of the key priorities we’re investing in to capture the next generation of growth in the region.”
In October, JPMAM announced the launch of four low-cost ETFs for advisers in partnership with Vanguard, which will utilise JPMAM’s active management expertise and Vanguard’s passive experience in a cost-effective solution.
A suite of four ETFs – conservative, balanced, growth, and high growth – will have different strategic asset allocations across each vehicle and are set to launch in the first quarter of 2026.
The asset manager is also working with Colonial First State (CFS) to manage two global equity strategies run as multimanager single-sector options. The JPMAM Global Select and Global Emerging Markets Analyst funds will provide access to global equities, focusing on long-term fundamentals and cover a universe of over 2,500 stocks.
This is the second deal CFS has made with JPMAM in recent months, as it was announced in August that it had partnered with the global asset manager on a private equity allocation, which will invest in secondaries and co-investment with a focus on small and mid-cap buyout transactions.
