In the most comprehensive survey of the UK asset management industry, the Investment Management Association (IMA) calculates that its members managed over ё3.1 trillion for clients at the end of last year.
The survey paints a detailed picture of the UK industry as at December 2006.
A key finding of the survey is that the UK asset management industry is becoming increasingly international with ё800 billion – 27 percent of total assets – being managed on behalf of overseas clients. This is down to international opportunities arising from a number of factors, including decreasing regulatory barriers – demonstrated by the global success of UCITS funds, the trend towards open architecture, new government asset pools and individual pension saving.
“The asset management industry is a major component of the UK financial services sector, which is in turn of critical importance to the UK economy,” says Richard Saunders, Chief Executive of the IMA. “we found that firms continue to be positive about the UK as a location in which to do business although there remain concerns about the cost of regulation and tax compliance.”