Forum set to probe growth of asset management industry

23/05/2016 07:42 AST

A key forum that seeks to assess the significant changes that are set to reshape the asset management industry will be held in Bahrain next week.

The Middle East Asset Management Forum (MEAMF 2016) is being launched under the patronage of the Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB) with the support of the Bahrain Asset Managers Association (BAMA), said a statement by the organiser Ethico Live!

To be held next Monday and Tuesday at the Gulf Hotel’s Gulf Convention Centre, the forum is themed “The Road Ahead in Mena Investment Industry”.

Combining a highly innovative and interactive format with world-class speakers and more than 200 international delegates, MEAMF 2016 will tackle the most pressing questions that will drive the ongoing progress of the asset management industry across the dynamic markets in this region, said the organiser.

The line-up of expert speakers includes CBB executive director for financial institutions supervision Abdul Rahman Al Baker, who will deliver the opening address, and J Equity Partners chief executive and BAMA chairman Dr Ahmed Al Jawhary.

This will be followed by a keynote session featuring Lazard Gulf managing director and chief executive Farah Foustok, Capital Growth Management chief executive Nabil Hamadeh and Securities and Investment Company head of asset management Shakeel Sarwar.

“The asset management sector is a growing sector within the fabric of Bahrain’s banking offering as a regional hub with a noticeable steady upward trend over the past few years,” said Dr Al Jawhary.

“The challenges to this promising sector might be more of awareness about the significance of asset management and wealth management regionally. It is time to differentiate between asset management and other parts of banking activities and to have a progressive and a dynamic approach towards this unique element of banking and finance.”

He said it was a collective responsibility of financial institutions, practitioners, service providers, regulators, and all other concerned stakeholders in Bahrain to tell the target clientele why professional asset managers were important and why their discipline could make the client’s life and/or businesses better or different and thus illustrate how this differentiation can be achieved.

“The culture element is very important, you have to overcome cultural barriers to enter any new activity, industry or line of business. Asset management is a key element of any international financial hub such as New York, London or Zurich. It was not given enough or distinct attention by the financial institutions in the region.

“Even when you had investors investing with a handful of regional investment firms in their random financial offerings and investment products, they were still doing their full-fledged asset management somewhere else in Europe or North America,” he added.

The upcoming specialised forum, Dr Al Jawhary said, was part of a campaign on creating awareness and showing potential clients that the same level and quality of asset management services can be delivered regionally on top of whatever they get out of international managers.

Gulf Daily News