24 January 2020
- Kutxabank is the 5th largest group in Investment Funds, Pension Funds and EPSVs in the Spanish national market. The Group manages a position of over 25,000 million euros
Kutxabank is the 5th largest group in Investment Funds, Pension Funds and EPSVs in the Spanish national market. The Group manages a position of over 25,000 million euros. Cecabank and Kutxabank have signed a strategic partnership agreement for the depository service for collective investment institutions, pension funds and EPSVs.
Cecabank is the leader in the fund depositary business, with over 119 billion euros in deposited assets, providing this service to 29 management entities. In 2019, the assets deposited in Cecabank rose by 10.8%. This represents 5.8% more than the rest of the sector.
Kutxabank is the leading entity in EPSVs with assets of over 9.5 billion euros. It is also the fifth largest group in collective investment institutions, pension funds and EPSVs in Spain, with over 25 billion euros spread across 144 investment vehicles.
The agreement thus seals the trust between the two organisations, demonstrating the synergies that can be achieved with this partnership.
Cecabank also contributes to the specialisation of tasks that must be performed by an independent depositary. Some of these tasks include supervising the activity of management entities, the custody, registration and administration of assets, and controlling cash from their position of independence. All this is because it is a wholesale bank, whose Group activity does not include any management or marketing of third-party assets.
This fund depositary partnership represents a step forward for Kutxabank in the ongoing improvement of its customer service. It prioritises its core activity of asset management and marketing, with greater independence in its control processes. It will also feature the additional guarantee provided by Cecabank as a specialist in depositary activity.
Independent depositaries as a means to bolster security for investors
Separating the depositary activity from those of asset marketing and management provides greater strength to the asset management industry. It also allows for more security provided for investment and pension fund stakeholders.
The asset management industry is increasingly sensitised to the benefits of having an independent and high-quality depositary. In fact, successive legislative reforms in the European Union in the pursuit of continent-wide harmonisation of the asset management industry and of investor protection have provided a considerable impetus for encouraging companies to seek out and appoint independent depositaries.
