As the going gets tough…

While The Lens is usually globetrotting around the world in order to collate as much investment industry news and insights as possible, a pandemic cat has been set amongst the pigeons, bringing a halt to such activity. The Lens has ‘gone online’, as have nearly all our contacts and clients.

The first thing to note is how agile the industry’s people have been in taking daily activities home with them and continuing with business as best as possible. It’s a testament to not only the attitude of the people, but also the technology available. Conference calls, video meetings and webinars have quickly become the norm.

As the going gets tough, the tech gets going…

For most of our clients and contacts, damage control seems to be a key focus. Different approaches to this are being taken. Some of our contacts say they have doubled up on client prospecting and they report a great first quarter. Some others are concentrating on giving 5-star care for current investors and keeping outflows to a minimum.

Ultimately a global recession is likely to be upon us – but there are, of course, winners and losers in a situation like this and the Lens has managed a few conversations about this.  Contacts we have spoken to highlight the positive outlook for the healthcare and digital/technology sectors, which some argue are set to soar. Global portfolio managers are taking an increasing interest.

At the other end of the scale, you don’t have to be a globetrotter nowadays to know the Chinese market looks poised to suffer a large setback – albeit this may not affect the country’s overall rapid growth.

All that The Lens does know for sure is that life isn’t on pause. As the lockdown continues to unfold, The Lens will continue to buckle up, listen and report back to you.