CFA Society Philippines, in partnership with the Fund Managers Association of the Philippines and the Asian Institute of Management Gov. Jose B. Fernandez, Jr. Center for Banking and Finance, conducted a comprehensive study of the asset management industry in the Philippines.
The study helped to raise awareness of CFA Institute and CFA Society Philippines, position the organisations as thought leaders in the asset management industry, promote market integrity, and strengthen relationships with local regulators.
The research included a series of studies on the current state of the asset management industry in the Philippines, divided into three phases:
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Phase 1: Unit Investment Trust Funds (UITF) offered by Philippine commercial banks and regulated by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP);
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Phase 2: Mutual Funds regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC); and
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Phase 3: Variable Universal Life regulated by the Insurance Commission (IC).
The output of the study was three working papers–one for each phase–which were shared with industry practitioners, regulators and other service providers that seek to assist in the development of the Philippine capital markets.
Dr. Robert B. Ramos, CFA, CAIA, CIPM, President and Chairman, CFA Society Philippines said: “After three years of hard work, I am very happy to see the completion of the asset management study. It is the first research that looked into the buying behaviour of Filipinos when it comes to unit investment trust funds, mutual funds, and variable life funds. I hope that the learnings from the study can be maximized in the future. I would like to thank CFA Institute, the Fund Managers Association of the Philippines, the Asian Institute of Management, our secretariat and our volunteers for helping us with this effort.”
The general objective of the research was to assess the status, problems and prospects of the UITF Sector in the Philippines. Specifically, the research aimed to assess the supply and demand sides of the sector by examining the market landscape through the industry participants, determining the current problems faced by the key players, assessing the profile of the UITF investors in the Philippines, evaluating the level of awareness and perception among Filipino investors on UITF, and recommending strategies to address the challenges of the sector.
The data was gathered through primary and secondary data collection. With the objective of assessing the supply side of the industry, a survey was developed and distributed among the 25 trust entities with UITF operations. Among the 25 trust entities, 20 financial institutions returned the survey questionnaire, generating a response rate of 80%. The survey focused on their current status, performance and problems experienced. Data on Asset-under-Management (AUM) were collected from the Key Information and Investment Disclosure Statement (KIIDS) as of the second quarter of 2019.
In addition, in order to analyze the demand side of the UITF sector, a survey among 211 respondents focusing on the awareness, perception and attitude of Filipino retail investors was conducted.
Download the study here: The Case of the Unit Investment Trust Funds (UITF) Research Study.pdf
The study took a closer look at the industry from the perspective of both the mutual fund providers and retail investors and to assess the current status, problems, and future direction of the sector while comparing its performance with the UITF.
A survey was developed and distributed among the nine mutual fund providers in the country. It focused on the current status, performance, client profile, mutual fund team, and problems encountered.
In addition, to analyze the supply side of the mutual fund sector, a survey was developed focusing on the awareness, perception, and attitude of Filipino retail investors. A convenience sample of 200 respondents was targeted, and 257 responses were collected through the online survey distribution. Convenience sampling was used because of the absence of data on the total population; thus, those respondents within the network of the research team and the CFA Society Philippines were contacted.
The assessment of the macroeconomic environment, along with the information gathered from the survey and historical data, then were integrated to evaluate the overall outlook for the industry in the next five years.
Download the study here: The Case of the Mutual Fund Sector (MF) Research Study.pdf
A descriptive research design is used to assess the current status, problems, and prospects for the VUL insurance sector in the Philippines. Data were generated from primary and secondary sources.
With the goal of evaluating the performance of the supply side of the VUL insurance sector, a survey was developed and distributed among the VUL insurance providers in the country. The survey focused on the status, performance, client profile, VUL insurance team, and problems encountered. A key informant interview was also conducted to gather the insights of the Insurance Commission and industry practitioners regarding the prospects of the sector. In addition, to analyze the demand side of the VUL insurance sector, a research survey was developed focusing on the awareness, perception, and attitude of Filipino retail investors. A convenience sample of 200 respondents was targeted, however, only 194 responses were collected through the online survey distribution. Convenience sampling was used because of the absence of data on the total population; thus, those respondents within the network of the research team and the CFA Institute were contacted.
Through this study, the local society convened the regulators and industry practitioners through a focus-group discussion which allowed for each to look into the insights gathered from the study as well as discuss what can be done to address the challenges that each industry faces.
Download the study here: The Case of the Variable Unit-Linked (VUL) Sector Research_Study.pdf