Aquest Podcast: Recent Episodes
Daniel Lawlor
A conversational and light-hearted look at all things topical in the Financial Services industry - insightful but not hard work!
How FS and professional services firms develop an effective business strategy is the topic for this episode of The Aquest Podcast. My guest is Annette Mahon who is a commercial strategy and business development consultant working exclusively with service providers and financial/fund services businesses.
We chat about Annette’s journey into the funds industry and her observations as someone coming fresh to the industry.
We discuss how FS firms go about devising and deploying a business strategy to win and retain customers, keep existing staff happy and entice new employees. Annette shares insights on what the best firms do well and how others can catch up.
We also chat about what business strategy means for an Irish FS business that is part of an international firm – and how to plan the ideal agenda for a visit from HQ’s CEO!
Many thanks to Annette for her thoughts and advice. Enjoy!
On this episode of the Aquest Podcast I’m joined by Adrian Mulryan, CEO of Invesco Investment Management to talk about ETFs (mostly!).
We begin by reflecting on the predictions made by Adrian the last time he came on the podcast in 2018. His predictions were pretty accurate, to be fair, and he wasn’t shy about reminding me either.
We go on to chat about the continued growth of ETFs, both in terms of assets under management and product range. We take quite an in-depth look at ESG ETFs and how investors are driving strong inflows here. We also chat about product innovations, active ETFs and speculate on the tokenization of ETFs.
Let’s see how accurate these predictions prove to be in 2029! Enjoy
It’s time to get techie on the Aquest Podcast and who better to guide us through the intersection of technology and financial services than Dáire Lawlor, MD at tech advisory firm Interwoven.
We chart the growing use and integration of technology in financial services firms from the early 2000s (when tech integration was patchy at best) through the global financial crisis in 2008 (which brought a deluge of new reporting and compliance obligations) and up to DORA (the Digital Operational Resilience Act) which comes into effect on 17 Jan 2025.
It’s a lot of ground to cover but it does help explain how we’ve arrived at DORA and what DORA is intended to achieve. We also chat about the types of challenges firms are facing when implementing DORA - particularly from a critical third-party service provider perspective.
We conclude by considering the board’s role in governance and oversight of the use of ICT and the associated risks.
Many thanks to Daire for sharing his insights on this episode. Enjoy!
In this ‘Director’s Chair’ episode of the Aquest Podcast I’m joined by Syl O’Byrne who has many years’ experience as a financial services lawyer, both in private practice and industry.
We begin by chatting about Syl’s pathway to becoming an INED and his observations on the current funds landscape generally.
We also chat about the impact of the Individual Accountability Framework from a director’s perspective and the balance between collective responsibility and individual accountability. We discuss the regulatory burden and barriers to entry and speculate about getting the cost/benefit balance right.
We wrap up by discussing some of the specific topics on a director’s radar such as SFDR, DORA, valuations, outsourcing and governance.
So it’s fair to say that there is plenty to occupy the minds of our INED community. Enjoy!
With the new EMIR REFIT (the revamp of the European Market Infrastructure Regulation) reporting requirements kicking-off on 29 April 2024, I’m joined by 2x EMIR REFIT experts to chat about what changes are being introduced and how firms are coping with implementation.
Aoife Storey (Client Solutions Manager) and Gerard Gilsenan (Chief Revenue Office) of Fund Recs join me and share their insights and expertise on the challenges with implementing EMIR REFIT, emerging market practices and governance frameworks. We also chat about the importance of good quality data from a regulator’s perspective and how tech solutions can help firms manage oversight of enormous amounts of reported data.
And we also have Aoife’s top tips for firms who are not there yet! Enjoy
In this episode of the Aquest Podcast I catch up with Ann Shiels, sustainability expert with Finlexsus. Ann appeared on the show in May 2022 and I was interested to get her take on developments in market practices and regulations on ESG in the interim.
We chat about SFDR 1.5/2.0, the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive, the regulation of ESG rating agencies and the current Common Supervisory Action on SFDR compliance. We also discuss whether some of the steam has gone out of the ESG movement and whether the pending revision of SFDR is causing investor confusion leading to ESG fund outflows.
So, in a nutshell, there has been plenty of activity in the ESG space since Ann last appeared on the Aquest Podcast in 2022!!
Impact of T+1 SettlementAs firms in the US prepare for the momentous move to T+1 settlement in May 2024, I chat with Adrian Whelan, regulatory expert, about how this change will have a broad impact outside the US.
With knowledge/appreciation of what's coming pretty patchy at best, we discuss the implications for firms on everything from fx to securities lending. We also chat about the steps that firms should be taking now to ensure that they are ready for T+1. We even contemplate T+0 and whether this is feasible and desirable in practice.
Enjoy!
What are payment services?From time to time, I encounter firms where part of their business model involves receiving money from clients which the firm holds and later transmits to a third party.
For me, this always begs the question 'Is this a payment service?'
Sometimes it is and sometimes it isn't. But it is often a question which the firm has not thought to ask and one which they will need help with resolving if they are, however inadvertently, offering a payment service.
In this episode, I'm joined by payments expert Ruairí deBurca to chat discuss the various types of activities which are regulated as payment services. We also discuss what firms can do if they are/would like to include a payment service as part of their customer offering.
Enjoy!
Reducing Friction in the Payments ProcessWhen he was CEO of a communications business, Feargal Brady saw the inefficiencies in the current payments process first hand - and he vowed to do something about it!
So, when he exited the communications industry, he entered the financial services world and set up payments firm - NoFrixion - whose mission is to rid the world of unnecessary hassel in the payments process.
We chat about Feargal's experience of the Central Bank's authorisation process (mostly positive, by the way) and his hopes and ambitions for NoFrixion. We also discuss Feargal's thoughts on what the Irish financial services industry does well and not so well.
Enjoy!
Recruiting in the Irish Financial Services Industry Like many sectors, the financial services industry is seeing great demand and competition for talent.
In this episode of The Aquest Podcast, I chat with Jennifer Cahill, recruitment consultant, about what the landscape is like and how difficult it is in practice to recruit new staff. We discuss the steps that firms are taking to differentiate themselves and make themselves more attractive.
We also chat about the Senior Executive Accountability Regime (SEAR) and the challenges of successfully completing the Central Bank's fitness and probity assessment.
Enjoy!
MiCA and the future of Crypto Assets in EU After several years of drafting and refining, the Markets in Crypto Assets Regulation has been finalised and published. This game-changing piece of legislation will have a profound impact on crypto assets - and their service providers - in the EU.
I'm joined by Andrew Tzialli, crypto asset legal expert, to chat about the final version of MiCA, the timelines for implementation and the steps firms need to start taking. We also chat about the crypto industry more generally and what the future may hold for this asset class in the EU.
Enjoy!
A Digital Future for Funds In light of the Funds Sector 2030 Review, I am joined by Giles Swan, formerly UK FCA and ICI Global, as we contemplate what a bolder, more digital future for the funds industry might look like.
What if funds issued tokens instead of units or shares? What if subscriptions and redemptions happened instantenously? What if UCITS rules were written into smart contracts so that the rules could never be broken? What if regulators had instant access to live data on portfolio holdings and investors?
Find out what the future could hold in this episode of The Aquest Podcast.
Enjoy!
Past, present and future of the Irish Funds Industry In the first episode of the Summer/Autumn 2023 season, I have a wide ranging discussion with Gerry Brady, INED and Elder Statesman (he said it was ok to call him that!) of the Irish Fund industry.
We chat about the early days of the funds industry in Ireland and the tremendous efforts made collaboratively by industry and the public sector to establish and grow a funds industry here. We also discuss the current state of play and contemplate what the future might hold - both opportunities and challenges - in light of the current Funds Sector 2030 review.
Enjoy!
Episode NotesIn the first episode of our new season, I chat with Paul Price, founder and CEO of Haven Green Investment Management. Haven Green offers an outsourced distribution function with a focus on funds pursing a sustainable investments policy.
We chat about how Paul's team identifies the boutique managers it wants to work with and how the trend towards sustainable investing is likely to evolve over the medium-term.
We also discuss the outsourced distribution model and the fun/challenges in setting up your own investment firm!
Enjoy!
Fresh from moderating a webinar on SFTF and EMIR data quality and oversight, Ciaran Walshe, COO of Fund Recs, joins me on this episode of The Aquest Podcast.
We chat about the take-aways from the webinar, with particular attention on the messaging delivered by the Central Bank of Ireland that data quality and reporting oversight needs to continue improving. Plenty to mull over for already busy Manco boards...
We're back after a summer hiatus and crypto funds are on the agenda once again.
This time, my guest is Daire Lawlor, MD at Interwoven, and we discuss the extent to which Irish regulated funds can invest in crypto currencies and digital assets. Our chat wanders into discussions about DLT, tokenisation and freedom with guardrails. Plenty to digest as we get our heads down for the run-in to year-end!
Enjoy
Regulated crypto funds With investment in crypto continuing to generate investor interest (current market turmoil notwithstanding!), FS firms are exploring whether and how investment fund structures could be used to deliver exposure to crypto currencies.
Leading the way when it comes to regulated crypto funds is Gibraltar. So I'm delighted to be joined by James Lasry, Funds and Crypto Lawyer at Hassans, to discuss how Gibraltar has approached the regulation and operation of crypto funds.
With tons of insights and practical experience, James is a mine of information when it comes to regulated crypto funds. Enjoy!
Sustainability With sustainability and ESG being on everyone's lips, not just in the financial services industry, I thought it would be interesting to chat with Ann Shiels, a sustainability expert with Finlexsus. We chat the compliance challenges facing FS firms as they navigate the management of investment products with a wave of regulatory deadlines on the horizon.
But more than that, I was interested to learn more about how firms in the FS industry, including professional services firms, are tacking sustainability within their own businesses. What are the challenges and how are firms innovating? Do potential recruits (millennials!) and clients really care about a firm's sustainability credentials?
Find out in this episode as Ann shares her insights on sustainability trends in the current marketplace. Enjoy!
Continuing on the theme from the last episode of The Aquest Podcast, I'm joined by Brian Sanya Mondoh to chat about the digital revolution and its impact on financial services in particular. I learn about how smart contracts, blockchain and Decentralised Autonomous Organisations (DAOs) are likely to shape our world over the short-to-medium term. But we begin by chatting about life in Brian's home country of Trindad and Tobago! Enjoy.
Many thanks to Catherine Monahan who edited this podcast.
Blockchain expert Mauricio Magaldi of 11FS joins me for this episode of The Aquest Podcast to chat about blockchain and the financial services industry. We discuss current use cases and ponder how regulators could best adapt to the blockchain revolution. We also speak about Tradfi and contemplate the challenges and opportunities that DeFi and blockchain bring. Enjoy!
Episode Notes Introduced in 2015 with the objective of increasing alternative sources of funding for European capital markets, the European Long-Term Investment Fund (ELTIF) regime has failed to gain any real traction. Why is this? And what can be done to fix it?
In this episode of The Aquest Podcast, I'm joined by Ken Owens of PwC to mull over the problem with ELTIFs and discuss what could be done to make them attractive to investors.
Episode Notes Tom Brennan, Head of Risk & Regulatory at EisnerAmper Ireland, joins me to chat all things ICAAP.
With an ever increasing number of Irish firms now (or shortly) required to have an Internal Capital Adequacy Assessment Process, Tom guides us through the dos and don'ts and highlight some of the key considerations when putting together an ICAAP report. We also chat about some of the best questions directors can ask when approving an ICAAP.
Everything you ever wanted to know about ICAAP in one podcast!!
Episode Notes In this episode of The Aquest Podcast, I'm joined by crypto educator Nick Aston of the Ashton Talks Crypto podcast. We chat about how the profile of crypto investors is shifting from millennials to more experienced investors seeking alternative asset classes. We also discuss how cryptocurrencies and digital assets are gaining credibility and what more needs to be done to win the trust of investors. Enjoy!
Episode Notes We've all been hearing about digital transformation in the FS industry for years now but has the COVID19 pandemic really accelerated this trend?
For this episode of The Aquest Podcast, I'm joined by Alan Meaney to chat about this, about the 'build vs buy' question and whether ISO27001 certification is a pre-requisite for all FinTechs.
We also discuss the return of Adminovate (one of my personal favourite conferences!) which will be back in Trinity College Dublin on 13 Jan 2022.
Enjoy!
Episode Notes In this episode of The Aquest Podcast, I'm joined by Jennifer Cahill of Savvi Recruitment Consultants. With demand for talent high but availability not-so-much, we chat about current market trends, skills in particular demand and the impact this is having on salaries. We chat about how WFH during the Covid-19 Pandemic has accelerated employers' attitudes to workplace flexibility by 5 to 10 years. The impact of SEAR is also on the agenda. Enjoy!
Episode Notes With so much interest and attention being paid to cryptocurrencies and digital assets, I thought it would be interesting to look at the darker side of the crypto world - crypto scams. So for this episode of The Aquest Podcast I'm delighted to be joined by Erica Stanford, author of 'Crypto Wars - Faked deaths, missing billions and industry disruption'.
We chat about the anatomy of a crypto scam, look at some case studies from her book and discuss the red flags that investors and advisors should look out for. Enjoy!
Episode Notes On this episode of the Aquest Podcast I'm joined by risk expert Dennis Slattery. We chat about best practices in risk management for Fund Mancos, how to succeed as a NextGen Fund Manco and the essential skills that risk professionals need to learn. Enjoy!
On this episode of The Aquest Podcast, I'm joined by cybersecurity expert Sam Glynn as we discuss the recent HSE cybersecurity breach and how financial services firms can avoid the same thing happening to them. Sam also has some advice on how the risk team and directors (i.e. non-techies!) can interact with IT and cyber experts and actually understand what is being said.
We wrap up by chatting about the challenges faced by start-up RegTech and FinTech firms as they try to sell their wares to regulated financial services firms.
Enjoy!
Shannon Eastman and I talk about her question to a dozen professionals in Financial Service Industry: "What in your perspective is the reason why D&I is still resisted by firms beyond a box ticking exercise?" The 3 unique perspectives at the table: the regulator, the firm and D&I consultants along with a brief exploration into the commercial value D&I offers business. go here
Shannon Eastman and I revisit our 2020 Predictions as part of our 12-month review. We look at the December 2019 predictions, and highlights that include: Adrian Whelan, Sam Glynn, Mark Fritz, Bob Quinn, #FIMC2020. We touch on 2021 activities coming up featuring Andrea Dermody of Dermody D&I Advisory, FIMC2021, Crypto, ESG, ILP, and there's still more.
In this episode, I'm joined by Bill Prew and Victoria Gillespie of Indos. We chat about how firms are approaching compliance with the new ESG requirements, the challenges they face and the opportunities available tp firms who really buy into the new ESG regime.
In the CP86 'Dear CEO' letter, the Central Bank calls out that mancos need to be better at performing due diligene before appointing a delegate and annually thereafter. It especially referenced due diligene where a manco has multiple delegate investment managers. But, as anyone who has been involved in requesting or providing due diligence information will know, the entire process is usually document-heavy and an administrative headache. Is there a better way? To find out, I'm joined by Monel Amin of Diligence Vault who shares her insights and experience of best practices in managing due diligence.
Session 5 on Friday 6 Nov is dedicate to those in leadership positions and those who support them. It contains topics on the Organisational Effectiveness Role, Time Commitments for Directors and Cybersecurity for Directors. There is even a case study on wellbeing in the workplace. On this podcast, I'm joined by Shannon Eastman, Teach A Brand To Fish, to summarise what attendees can expect from the Leaders' Lounge session at CP86 MiniCon. But first, we chat about MiniCon itself, how it came about and what we hope attendees will take away from the event - and, of course, the by-now famous Digital Goodie Bag!!
With the best will in the world, sometimes things go wrong and firms suffer a breach of their regulatory obligations. For this episode of The Aquest Podcast, I chat with Michael Tuohy and Arnaud Barosi about what happens when things go wrong. We talk about the increased use of Risk Mitigation Programmes for asset management firms and what this means in practice. We also chat about Independent Expert Reports and, lastly, the Administrative Sanctions Procedure. The MiniCon session on 'What happens when things go wrong' takes place on Thursday November 5th and this podcast will give you a real taster for what to expect. Enjoy!
The first session of the CP86 MiniCon deals with the emerging regulatory landscape for Mancos - a hyper-relevant topic given the immient arrival of the Commission's AIFMD consultation and the Central Bank's CP86 'Dear CEO' letter. Shane Coveney, Dillion Eustace, joins me for this episode of the Aquest Podcast to chat through what attendees can expect from this CP86 MiniCon session.
Connect with Shane Coveney: LinkedIn www.dilloneustace.com
With the cohort of legacy mancos and SMICs reconsidering their resourcing models, I chat with Eoin Motherway of AMX about the options available to them to meet regulatory expectations. Eoin gives a taste of what to expect at the CP86 MiniCon session on CP86 Solutions with some valuable insights into the benefits and drawbacks of each option.
Connect with Eoin Motherway: LinkedIn https://theamx.com/
The way that mancos go about supervising their delegates, particularly the investment managers, is changing. Regulator expectations about the depth and quality of delegate monitoring are increasing with intrusive oversight and constructive challenge the order of the day. In this episode, I'm joined by John Phinney of Convergence to chat about his upcoming CP86 MiniCon sesssion on emerging best practices in delegate oversight. We chat about how mancos can plug into new and easy-to-use data sources to bolster their oversight. We also chat about the changing dynamic of the relationship between mancos and investment managers - how will investment managers feel about this new instrusive approach?
Connect with John Phinney LinkedIn https://convergenceinc.com/
Tuesday's session (3 Nov) at CP86 MiniCon will deal with the solutions available to legacy mancos and SMICs who need to change their resourcing model. That session will be co-hosted by Nicola Gerety of AMX and she joins me on this podcast to set the scene. We chat about the types of questions investment managers have when considering the third party manco option and the challenges and timelines involved. We also discuss the benefits and drawbacks of establishing your own manco. Finally, we talk about value for money and the need for both in-house and third party mancos to demonstrate they are not just a compliance cost.
Connect with Nicola Gerety: LinkedIn https://theamx.com/
With a myriad of new rules on ESG facing fund mancos, who better to walk us through these requirements than Tara O'Reilly, Partner and Co-Head in Arthur Cox’s Asset Management and Investment Funds Group. We chat about what the new rules mean for fund mancos, the deadline for compliance and what needs to be done before then. We also chat about the ESG regime generally - will it really make the world a better place?
Connect with Tara O'Reilly: LinkedIn
ESG is probably the hottest of topics in the asset management industry right now - certainly from a regulatory perspective with a suite of new rules coming into effect beginning 10 March next year. But do ESG funds really deliver what they promise? Bob Quinn advises retail investors on a day-to-day basis and he's not yet convinced. In this episode of The Aquest Podcast, Bob joins me to chat about some of the doubts he has concerning ESG investing as it currently stands.
This podcast is the first in a short series dedicated to ESG. In later episodes we will be looking at the new ESG rules from a legal and firm's perspective to see what they are and what they mean in practice. Then we'll be catching up with Bob again to see if he's been convinced or whether his questions remain.
Connect with Bob Quinn: LinkedIn
I'm joined by Shane Coveney, a Partner in the Funds Department at Dillon Eustace. In this episode, we talk about the OE Role (Organisation Effectiveness), and how it has been affecting ManCos and SMICS since it's introduction with CP86. While I think that it's time to ditch the role, Shane has some insights on why the role has proven itself useful in the Funds Industry.
Connect with Shane Coveney: LinkedIn www.dilloneustace.com
I'm joined again by Bob Quinn, Independent Financial Advisor, who we know as The Investor's Advocate. Bob deals with retail investors on a daily basis. As most of us in the industry will never meet our funds' investors in person, I love the insights that Bob gives about the priorities and concerns of the average retail investor.
In this episode, I was keen to find out what retail investors' views are on fees and expenses and value for money. This topic is high on the regulator's agenda - but what about the investor's agenda? I was very surprised by what Bob had to say on that front!
In this episode, my guest is John Phinney who is the Chairman and Co-President at Convergence Inc. John's mission is to help investors - not by looking at the markets and investment performance - but by performing in-depth analysis on the investment advisors those investors are appointing.
John shares his insights on the flags he is looking for that point to an investment advisor being an outlier when compared to its peers (and his analysis covers 37,000 investment advisors!!). With regulators ever more concerned about how fund mancos supervise their delegate investment managers, this podcast is a great listen for anyone looking for insights on how to do that job better.
There is an increasing focus by regulators on how well (or otherwise) fund mancos are overseeing their delegate investment managers. Regulators expect fund mancos to be intrusive and challenging - but this can be difficult to do that if the fund manco's only source of data is the investment manager itself. And there is a risk associated with relying on this data when the investment manager has a conflict of interest to present the data in a certain way.
Key takeaway: it is important for fund mancos to identify and use additional sources of information, such as regulatory returns, public statements and data analytics providers, to support their oversight function. This is an emerging good practice at this stage but will be come the norm (and the benchmark) in the medium term. Don't get left behind!
Connect with John Phinney LinkedIN www.convergenceinc.com
For this episode of the Aquest Podcast, I am delighted to be joined by Bob Quinn from The Money Advisers as we take a look into the Investor's Perspective. We talked about what he does, how he engages with clients, when he does a suitability assessment and many more. We also took some time to talk about whether Australian Gold Mines are a good home for your hard earned cash.
Connect with Bob Quinn LinkedIN
Adrian Whelan shares that moment he realized he was proud to be from Finglas, inside an emotive discussion exploring; class, education, bias, and his role in the Protect Accent Campaign, with co-hosts Shannon Eastman and Daniel Lawlor. www.Protect-Accent.com
Linkedin for Adrian Twitter for Adrian OnTheRegs.com/adrian-whelan/ and Protect-Accent.com Twitter for @AccentProtect LinkedIn for ProtectAccent
Episode Notes We are joined by Martina Kelly, Director of Funds at the Institute of Banking as she recalls how different the financial industry was back then. How has the financial industry changed, and the evolution of regulatory compliance. What were some of the challenges she faced back then and what's the direction the funds industry is going in now.
In this episode Jennifer Cahill from Savvi Recruitment joins Shannon Eastman and I to discuss the trends she is seeing with recruitment from the individual's perspective, the firm's perspective and across the industry as a whole.
This conversation covers trends, impacts, and the idea that once Covid-19 has passed, the actions firms have taken during these times will be remembered long after.
When the Central Bank of Ireland published its ETF Discussion Paper in late 2017, one of its objectives was to gather information on the resilience of the ETF structure so that it could better anticipate how ETFs might behave in stressed market conditions.
What were theoretical scenarios then are being played out for real as we live through the COVID-19 crisis and the resultant market volatility?
Being a bit of an ETF nerd, I was really interested to find out:
How ETFs are performing from an operational perspective in the current market environment.
Why has the US Fed decided to buy units of US corporate bond ETFs?
Why were ETF units trading at persistent discounts and has this changed now?
What does the future hold for ETFs – will they still prove increasingly popular?
Will semi-transparent ETFs take over the world??
So many questions!
And who better to satisfy my curiosity than Ryan Sullivan, Head of US ETF Services at BBH.
Ryan is affable, engaging, funny and can easily be described as a titan within the area of ETFs.
From what the COVID-19 lockdown is like in Massachusetts to whether it’s a good idea to let your wife cut your hair, to ETFs, we cover a lot of ground in this episode.
Honourable shout-out to Adrian Whelan for nominating Ryan to guest on this podcast and, of course, to Ryan for sharing his knowledge and insights and for being a generally top bloke.
Enjoy and please remember to Pass-The-Pod!! Google is far kinder to us when it sees likes and shares showing up on Aquest content. (Who knew?).
[PSA} The views and opinions expressed are for informational purposes only and do not constitute investment, legal or tax advice and are not intended as an offer to sell, or a solicitation to buy securities, services or investment products. Views and opinions are current as of the date of the podcast and may be subject to change.
Cybersecurity has been a recurring issue for many regulated firms, and a concern of the Central Bank, even before Covid-19 hit our shores.
In this Cybersecurity episode, we discuss the possible risks that may have been introduced when firms had to move fast and provide working-from-home capabilities, in response to the measures imposed as a result of Covid-19.
We are joined by our standing co-host, Shannon Eastman, and by Code in Motion's Sam Glynn, an IT advisor to regulated firms who helps CFOs and COOs go from unsure to secure.
We discuss how new and smaller firms may have been ready to work remotely, but how older, risk-averse, and bigger organisations may not be prepared for such a setup given their more traditional approach of securing everything in a secure location.
Depending on the size of their employee base and complexity of their IT systems, we also discussed others factors to consider, including:
- How firms struggled to quickly provisioning laptops to all employees as part of their response.
- How many may have been forced to enable staff to access corporate systems and data from non-corporate devices – e.g. email from personal phones
- The 3 states a firm can be in when thinking about cybersecurity – Hopeful, Comfortable, Provable.
- The 3 Phases a firm have to go through in their business continuity response, and the importance of doing the third phase.
- How a firm should focus on what has changed in their IT setup as a result of their Covid-19 response, and ensure new risks are identified, monitored, managed and mitigated.
In this episode we invited Shannon Eastman who is a Human Behaviour Expert, Management Consultant, and Communications exert, Shannon Eastman to answer the question - Are we screwed? Where we discussed the impact of #COVID19 on individuals, on the industry and the regulators.
Here’s our favourite take-aways:
- Those who adapt win.
- Be mindful of the mindset that you are entertaining most throughout the day.
- Humour is a really important part of this, see the funny side of it while still being able to maintain the respect in the seriousness this situation warrants.
- Make sure that there is a deliberate intention to still connect with people digitally.
- Every crisis is full of seeds of opportunity; focus on those seeds, plant it, nurture it.
So are we screwed? Listen to this episode and let us know your thoughts.
We loved our chat with James Newman over at perform. Here’s our favourite take-aways.
Operational Risk Due Diligence - 5 Best Practices
CP86 and CSSF Circular 18/698 provide some clarity on regulators’ expectations for how Fund Management Companies (“FMCs”) assess the operational risks that come from delegation (and sub-delegation). One of the key delegated activities in the fund environment is investment management. FMCs have a responsibility to identify and assess all risks from investment management delegation, including operational, financial, legal and reputational in order to manage them appropriately. This is achieved through a combination of on-sites, Skype and desk-based analysis.
In this episode of The Aquest Podcast, we discuss 5 best practices for FMCs when conducting operational due diligence on delegate investment managers:
- Important to keep the DD questionnaire ‘alive’ and relevant – operational risks change.
- Due Diligence skills are needed to carry out delegate checks – either acquire these internally or engage an expert.
- Delegate on-sites are only one item in the toolkit. External verifications, reading policies, documents, fund financial statements are just as important.
- Be challenging at on-sites and ensure their targeted to make the most of everyone’s time.
- Use a risk based-approach when it comes to the frequency of operational risk reviews, and be prepared to perform ad-hoc reviews in response to events – e.g. investment manager entering a new product space, key man event, liquidity event, etc.
Last week, we published our 12 2020 Predictions where we set out what we thought were likely to be the key issues for the industry in the year 2020 and beyond. We've invited Brian Walsh, CEO of Reitigh Software to challenge us on what we thought would happen in the tech space.
Aquest's 2020 Media Predictions is available now to download on aquest.ie/2020predictions
For information about our training & advisory programmes, or our Academy, visit aquest.ie - for more resources on Regs, Funds and Governance, check out our YouTube channel,DanielLawlorRURQ
Last Wednesday (20 November 2019), Matheson hosted a 'Knowledge Insights Event' on CP86 and Irish Management Companies with a particular focus on the Central Bank of Ireland's current thematic review on CP86 implementation. As the on-site inspections part of that review process starts to get underway, the panelists spent some time sharing their insights on the inspection process and how firms should prepare.
After the event, I caught up with Bronagh Maher, Professional Support Lawyer in Matheson's Asset Management and Investment Funds Department. Bronagh moderated the panel discussion and I was keen to capture her views on the discussion that had just taken place, the hot topics amongst attendees and the key takeaways.
Many thanks to Bronagh for taking time out to co-host and summarising so succinctly their CP86 event. Enjoy!
With the reporting requirements under the Securities Financing Transactions Regulations kicking-off in 2020, we're taking a look at how best to prepare so your firm is compliant from the get-go.
SFTR reporting will affect firms (including UCITS ManCos and AIFMs) using Securities Financing Transactions (e.g. repos, securities lending, buybacks). The reporting obligations commence on a phased basis from April 2020 and will apply to UCITS ManCos and AIFMs from October 2020.
To help firms prepare, I chat with Ronan Brennan, Chief Product Officer at Compliance Solutions Strategies, about the approaches being taken by firms who are reporting directly and those that are delegating reporting. Find out the current state of play and the key actions to take today if you are a firm subject to the SFTR reporting requirement.
Many thanks to Ronan for taking time out to co-host and share his insights on all things SFTR. Enjoy!
In this bonus episode of The Aquest Podcast, we’re wandering far from the beaten track and talking golf!
With the annual basis.point golf classic taking place next week, we thought it would be fun to provide some golf tips to help those of us who haven’t seen our clubs since last year’s event.
I’m joined by Leo Hynes, Head Pro at Killiney Golf Club. He has tips for the diligent ones who listen to the podcast in advance of the big day and have time to practice. Leo even has advice to anyone listening to this podcast in their car while on their way to the basis.point golf classic!
So, if you need help to get it off the first tee, listen below.
Many thanks to Leo for co-hosting and for his expert advice. And good luck to all golfers at the basis.point golf classic!
Welcome back Aquest Podcast listeners! After the summer break, we’ve returned to bring you more funds industry conversations giving insight on all things topical in the Irish Funds industry.
For the September 2019 episode, I’m chatting with Eimear Cowhey who is one of the founders of basis.point, a charity established 6 years ago. It is supported by members of the Irish funds industry and assists projects which improve educational opportunities for kids.
I thought it would be interesting to find out more about basis.point so Eimear and I chat about what it does, who it helps, how it raises funds and how you can get involved.
Many thanks to Eimear for co-hosting. If you feel inspired to get involved, check out the basis.point website: http://www.basispoint.ie
Enjoy!
Fintech in Ireland and looking forward to Adminovate 2019
For this episode of the Aquest Podcast, the topics are Fintech and the Adminovate 2019 conference. Who better to join me as co-hosts than the organisers of Adminovate who are Fintech experts in their own right – Pete Townsend of Norio Ventures and Des O’Donohoe of Fund Recs.
Our discussion covered a range of topics from ‘Money Never Sleeps’, Pete’s own podcast that he co-hosts with Eoin Fitzgerald of Enterprise Ireland, to Fintech in Ireland, DLT and Bitcoin. We also chat about Adminovate 2019 which will be held in Trinity College Dublin on 17 January 2019. Adminovate is a conference that focuses on innovation in the Fund Administration Industry.
It promises to be a great event and tickets are available from adminovate.ie
Many thanks to Pete and Des for their time and insights. Hope you enjoy the podcast (and forgive the low volume on my microphone – put it down to Christmas technical gremlins!)
Finally, Happy Christmas and best wishes for a prosperous and peaceful 2019!
For this episode of the Aquest Podcast, I am delighted to be joined by Adrian Mulryan, General Counsel at marketβeta. Adrian is a funds lawyer by training, ETF expert, serial entrepreneur and genial conversationalist.
Our discussion focuses mainly on the present and future of ETFs – both in terms of product development and regulation. We also touch upon what types of funds are capable of having an ETF wrapped around them i.e. what funds are ‘ETF-able’ – a term coined by Adrian during our conversation.
As both marketβeta and Aquest are approaching their first birthdays, we conclude our chat by touching on entrepreneurship and the experience of starting a new business in the funds industry.
Many thanks to Adrian for taking time out to share his insights on all things ETF. Hope you enjoy the podcast!
A taster for what happened at our Brexit Briefing Event
For this episode of the Aquest Podcast, we took to the road and recorded in London just after our ‘Dublin Calling’ event there on 3 October. The podcast features short interviews with Garret Sheridan (J Rothschild Capital Management), Katie Thurston (IDA Ireland) and Jennifer Cahill (Savvi Recruitment Consultants).
We chat about the topics which came up for discussion on the morning and the items of interest which most caught people’s attention.
Many thanks to Garret, Katie and Jennifer for taking the time out to give their feedback on Dublin Calling and for sharing their insights. Enjoy the podcast!
In this episode of the Aquest Podcast, I am joined by David Lyons of Black Swan Sports who are market leaders in hedging financial risk related to the outcome of sporting events.
We chat about how bookmakers go about managing the risks associated with their positions and draw parallels with how risk management is carried out by financial services firms. Thanks to David for sharing some really interesting insights on risk management from a different industry sector. Enjoy!
In this episode of the Aquest Podcast, I am joined by Killian Buckley who is Head of Management Company Solutions at Duff & Phelps and Conor Molloy who is a council member of the Irish Funds Directors Association and European Director at Promontory Financial Group.
With CP86 coming into full effect in just a couple of weeks (1 July), we chat about the impact that it is having on the governance and organisation of Irish authorised fund management companies. We also consider what the future might hold for fund management company effectiveness. Enjoy!
In this episode of the Aquest Podcast, I am joined by Lorena Dunne who is a Partner in the law firm William Fry and is a member of the 100 Women in Finance, Dublin steering committee. We chat about diversity and the role that 100 Women in Finance plays in supporting women in the financial services industry. Enjoy!
In this episode of the Aquest Podcast, I am joined by Giovanni Bandi who is the Head of Investment Management at the Qatar Financial Centre Regulatory Authority. We chat about the make-up and structure of the funds industry in Qatar. Gionvanni is co-Chair of IOSCO’s Leverage Working Group so we also chat about that workstream, the approach being taken and how the FSB will receive IOSCO’s recommendations. Enjoy!
Policy, culture and the challenge of being the world’s biggest asset manager
In this episode of The Aquest Podcast I’m joined by Martin Parkes of Blackrock’s Public Policy Team. We chat about being involved in policy development, the importance of corporate culture and the challenge of being the world’s largest asset manager. Enjoy!
We chat with Robert Taylor, UK Financial Conduct Authority, about his role as Chair of IOSCO’s C5 Investment Management Committee. With IOSCO’s work on liquidity management drawing to a close, what can we expect from its review of ETFs and leverage? Tune in to find out!
We chat with Grainne McEvoy from Central Bank of Ireland about what 2018 might hold for the funds industry.
Reviewing 2018 and contemplating what 2019 might bring
In the January 2019 episode of the Aquest Podcast, I am joined by Kieran Fox and Declan Casey of Irish Funds as we crystal ball gaze and chat about what 2019 is likely to bring to the Funds Industry.
We also take time to reflect on the challenges and achievements of 2018 and chat about how Irish Funds has changed and evolved over the years – including the essential skills of stakeholder management! We wrap up by revealing our dreams for 2019 – five-in-a-row anyone?
Many thanks to Kieran and Declan for co-hosting. Enjoy!
The Aquest Podcast – Episode 1 with Grainne McEvoy (Central Bank of Ireland)
Part I – What it’s like to be a regulator
We chat with Grainne McEvoy from Central Bank of Ireland about what it’s like to be a regulator, the challenges of regulating and of keeping up to date with divisional acronyms!