Instreet talks up ‘bespoke’ approach
Improved investor sentiment fuelled by strong equity markets is resulting in a growing demand for bespoke structured products, according to George Lucas, managing director of boutique fund manager Instreet Investment.
"In the current market environment, bespoke products appeal to advisers and their clients who have specific views on the market and are looking to implement these in their client portfolios while managing the risk with known downside outcomes," he said.
"These products offer a tailored solution where either the adviser or client chooses the underlying asset classes and designs the payout profile to meet their specific views and financial needs.
"It also highlights where the financial planning industry may be heading as advisers are looking to offer individual solutions that engage their clients with a tailored solution."
Lucas pointed to a recently won mandate from a boutique adviser practice as an example. He said that Instreet had won the mandate with a brief to construct a bespoke product based on a basket of eight US stocks covering five industry sectors.
"This reflects the need of advisers looking for products that are relevant to their clients' portfolios," he said.
"This is why advisers have shown a keen interest in our bespoke product structuring capability because it allows them to be able to offer tailored investment solutions."
According to Lucas, Instreet recently closed off another bespoke product based on the ASX200 that gave investors an exposure to the ASX200 for an upfront cost which was a fraction of the notional exposure to the ASX 200.
"After five years and more than $500 million in assets under management, we are now viewed as a product structure and issuer that's backed by a professional and skilled team," he said.
"(But) it's leveraging our capabilities for the benefit of advisers and their groups that excites us the most."
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