Providing Asset Servicers with a dedicated team
Building on clients’ trust and a high demand, EY Luxembourg decided to dedicate a team, led by Pierre-Marie Boul, to better serve the industry.
Asset Servicers, Professionals of the Financial Sector (PSFs) as well as third-party Alternative Investment Fund Managers (AIFMs) and management companies, are facing complex challenges, mainly: intensified cost pressures, unprecedent races to scale up activities and an evolving technology and service offering, to name but a few.
Embracing the revolution
Over the past two years, Asset Managers have been forced to rapidly adapt to disruptive market conditions brought by the unprecedent pandemic, stressing the need for a greater digitalization of services and operations, and accelerating the growth of certain asset classes such as infrastructure or debt. But even before 2020, the rate of change was already quickly accelerating due to important tax transformations, regulatory changes or the fast-growing interest in private assets. To keep up with the pace of digitalization and shift in investors’ demands, Asset Managers have had to adjust and redefine their servicing offering to remain competitive.
This evolution – or revolution, has naturally cascaded to Asset Servicers who need to be increasingly more agile, transform their service offering and delivery model to adapt to Asset Managers and respond to Investors.
Data management is now a priority for Asset Servicers who have the ambition to scale-up and automate their operations with innovative technology, developing at the same time an expertise and also a clear reporting offering in environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) – which remains on top of Asset Servicers’ agendas.
The perspective of the ATAD 3 implementation (the draft Directive being published on 23 December 2021), with the European Commission releasing its proposal for a directive “to end the misuse of shell entities” is predicting even more evolutions to come in the corporate services segment.
Asset Servicers put at the center
EY Luxembourg has been partnering with Asset Servicers for many years, leveraging on its leading position in the Banking & Capital Market and in the Alternatives sector. Conscious of the numerous and more and more complex challenges faced by Asset Servicers, and equipped with professionals who developed a unique skillset, insights and value-added proposition, it became obvious for the management of EY Luxembourg that it was the right time to dedicate a team entirely to the Asset Servicing industry.
With more than 15 years of experience in auditing asset managers and their products, and partnering with asset servicers for developing third-party assurance solutions (i.e. ISAE / SOC reports) in Luxembourg and abroad, Pierre-Marie Boul, Associate Partner, has a strong knowledge of the industry. Appointed Asset Servicing Leader at EY Luxembourg, he comments:
“Specialized not only in audit, but also in consulting, tax and strategy & transactions, EY Luxembourg offer a global approach and a network of professionals able to anticipate the next trends in the market built on local expertise. Dynamically responding also to the nuances of each jurisdiction, we help Asset Servicers in unlocking innovative paths and taking steps to more digitalized operating models and agile business environments”.