The Aquest Podcast – the easy listening funds industry podcast

REG BLAST PODCAST – Bite-sized legal & reg updates

27 April 2019

Welcome to episode 3 of Aquest’s new podcast series – The Reg Blast Podcast.

Every fortnight we bring you our easy-to-digest update of the latest legal and regulatory developments in the investment funds industry.

This episode covers fitness and probity and the Central Bank of Ireland’s recent letter to financial services firms reminding them of their obligations under that regime.  We summarise the fitness and probity regime generally and take a look at the key messages from the Central Bank’s letter.

Hope you enjoy!

The Aquest Podcast: #First 18 Special Series

Part 1 – Key challenges faced by newly authorised Irish fund mancos

In the run up to the launch of our Special Report #First18: From Survive to Thrive, we have a special series of podcasts where we chat to industry experts about the key topics covered by the report.

In Part 1, my co-hosts are Tara Doyle, Head of Asset Management and Investment Funds at Matheson and Grellan O’Kelly, Chief Risk Officer at Davy Group.  We chat about:

* the key challenges faced by newly authorised Irish fund management companies;

* the strategies new mancos are using to tackle these challenges; and

* how new mancos can drive their business forward once these initial challenges have been met.

Many thanks to Tara and Grellan for co-hosting.

Enjoy Part 1 and look out for Part 2 which will be available next week!

REG BLAST PODCAST – Bite-sized legal & reg updates

13 April 2019

Welcome to episode 2 of Aquest’s brand new podcast series – The Reg Blast Podcast.

Every fortnight we bring you our easy-to-digest update of the latest legal and regulatory developments in the investment funds industry.

This episode covers:

* China Bond Connect

* The Central Bank of Ireland’s report on Fitness and Probity Applications in 2018

* ETFs in the press

* European Commission work on ESG

Many thanks to Feargal Dempsey, INED, for co-hosting.

Enjoy!

Bite-sized legal & reg updates – 28 March 2019

Welcome to the first episode of Aquest’s brand new podcast series – The Reg Blast Podcast.

Every fortnight we will be bringing you an easy-to-digest update of the latest legal and regulatory developments in the investment funds industry.

This episode covers:

* The Central Bank of Ireland’s latest guidance for the funds industry on a no-deal Brexit

* EMIR REFIT

* ESMA’s Supervisory Convergence Work Programme 2019

Many thanks to Deirdre O’Reilly, INED, for co-hosting.

Enjoy!

The Aquest Podcast – Episode 13: Behaviour

Behaviour and culture – can firms really serve two masters?

In July 2018, the Central Bank of Ireland released a report on ‘Behaviour and Culture of the Irish Retail Banks’.  The report was complied following extensive interviews, questionnaires and observing board meetings of the five main Irish retail banks.  Interestingly, it was produced by supervisors with assistance from behavioural psychologists.

For the February 2019 episode of the Aquest Podcast, I thought it would be interesting to find out more about behavioural psychologists, what behavioural triggers they are looking out for and what impact culture has on behaviour.

So for this episode my co-host is Shannon Eastman, a behavioural expert with a particular focus on behaviour in business.  Shannon is CEO and Founder of Teach A Brand To Fish, a b2b marketing firm that uses behavioural expertise as a key part of its methodology.

We chat about the Central Bank’s report and what bad and good behaviours look like.  We also chat about whether firms can be customer centric but also serve their own shareholders – can they really serve two masters?  Does human behaviour allow this?

Find out in Episode 13!

The Aquest Podcast – Episode 12: What 2019 holds in store

Reviewing 2018 and contemplating what 2019 might bring

In the January 2019 episode of the Aquest Podcast, I am joined by Kieran Fox and Declan Casey of Irish Funds as we crystal ball gaze and chat about what 2019 is likely to bring to the Funds Industry.

We also take time to reflect on the challenges and achievements of 2018 and chat about how Irish Funds has changed and evolved over the years – including the essential skills of stakeholder management!  We wrap up by revealing our dreams for 2019 – five-in-a-row anyone?

Many thanks to Kieran and Declan for co-hosting. Enjoy!

The Aquest Podcast – Episode 11: Fintech & Adminovate 2019

Fintech in Ireland and looking forward to Adminovate 2019

For this episode of the Aquest Podcast, the topics are Fintech and the Adminovate 2019 conference.  Who better to join me as co-hosts than the organisers of Adminovate who are Fintech experts in their own right – Pete Townsend of Norio Ventures and Des O’Donohoe of Fund Recs.

Our discussion covered a range of topics from ‘Money Never Sleeps’, Pete’s own podcast that he co-hosts with Eoin Fitzgerald of Enterprise Ireland, to Fintech in Ireland, DLT and Bitcoin.  We also chat about Adminovate 2019 which will be held in Trinity College Dublin on 17 January 2019.  Adminovate is a conference that focuses on innovation in the Fund Administration Industry.

It promises to be a great event and tickets are available from adminovate.ie

Many thanks to Pete and Des for their time and insights.  Hope you enjoy the podcast (and forgive the low volume on my microphone – put it down to Christmas technical gremlins!)

Finally, Happy Christmas and best wishes for a prosperous and peaceful 2019!

The Aquest Podcast – Episode 10: ETFs

Product development, regulation and what makes a fund ‘ETF-able’

For this episode of the Aquest Podcast, I am delighted to be joined by Adrian Mulryan, General Counsel at marketβeta.  Adrian is a funds lawyer by training, ETF expert, serial entrepreneur and genial conversationalist.

Our discussion focuses mainly on the present and future of ETFs – both in terms of product development and regulation.  We also touch upon what types of funds are capable of having an ETF wrapped around them i.e. what funds are ‘ETF-able’ – a term coined by Adrian during our conversation.

As both marketβeta and Aquest are approaching their first birthdays, we conclude our chat by touching on entrepreneurship and the experience of starting a new business in the funds industry.

Many thanks to Adrian for taking time out to share his insights on all things ETF.  Hope you enjoy the podcast!

The Aquest Podcast – Episode 7: Risk Management

Learning about risk management from a Bookie

In this episode of the Aquest Podcast, I am joined by David Lyons of Black Swan Sports who are market leaders in hedging financial risk related to the outcome of sporting events.

We chat about how bookmakers go about managing the risks associated with their positions and draw parallels with how risk management is carried out by financial services firms.  Thanks to David for sharing some really interesting insights on risk management from a different industry sector.  Enjoy!

The Aquest Podcast – Episode 4 with Giovanni Bandi (Qatar Financial Regulator)

Funds industry in Qatar and IOSCO’s leverage work

In this episode of the Aquest Podcast, I am joined by Giovanni Bandi who is the Head of Investment Management at the Qatar Financial Centre Regulatory Authority. We chat about the make-up and structure of the funds industry in Qatar. Gionvanni is co-Chair of IOSCO’s Leverage Working Group so we also chat about that workstream, the approach being taken and how the FSB will receive IOSCO’s recommendations.  Enjoy!