Fund manager numbers set to halve: Schroder
Half of the managers in the Australian funds management sector could cease operating as a result of the current market downturn, according to Schroder chief executive officer Greg Cooper.
“I easily see the industry moving to having half the number of participants it has now.
“If you look at the list of Aussie equity managers out there, there is some 130-plus managers. There are almost more fund managers than there are stocks. Quite clearly this is ridiculous,” he said.
Also a board member of the Investment and Financial Services Association, Cooper said falling share prices had resulted in revenues in the industry of 50 per cent less in 2009 than they were at the start of 2008.
“If you take any business and halve the top line, that’s going to have a profound effect on the sustainability of quite a lot of businesses, and certainly what the asset management industry is looking at coming into 2009.
“That will come at the expense of less people in the industry, there’s no question about that,” he said.
“It’s going to be about people who have got the balance sheets, the financial strength, and the business models to be able to continue to survive through the next 18 months.”
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