There are differences between intermediated or “packaged” investments (life insurance, funds, savings plans, etc.) and direct investments in capital markets (ETFs, bonds, shares). Several independent studies indicate that the higher the annual fees, the lower the average medium and long-term returns of investment products. Annual fees for intermediated products are much higher than those for direct savings in securities. The impact of these fees in France has been especially significant for certain insurance
In the past year, indices measuring markets have ballooned to more than 3.7 m, as providers produce a large number of bond market, environment, social and governance benchmarks. The rising popularity of passive investing has influenced the designing of means to measure everything from performance of small companies, to the music streaming industry. According to
The European Banking Authority published its first report on financial education on Thursday 1 March, providing National Supervisory Authorities (NSAs) across the EU with an opportunity to share and compare experiences in terms of financial education. With the increasingly complex nature of financial services and investment tools, there is no question that educational initiatives for
Madrid – Today BETTER FINANCE’s Managing Director, Guillaume Prache, addressed the Santander International Banking Conference and called on the industry and regulators for more transparency on performances and fees as well as decent and higher returns for pension savings products: a requisite for EU citizens to get an adequate pension income. In turn, the EU
While voters are called upon to vote today in the UK to provide (or not) Theresa May with a strong majority government for the up-coming negotiations with the EU, asset managers seem increasingly worried about the access to investors in the EU when the UK finally leaves the EU common market. In a poll taken
Dozens of Volkswagen AG officials in Germany have hired U.S. criminal defense lawyers as the Justice Department ramps up meetings with managers to gather evidence that may lead to charges against executives, people familiar with the matter said. U.S. authorities have traveled to Germany to arrange interviews with managers and seek cooperation in their probe
In a recent Financial Times article, Guillaume Prache, Senior advisor at BETTER FINANCE, criticizes the use of Article 8 funds in sustainable investing. He argues that increasing the minimum sustainable investment percentage in these funds is ineffective and prone to greenwashing. These funds often oversimplify sustainability as mere ‘green activities’ and predominantly use an exclusion
Aimed at certifying the most virtuous funds, the SRI label, which has just been reformed by the government, now excludes companies with new oil projects. Guillaume Prache denounces an ideological reform that risks favoring foreign oil and gas companies. The reform of France’s SRI (socially responsible investment) label, as announced by the French Ministry of
Retail investors are increasingly concerned about the impact of their investment decisions on society and the environment. In recent years, European Union (EU) institutions have amended the legislation regarding the distribution of retail investment products by investment firms–the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID II)–and related delegated legislation and guidelines to define how investment firms
BETTER FINANCE expresses concern over Deutsche Bank’s disclosure of missing Russian shares. The bank recently revealed a shortfall in the shares underlying depositary receipts (DRs), further increasing the challenges for European investors seeking to recover their investments in Russian listed companies, especially individual non-professional ones. DRs are used in international stock trading as a means
This new statement follows on an earlier case where VZMD, the Pan-Slovenian Shareholders Association, opposed pressure on its ‘Share SUPPORT’ programme by a brokerage industry player, harming the minority, individual shareholders it aims to represent. Today, VZMD pointed to further shortcomings and misleading claims made by the ATVP (The Slovenian Securities Market Agency) against its
BETTER FINANCE Member VZMD makes Objections Public in OPEN LETTER to the CEO of the Slovenian Securities Market Agency (ATVP), the national competent Authority In a press release at the end of 2021, VZMD – the Pan-Slovenian Shareholder Association and BETTER FINANCE Member – drew attention to the mass dissemination of letters and “innovative” offers
The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has published a questionnaire which aims to gather evidence on potential short-term pressures on corporations stemming from the financial sector. On December 2019, the findings will be presented to the European Commission that will consider to follow up on them, which might include political actions. Find BETTER FINANCE’s response to
In last week’s extensive article entitled Pressures on Slovenia, Which Are Not Discussed Publicly (www.delo.si/novice/slovenija/pritiski-na-slovenijo-o-katerih-se-na-glas-ne-govori-81803.html), the leading newspaper (Delo) disclosed the continuous and ever greater pressures on Slovenia to withdraw from the investigation of these acts, despite reasonable grounds for suspecting that in the fall of 2013 the then heads of the Bank of Slovenia