Weekly Fund Distribution Notes – 09 September 2025
16th October 2025
Big, very big numbers from the mandate side. Amid the flurry of launches in the active ETF space, one new arrival in particular has managed to stand out and capture our attention. Although progress is undeniable, women in fund management remain significantly underrepresented. Last but not least, calling it communication is generous, most of it is just noise in a overcrowded inbox.
Let’s start with some big mandate news from last week. PFZW, the Dutch healthcare pension fund, withdrew around EUR 14 billion (!) from BlackRock due to concerns over the US fund giant’s stance on climate risk. Well, we have already addressed the increasing transatlantic gap on sustainability and respect mandate and fund buyer moves a number of times in this newsletter this year, and in our Biannual European Fund Distribution Landscape Report. According to Bloomberg, the Dutch pension fund Pensioenfonds Metalektro (PME) is currently reviewing a EUR 5 billion equity mandate run by BlackRock for the same reasons.
While the PFZW mostly (apart from some MMF money) stepped away from BlackRock, other big players are moving in the opposite direction. Citigroup has turned to BlackRock, awarding the firm a mandate worth around a whopping EUR 80 billion (!) to serve its wealthiest clients around the globe, including Europe. Coming back to the PFZW and PGGM, PFZW terminated a EUR 15 billion (!) mandate with LGIM as the pension fund shifts away from passive investing. The EUR 50 billion equity portfolio will be run by Schroders, UBS, M&G, Robeco, Man Numeric, PGGM, Lazard and Acadian.
It is certainly getting crowded in the still relatively small European Active ETF (AETF) space. Whilst most new entries do not convince us, Dimensional’s announcement that it is entering this segment in Europe caught our attention. Why? Dimensional – which is not a client of ours – is an AETF heavyweight and the US’ largest provider of AETFs, overseeing USD 206 billion. Also, “Dimensional has been super competitive on pricing, to the point where they are often the low-price leader among active ETFs, similar to the role that Vanguard plays among passive ETFs”, stated Elisabeth Kashner, director of global fund analytics at FactSet in the Financial Times. The firm’s reputation adds an extra layer of intrigue. As Morningstar’s Kenneth Lamont put it: “There is something cult-like about Dimensional, reminiscent of Vanguard. With its distinctive ecosystem, investors are drawn not just to products but to a whole philosophy—earning Dimensional comparisons to Apple within the fund management world.”
Since 2016, Citywire has published its annual Alpha Female Report, a study that tracks and evaluates global progress on the representation of women in fund management. For me, as a young female professional, this is clearly something I have an eye on. Globally, only 12.1% – just over two thousand – of covered fund managers were female.
Interestingly, my birth land, Germany, stands out for the wrong reasons: among its 650 fund managers, barely 7% are female. That leaves the country languishing near the bottom of the global ranking, in 21st place out of 24. Elsewhere in Europe, the picture is more hopeful. Southern countries in particular are setting a positive example. In Spain, the place where I live and work, women make up 21% of its fund managers, securing it a place among the global top three. This mismatch always struck me. Germany is normally perceived as a very modern country, whilst Spain still has some “macho” issues. Yet in fund management, but not only in fund management, roles are reversed. Looking beyond Europe, the global leader is Taiwan, where women now account for 29% of fund managers.
What else? Most of the marketing that asset managers push at UK intermediaries misses the mark. Financial advisers read about 15% of the emails they receive, and discretionary fund managers only 20%. The rest disappears into overflowing inboxes. As Chris Chancellor of Research in Finance observed, “managers need to ensure they are targeting and tailoring effectively”. They also “put a huge amount of effort into communications, but so much of it isn’t read or consumed”, he adds.
The inefficiency of asset manager marketing is a real issue, representing a significant waste of resources in our view. The irony is that fixing it is not that hard. Three factors stand out. First, the punchline. If the subject line and the first three sentences don’t grab attention, why would anyone keep reading? Second, relevance. In 2025, there is no excuse for firing the same generic content at everyone. Sending equity fund documentation to a fixed-income selector is more than a mismatch—it’s a clear signal that no effort has been made. Third, differentiation. If every manager looks and sounds the same, why should an adviser invest precious time in reading? The problem is not technology or capacity; it is mindset. Managers still behave as if we were in 1999, not in an era where personalisation is standard. The result is an endless stream of noise that undermines credibility. The solution lies in cutting through with clarity, targeting with discipline, and daring to stand out.
