Biography
Alexander Flatscher, CFA, is a former director of professional standards at CFA Institute. He was responsible for promoting the ethical standards, policies, and positions of CFA Institute in the Asia-Pacific region.
The view that a corporate culture promoting ethical behavior represents a competitive advantage for asset managers is gaining momentum in Asia.
For asset managers there are many effective ways to raise the level of trust by increasing ethical behavior firm-wide. One way to accomplish this is proper, fair, and uniform presentation of investment performance.
The Financial Services Authority in Japan is currently investigating a variety of financial institutions, and its interest appears to be client entertainment practices at financial firms.
A plan sponsor and investment managers discuss the benefits of the CFA Institute Asset Manager Code of Professional Conduct.
MassPRIM CIO touts benefits of CFA Institute Asset Manager Code of Professional Conduct to investment managers and regulators in the Asia-Pacific region.
Retail investors may have been victims of another Madoff-style scam—this time with a Las Vegas-based company MRI International. There are signs that suggest the Japanese subsidiary of MRI International had sold around US $1.3 billion worth of investment products that were meant to provide income on U.S. medical fee receivables to Japanese retail investors.
What do magicians and the black sheep among investment advisers have in common? Well, for the purpose of this blog, a lot. Both magicians and notorious investment advisers make their money by selling illusions.
Mis-selling was highlighted as one of the most serious ethical issues in the recent CFA Institute Global Market Sentiment Survey. When asked to select among six options, 25% of Asia-Pacific respondents chose mis-selling as the number one ethical issue facing their local markets in the coming year.
Fraudulent financial reporting is such a major concern in Asia that U.S. regulators are now getting involved — a reminder to investors of the potential perils posed by companies that are listed in foreign countries, whether through a reverse merger or IPO.
Given our intense interest in high professional standards of conduct in the investment profession, we still find it disappointing when we come across the never-ending stream of news about market participants who do not behave according to the rules.
Although the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) region still goes somewhat unnoticed outside of Asia, these days a lot is brewing for investors in the region.
Following the big interest in last year’s CFA Institute Global Financial Market Sentiment Survey (GMSS), the results of the 2013 survey — shaped by input from the nearly 6,800 CFA charterholders worldwide — are sure to raise some eyebrows.
Due to Japan's suffering economy and the problem arising from underfunded pension funds, large funds in Japan are being forced to rethink their portfolio management approach.
An interesting case in India involving the sale of an investment product based on one company’s interpretation of law and regulations, which conflicts with that of the Supreme Court of India, is currently the subject of legal proceedings, and it highlights potentially wide-reaching issues for investors.
Given recent regulatory improvements in Asia, there is hope that more listed companies in the region will place greater importance on shareholder communication. And as a result, more boards of Asian companies might be of the “visionary” kind, with a long-term investor base to reflect that strategy.