Winners rationale

2020 was unprecedented, and this includes remarkable market dynamics. We all experienced a violent equity bear market accompanied by a partial collapse in bond market liquidity, immediately followed by a massive recovery in risk assets. Such an environment made top-quality investment advisory more important than ever.

BNP Paribas Wealth Management helped clients navigate these volatile markets with clear, timely communication, innovative investment ideas, and new ways of interacting, making the most of a time-tested investment platform built around a holistic portfolio management philosophy, and strong research and advisory capabilities.

The bank continued to generate value for clients, successfully extending their strong advisory track records. The vast majority of its 2020 investment themes achieved double-digit returns, with some outperforming their benchmarks by 20-40%. The hit ratio, defined as the percentage of recommendations achieving positive returns, stood at an impressive 85% for FX and 93% for equity-linked structured products.

Ongoing innovation is embedded in BNP Paribas Wealth Management’s DNA, and allowed clients to again capture new investment opportunities in 2020. For example, it launched a Delta-One Certificate on the new Hang Seng Tech Index before any ETF hit the market, and launched a highly successful new FX Propulsion structure that took advantage of increased FX volatility to allow for accelerated client returns in case of an early knock out.

2020 saw innovation in client communication as well, such as targeted Client Huddles to provide timely market updates and high conviction investment ideas. BNP Paribas hosted a series of webinars, bringing into play its internal expertise as well as the expertise of its external counterparties — and generating strong client attendance and positive feedback.

BNP Paribas Wealth Management does not believe that “one size fits all”, even more so in terms of crisis management. In March 2020, when certain bonds with strong fundamentals were affected by a short-term liquidity crunch, it provided tailored advice to help negatively affected clients make the best possible decisions. For clients with dry powder, it actively advised them to capture the unique opportunity by buying into weakness.

Digital tools empowered a leap forward too in execution efficiency and targeted idea generation and sharing. To complement the wide adoption of Click & Trade tools, it introduced additional tools to rapidly identify and prepare targeted investment ideas throughout its client base. The launch of BeAdvised for its MyAdvisory (Contractual Advisory) clients was a further step in this digital journey, with investment recommendations sent directly to client smartphones — and was featured by the Monetary Authority of Singapore at the Singapore Fintech Festival (SFF).

BNP Paribas Wealth Management is Asian Private Banker’s Best Private Bank – Investment Advisory for 2020.