30
In 2006, AMG benefited from the upturn in the markets and increased the volume of assets under management to € 2.0 bn.
In the area of individual asset management for private and institutional customers, portfolio volume increased to € 1.6 bn over the previous year. The number of managed portfolios rose by 13%.
AMG’s fund asset management is BA-CA’s competence centre for third-party funds and funds of funds (retail funds and special funds of funds). In funds of funds business volume rose to € 1.1 bn by the end of 2006; PIA Master Fonds, the funds of funds managed by AMG, achieved a volume of € 860 m as of 31 December 2006.
AMG’s brokerage activities largely focus on private customers with institutional needs. As in the preceding years, these were again very successful in 2006. The good performance was attributable to favourable market developments, and to the integration of the Active Advisory services of BANKPRIVAT in AMG’s brokerage activities and their transfer to AMG.
Structured products – an important product group from BA-CA’s Own Issues unit, for which AMG has product responsibility – were very well received in the market in 2006. The five guarantee bonds launched in 2006 generated a volume of € 277 m that was attributable to 2006 (the subscription period for one bond commenced in 2005, while that for a second bond ended in 2007). This compared with a volume of € 145 m in 2005.
Product developments for the Retail segment: AMG developed a new, standardised asset management product for Bank Austria Creditanstalt’s retail business. The product, marketed under the name FokusInvest, will be launched in March 2007: with a minimum investment of € 15,000 investors can take advantage of the benefits afforded by this flexible asset management tool, which responds to market developments in a flexible manner (similar to an asset management power of attorney in discretionary business) in line with the investor’s instructions. Depending on his yield objective and risk appetite, the investor can select one of three options: “return oriented”, “balanced” und “growth oriented”. Active management and strict quality control are designed to maximise return while minimising risk of loss. The investment spectrum ranges from money market investments through bonds, shares and real estate securities to commodities.
FokusInvest will be launched together with AnlageCheck, largely also developed by AMG. This is an advisory tool used by BA-CA’s portfolio managers to analyse investors’ financial assets in terms of risk, return and liquidity. The portfolio manager can then inform the investor of any potential for improving the performance of his portfolio. The general objective is to ascertain whether the investor’s risk / return profile is commensurate with that of his portfolio.