FundRock Management Company (FundRock), a European third-party UCITS Management Company (ManCo) and Alternative Investment Fund Manager (AIFM), has been confirmed as the biggest third-party ManCo in Luxembourg in PwC Luxembourg’s latest annual survey.The rankings measure the size of third-party ManCos by assets under management (AUM). FundRock, which oversees almost 400 UCITS and alternative investment funds in Luxembourg with a total AUM of EUR67.9 billion (as of 31 December 2019), rose to the top of the rankings after recording a 57 per cent increase in AUM last year, attributable to organic growth and the acquisition of SEB Fund Services at the end of 2018. The firm had been placed second in last year’s index.
In addition, FundRock made its first appearance in PwC’s top 10 index of AIFM licence-holders in Luxembourg, where it was ranked sixth with total assets of EUR22bn.
In the broader index of all ManCos in Luxembourg – including those managed internally by investment management firms as well as those provided as an outsourced service by the likes of FundRock – the firm was ranked 16th overall.
Xavier Parain, Group CEO of FundRock, says: “FundRock and our asset management clients performed extremely well in 2019, which is reflected in the firm’s position in this year’s PwC Luxembourg ManCo barometer. We are very grateful to our clients for the confidence and trust they have placed in us and to our employees for another successful year. The growth we enjoyed last year meant we were able to enter the current period of market turbulence in a strong position and we look forward to continuing to grow our market share as we come out of the crisis, expanding into new territories such as France and rolling out new services.”
Parain adds: “These are challenging times for the asset management sector, but once again, the UCITS and AIFM sectors have proved resilient and robust. These markets have continued to function and systemic risks have been mitigated, a sign that the right lessons were learned from the global financial crisis.”
FundRock has operations in the UK, Ireland and Singapore, as well as Luxembourg, where it is headquartered. It is currently seeking regulatory authorisation to set up an additional operation in France. As of 31 December 2019, FundRock as a whole oversaw around 450 funds with a total AUM of EUR88.4 billion.
