Lonsec reprises top rating
Lonsec has been named Money Management's Ratings House of the Year for the second year in succession, on the back of strong support from both the fund managers it rates and the dealer groups it services.
The Ratings House of the Year Award is the result of Money Management's two-stage Rate the Raters survey process, in which both fund managers and dealer groups are questioned on their views of the major ratings houses on issues ranging from the quality of their research, value for money, personnel, customer service and model portfolios.
The runner-up for 2011 was van Eyk Research, which managed to regain much of the ground lost due to senior departures in the previous 18 months, including that of its founder, Stephen van Eyk.
Lonsec emerged as a winner, because it topped the scores across both the fund manager and dealer group elements of the survey, but it was the fund manager survey that proved crucial to its win.
Where the dealer group survey was concerned, Lonsec's overall result was tied with that of smaller ratings house, Zenith.
Subsequent to the two Rate the Raters surveys being held, Zurich announced the sale of Lonsec to the Mark Carnegie linked Financial Research Holdings, which also houses specialist superannuation ratings house, SuperRatings. This was later followed by the departure of head of research, Grant Kennaway - events that may alter perceptions of the ratings house in the 2012 survey.
In determining the Ratings House of the Year, Money Management took into account the number of clients serviced by each ratings house and provided a higher weighting to some criteria, such as quality of research and customer satisfaction.
While Lonsec was a clear winner in 2011, its margin over the other ratings houses was narrower than had been the case a year earlier - with van Eyk, Standard & Poor's, and Mercer each receiving a higher ranking.
According to Lonsec's head of research, Amanda Gillespie, the company's business model was at the core of its back-to-back success.
Gillespie said there had been a lot of debate around business models in the research industry, but added that "Lonsec would not have a successful research business if we compromised on the quality or objectivity of our research".
What was acknowledged by both Gillespie and van Eyk chief executive, Mark Thomas, was the importance of personnel with Gillespie crediting the stability of Lonsec's research team as a key ingredient for success.
Commenting on van Eyk's runner-up status, Thomas paid tribute to a successful rebuilding effort, and the recruitment of quality people into key roles.
"We continue to keep investing in the business," he said.
"It is true that we went through a period that challenged the culture of our business, but the culture has won," Thomas said.
AUTHOR
Mike Taylor
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