RBC Global Services has enlarged its alliance with the RiskMetrics Group to offer a web-enabled risk management tool that the bank says will help clients identify and measure sources of risk within investment portfolios. It is called BENCHMARK RiskManager.
“Risk management has proven to be an integral part in the investment decision making process over the past decade,” explains Fred Francis, vice-president, Securities Finance & Global Products for RBC Global Services. “With BENCHMARK RiskManager, investment managers can now better understand the sources of investment risk within their portfolio. This insight allows them to anticipate the impact of market-shifting events, make more effective decisions about asset allocation and ultimately achieve better risk-adjusted returns.”
By expanding the BENCHMARK platform to include RiskManager from RiskMetrics Group, the new tool aims to integrate market and portfolio data across asset classes to form a comprehensive source of investment information. In theory, managers can then create various investment scenarios and stress test market changes to see the potential impact on their portfolio as well as generate on- demand customized reports of their portfolios’ risk exposure using multiple VaR methodologies.
BENCHMARK RiskManager can be accessed through the Internet. In addition to the new service, it offers security-level attribution, portfolio analytics, Canadian universe comparisons and investment restriction reporting. RBC Global Services says these products help institutional investors measure portfolio performance, demonstrate the transparency of the investment process and meet their fiduciary responsibilities.