Danske Capital is the asset manager in Denmark and Finland that is valued most by investors. That is the overall result of a survey from Prospera, the Nordic research institute. The survey evaluates the national and Nordic asset managers and international asset managers active in the Nordic countries on a number of parameters such as documented experience, high professional standards, analytical competence, track record and quality of reporting to clients.
Prospera has asked a total of 596 investors in Denmark, Sweden, Norway and Finland, which asset managers they value most. The respondents are life and pension funds, insurance companies, companies, foundations and trusts, municipalities and other organisations. The survey comprises portfolios totalling approx. EUR 380bn.
Compared to the results of Prospera’s previous survey in 2005, Danske Capital has improved its position in Denmark on the parameters international and analytical competence, track record, stability in returns and servicemindedness. In Finland, where Danske Capital shares the top position, there have been significant improvements in most categories since 2005.
Large potential in Sweden and Norway
Danske Capital is still relatively unknown in the Swedish market, but the ones who know Danske Capital give the company a high ranking. That is the reason why Danske Capital’s overall performance is ranked a shared number three in Sweden – a leap up from a position as number 12 in the previous survey from 2005.
Danske Capital is also fairly unknown in Norway even though steady progress has been made since 2005. Among tier 1 clients, no ranking is registered. Among Norwegian tier 2 clients, Danske Capital holds a shared fourth position.
”The survey shows that we have a very large potential on the Swedish and Norwegian markets, where we have received high rankings despite being little known. It also shows that our asset management process is working. Since 2004 we have concentrated our in-house asset management on Nordic, European and Eastern European assets. In other asset classes we have built an expertise of selecting the best external managers. Meanwhile, we have improved our client organisation significantly,” says Lars Eigen Møller, Executive Vice President and Head of Asset Management in Danske Capital.
Best European Funds
Last year Danske Capital managed several of the best European funds – both in the Nordic region as well as internationally.
- Among European Large Cap funds the portfolio managers at Danske Capital managed 4 out of 10 of the best European Large Cap funds available in Scandinavia from all asset managers.
- Among high dividend equity funds Danske Capital’s High Dividend portfolio has the best risk adjusted return according to Mercer, the international investment consultant. Last year Danske Fund High Dividend also had the highest absolute return among high dividend funds in Denmark and Norway. In Sweden Danske Fund High Dividend had the second-highest return after Akelius Utdelningsaktier.
- In 2007 Danske Fund Small Cap did best of all European Small Cap funds available in Scandinavia.
World’s largest team on Eastern European stocks
According to Lars Eigen Møller another explanation for Danske Capital’s progress in the survey is that the acquisition of Sampo Bank which has strengthened our coverage of Eastern Europe significantly:
”The acquisition of Sampo Bank means that we are now the international asset manager with the largest team covering Eastern Europe. We have 26 managers and analysts in Helsinki, Copenhagen, Tallinn, Vilnius, Sarajevo and Sofia,” says Lars Eigen Møller.
Among the Eastern European funds Danske Fund Eastern Europe Convergence were among the best Eastern Europe funds internationally. Danske Fund Trans-Balkan was one of the best Balkan funds and has just been awarded the second best Eastern Europe fund in Germany by “Euro am Sonntag”, the financial magazine.