What are Institutional Investors Looking for in an Investment Grade Fixed Income Manager?

After the table stakes of solid risk management, strong performance and competitive fees, institutions in the study say they are seeking managers who will act as partners, taking time to listen to the clients’ needs and design appropriate solutions.

Nine out of 10 institutions rank “access to senior investment professionals” as an important* criterion for assessing investment grade fixed income managers, and three-quarters cite a manager’s ability or willingness to customize as an important factor.

Reflecting these priorities, institutions appear to prefer smaller investment grade specialists over multi-product asset managers with an investment grade fixed income capacity.