Gosling's Grouse: Small is beautiful

GOSLING'S GROUSE

Much has been said about the future of smaller, independent advisers, and maybe even some of the larger firms, but what about the fate of fund management companies? If RDR is proving a challenge to the adviser part of the market, the same can only be true for fund managers.

Currently, the UK market is being dominated by a very small number of groups in individual sectors. M&G and Invesco Perpetual gain the majority of flows in the major equity and fixed income markets, Standard Life Investments is hoovering up the absolute return money with GARS (now Newton Real Return is close to capacity), while Aberdeen and First State dominate Asia, emerging market equities, and increasingly EMD as well. It is hard to argue against any of these groups and their individual funds or managers. The industry worried about Neil Woodford going through £1bn in a fund a few y...