Morgan Stanley’s Head of Wealth Management Australia, Ian Chambers, sat down with Rob Langton of Ready Media Group for an exclusive interview.
Markets around the world are in a period of transition with inflation at multi-decade highs and interest rates predicted to rise meaningfully.
Morgan Stanley’s Head of Wealth Management, Ian Chambers, recently participated in an exclusive interview with Rob Langton of Ready Media Group sharing his insights on the economic themes driving markets, elements of risk facing clients and personal observations from his 38 years in the industry.
During the wide-ranging discussion, he also provided his insights into the transformation of Morgan Stanley’s wealth management business in Australia and the future for the industry.
Below are some highlights from the discussion:
On private market opportunities and how investors are responding to them
“We’re seeing across our client base, greater and greater interest in private opportunities… clients want, as part of their portfolio, uncorrelated returns.”
On the importance of focusing on risk
“We really assess risk in a very deep way across our client base. We have 15 risk officers across 115 advisers. We’ve made an enormous investment. Our risk department looks at client suitability, market risk, credit risk, conduct risk. Most importantly, that risk department looks at our operational risk as well.”
On the macro challenges facing Australia
“When you look back through history, the overnight cash rate has traded at four and five and six per cent. Now we’re at 0.1%. If you change that cash rate to 300 basis points or three per cent, the effect on mortgages is going to be enormous. That’s a risk and I don’t think the general public is thinking about that too closely at the moment. That’s a big unknown.”
On the future of wealth management
“I’m very bullish on the wealth management industry. Life expectancy is increasing. Wealth management is a very important service we provide to a broader client base.”
“I see an industry growing. Service offerings becoming more sophisticated. Technology being built into more and more businesses.”
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