Storebrand Asset Management Q3 2023 business update

Business Highlights

• Net revenue of NOK 507 million
• Net inflow of NOK 15 billion in Q3 (42 billion YTD)
• AuM of NOK 1131 billion

Storebrand Asset Management recognized net revenue of NOK 507 million for the third quarter of 2023. Despite financial markets declining in the quarter due to renewed concerns about interest rates, affecting AuM negatively, we nonetheless experienced inflows totalling NOK 15 billion, ending the period with NOK 1131 billion in Assets under Management (AuM), an increase of NOK 111 billion in 2023. So far, the net flow YTD has been 42 billion.

"The strong inflows in the first half of 2023 have continued during the third quarter and demonstrates clients' confidence in our strategies. We see a continued deep appetite for sustainable investment solutions, a strong response to our private equity fundraising efforts, and a cautious revival in real estate transaction discussions, suggesting that markets are gradually adjusting to the higher interest rate environment", says Jan Erik Saugestad CEO Storebrand Asset Management.

Regional strength
In Sweden, institutional investors have risen from the inflation challenge that impacted both the overall market and many individual organizations earlier in the year. We are now experiencing more engagement in discussions around portfolio positioning considering higher interest rates and more moderate inflation levels; a focus on fixed income allocation by institutional investors and distributors. Furthermore, interest in Article 9 thematic sustainability funds.

New discretionary mandates for Swedish municipalities, which we won in a public tender, further strengthen our market position as a partner in portfolio management.

Storebrand Fonder (Sweden) recorded the third-best inflows in the market year-to-date, according to data from the Swedish Investment Fund Association. Storebrand Fonder also topped the rankings in several areas in Morningstar's analysis of the 100 largest fund management companies in Europe.

In Denmark, Storebrand Asset Management is ranked third highest in Prospera’s Fund Distributors & Selectors ratings —the second time that Storebrand Asset Management has been included in the Danish ranking. In contrast to our lengthy history in Norway and Sweden, our growth journey in Denmark has just begun, so it's encouraging to see the high level of regard we are already receiving in the market.

Higher activity in Nordic alternatives
The Real Estate team was strengthened in Q2 with two senior portfolio managers and a senior analyst coming onboard to handle expanded dialogues with domestic, regional, and international investors. Overall, in the real estate market, we see increased interest from clients and observe that there is capital available to be invested.

Cubera, the boutique private equity manager of the SAM Group, has raised approximately EUR 750 million across various strategies during the past 12 months, demonstrating clients' confidence in our strategies.

Cubera X, the Nordic Secondary PE strategy commenced its investment period in October, as the previous vintage, Cubera IX, was fully invested at the end of September. Additionally, Cubera continues to make investments within the mandate of three active primary fund-of-fund strategies.

Continued efforts on climate and nature
Storebrand Asset Management has continued its efforts during the quarter to take a lead in the financial sector's response to the interlinked challenges of climate and halting and reversing biodiversity loss. The Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) where we are a member, launched final guidance on nature-related reporting at Climate Week NYC in September 2023. The guidance is aimed at providing increased corporate transparency on nature-related risk.

Storebrand Asset Management´s CEO Jan Erik Saugestad also recently participated in the opening high-level policy and business dialogue at the European Business and Nature Summit in Milan. Saugestad represented the Finance for Biodiversity Alliance, announcing onstage 14 new signatories, which brings the number of financial institutions formally committed to the FfB to 153 members.

In September, the Nature Action 100 collaborative initiative, of which Storebrand Asset Manager is a founding partner, published a list of 100 companies that the group will focus on engaging with, and sent off initial letters to the companies.

During September 2023, Storebrand Asset Management won the award for Emerging Markets Manager of the Year at the LAPF Investment Awards and went on to repeat the feat at the Investment Week Sustainable Investment Awards a week later. The awards, judged by a panel of industry experts in sustainable investment, were attributed to the leadership and excellence of the Storebrand Emerging Markets Plus fund, led by fund manager Henrik Wold Nilsen.

Read our most recent Sustainable Investment Review, for Q2 2023 Sustainable-Investment-Review-Q2-2023.pdf (storebrand.com)

The Sustainable Investment Review for Q3 2023 will be published at the beginning of November.