Digital investment manager Scalable Capital has doubled its assets under management (AUM) in the past three months and now manages €200 million on behalf of its clients. The strong growth in AUM marks Scalable Capital as one of the fastest-growing fintech companies in Europe. Adam French, Founder and CEO of Scalable Capital, commented: “Our service has really struck a chord with frustrated retail investors who know that they should be making their money work harder.”

Copia Capital Management, the discretionary fund management division of Novia Financial, has launched a range of ETF managed portfolios purpose-built for decumulation of assets during retirement. The portfolios are designed to mitigate what is considered to be the key retirement concern – shortfall risk, the risk of running out of money. Henry Cobbe, Head of Copia Capital Management, said: “Decumulation is very different from accumulation. It has different objectives, different risks and requires a different investment approach. We don’t think it is right to recycle old thinking into this new world.”

By Thomas Verbraken, Vice President, Risk and Regulation Research at MSCI.

Ten months after the United Kingdom voted to exit the European Union, the negotiations over the UK’s departure are about to begin. While the process could take up to two years, institutional investors may seek to assess how Brexit may affect their portfolios. Using MSCI’s stress-testing capabilities, we examined three hypothetical scenarios that we summarize as a rough Brexit, a smooth Brexit and a Brexit that benefits the UK.

European ETF provider Lyxor has launched a new fund providing investors with exposure to UK inflation expectations. The Lyxor UK£ 10Y Inflation Expectations UCITS ETF (LON: UKBE) targets the spread between traditional bond yields and those of inflation-linked bonds, thus offering a pure play on inflation expectations without exposing the investor to changing interest rates.

Investors in currency ETFs with sterling exposure may need to brace themselves for increased volatility following confirmation that UK Prime Minister Theresa May will trigger Article 50 (the official process whereby Britain begins to leave the EU) this month and Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon is preparing for a second referendum on Scottish independence.

For the second week in a row, London-based ETF Securities’ gold and platinum ETFs experienced net outflows as expectations for a March rate hike by the Federal Reserve increased. According to the firm’s weekly flows analysis, its gold ETFs saw $71 million outflows as the spot gold price fell below $1,200/oz for the first time since the beginning of February. Janet Yellen (pictured) will announce the Fed’s rate decision on 15th March.

Almost three quarters of actively managed equity funds in the UK charge an identical annual fee of 0.75%, according to a study from fund manager SCM Direct. While active fund fees remain relatively high, the proliferation of ETFs across the world has forced providers to be more competitive and reduce costs – according to Goldman Sachs, the average typical European equity ETF costs 0.29%.

Index provider FTSE Russell has announced constituent changes to the FTSE 100 Index, the flagship reference for large-cap blue-chip stocks listed on the London Stock Exchange. The latest quarterly review will see consumer electronics retail giant Dixons Carphone and business process outsourcing company Capita removed in favour of pest control group Rentokil and investment trust Scottish Mortgage. The rebalance will trigger re-balancing activity in ETFs that track the index, such as the giant iShares Core FTSE 100 UCITS ETF (ISF).

European equities posted a healthy return in February with 2.9% added to the S&P Europe 350 Index. The strong index performance was reflected in the £2.3 billion iShares Europe ETF (NYSE: IEV) which uses the index as its underling reference. Tim Edwards, Senior Director of Index Investment Strategy, S&P Dow Jones Indices, said, “Europe’s performance this month seems to have defied logic, providing returns across the board despite widespread political uncertainty.”

ETF adoption across Europe is set to accelerate with industry assets on track to reach €1 trillion by 2020, according to research by Morningstar. The report identifies regulatory changes, product innovation and an increasing preference for low-cost investment solutions as key drivers in meeting this target. Hortense Bioy, Director of Passive Funds Research at Morningstar, commented: “Morningstar has long been a proponent of low-cost funds of all stripes as one of the most effective tools to drive success for investors. We welcome the growth of passive investing.”