The French bank's investment arm is simplifying its structure and re-branding.

BNP Paribas Investment Partners, part of the Paris-listed banking group, is rebranding as BNP Paribas Asset Management and has set out a plan to grow assets under management by 5 per cent over the next three to five years, aiming to simplify business amid competitive pressures posed by the rise of low-cost passive products and demand for ESG-themed investment.

“The aim is to deliver sustainable long term performance with a robust risk management and Environmental, Social and Governance framework. To do so, BNPP AM will continuously reinforce its strong proprietary research and build on existing quantitative and qualitative capabilities in both active and passive management, along with its well-established and highly-regarded equity and fixed income platforms,” BNP Paribas said in a statement yesterday. 

There will be no job cuts as a result of the changes, and in fact new jobs will be announced in due course, the firm told this publication when asked about the matter.

The global asset management industry is being forced to adapt from a number of quarters. The rise of so-called passive products, such as low-cost exchange traded funds, and regulatory pressures on advisors, have squeezed traditional more “active” business models. Separately, there is growing demand for investment that gathers not just financial returns but also achieves certain environmental, social and other non-financial outcomes.

“With a focus on providing high-quality, innovative solutions including advisory services and risk management to institutional clients, the firm is also targeting individual investors with outcome-based retirement savings products, as well as providing innovative offerings such as digital platforms to distributors. Other digital initiatives will include partnering with fintechs in areas such as robo-advice, smart coding and artificial intelligence,” the firm said.

BNP Paribas said its organisational structure, operating model, governance and range of products are being “substantially simplified” through an “ambitious transformation programme”. So far, it has created a private debt and real assets team led by David Bouchoucha, incorporating a broad range of investment solutions in private debt instruments financing companies or assets such as infrastructure or real estate. BNPP AM has also launched a project to combine the current THEAM, Multi Asset Solutions and CamGestion teams, to be led by Denis Panel, current chief executive of THEAM. “With significant assets under management, this new group will bring together the best of quantitative and fundamental investment management approaches, to extend market share in a fast-growing segment of the industry,” the firm said. 

BNPP AM said it has a “strong presence throughout Europe, a unique footprint in emerging markets and growing operations in the United States. The firm continues to leverage its strength in Belgium, France, Italy and Luxembourg, as well as its presence in emerging markets, while accelerating its development in three key strategic countries: Germany, China and the US”.