The ‘ins and outs’ trend has taken over social media in the past week, with individuals and brands sharing what they hope will be ‘in’ this year and also what they want to avoid – or what will be ‘out’.
So, I have decided to take a look at what the list might look like if the wealth management industry were to detail their ins and outs.
The ins
Lower interest rates
When interest rates may start to fall remains an unknown, but most are hoping the first drop will take place in the first half of the year.
Managers are calling for the cuts to come sooner rather than later and will likely be relieved when the Bank of England do make the call (although Andrew Bailey's team are not known to be ahead of the curve...)
The FTSE 100
This may be slightly controversial, especially given the FTSE 100 has consistently underperformed its global counterparts in recent years. However, many are keen to stress the UK is undervalued and due a resurgence soon.
If the recent performance of Rolls Royce and Marks & Spencer is anything to go by, the industry might just be in for a treat in 2024…
Socially conscious investing
It is hard to escape the fact that we live in an increasingly unequal world and social and environmental causes are becoming more and more prevalent.
The ultra wealthy are not immune to this and will increasingly demand more sustainable and socially conscious solutions. This is not just limited to younger investors either, social causes are capturing the attention of all types of investor regardless of age or background.
Therapy
Stay with me on this one, this is not a Gen Z takeover, I promise. I recently read an article by US economist Tyler Cowen linking psychological wellbeing to economic wealth.
The research may not have specifically looked at wealth management returns, but it has long been proven that happy employees are more productive and successful, so perhaps there may be some merit to investing in therapy for staff.
The outs
Blaming poor performance on a difficult macroeconomic environment
The difficult macroeconomic environment has been in existence for a number of years. It certainly does have an impact on performance, but if a firm is consistently underperforming compared to its peers, it may be time to look inwards…
Describing any strategic move as a ‘good cultural fit’
Acquisitions, mergers, job moves, even technology partnerships are often all labelled as being a ‘good cultural fit’. But firms are not fooling anyone.
More often than not, everyone is aware it is about price or salary or perhaps expansion into a desired location. Cultural fit may be a consideration, but it usually does not seem to be the primary driver.
Perhaps 2024 could be the year of more honest corporate communications.
Non-committal political commentary
Both the US and the UK have major elections taking place this year and no doubt these will fill multiple headlines.
One thing that won’t be making headlines, however, is commentary that sits firmly on the fence.
Previously, I have received commentary offering two different viewpoints depending on the result. This just feels inauthentic and makes it hard to trust the commentary.
Firms are unlikely to come out with firm political views understandably, but it is possible to offer some insight on potential benefits or negatives of different outcomes.
Maybe the 2024 elections will demonstrate this.
