Buy-side Perspectives Issue 14 Special edition | Page 32

of liquidity in the equity market is
something the bond market can look at
and hopefully avoid. We do want
It’s been valuable to call on my experience in more transparency and access to
equity markets over the past 12 years to give differentiated types of liquidity,
context to the right route to take in the fixed but we probably don’t need ten
platforms on the desktop to do so.
income market, for which MiFID II seems to
Our fund managers have the freedom
to manage their portfolios according to
have been a bit of a shock.
their own investment processes. This
culture in turn gives us the freedom to
design and implement the best possible
processes to deliver best execution
across multi-asset classes.
Since I joined the firm in 2016 we have
experienced rapid growth in AUM,
which has made the past couple of years
both challenging and enjoyable. It has
presented the opportunity to add value
and make a real difference to reducing
risk, how we execute and to improve the
performance of the funds we manage.
In addition to the growth and
development at Liontrust, we have
also experienced the biggest change in
financial markets for a decade in MiFID II,
which has asked questions
of all market participants.
It’s been valuable to call on
my experience in equity
markets over the past 12
years to give context to
the right route to take in
the fixed income market,
for which MiFID II seems
to have been a bit of a
shock. The fragmentation
This is where I see huge value
in the Alpha Trader Forum experience.
A by-product of the fixed income
pricing model is that the sell side are
not incentivised to provide more
transparency, this means connecting
with peers has never been so important
as we all try to shape the processes of the
future. Obviously with so many
This is where I see huge value in the
firms represented in the room
there are going to be conflicting Alpha Trader Forum experience.
views depending on the size
Connecting with peers has never been
and shape of flow but if we can
so important as we all try to shape the
take note of the commonality
processes of the future.
in certain areas then we can all
or a gym session a few times a week
move forward a lot more efficiently. This
hopefully provides more time to focus on is something we all benefit from and
makes us more productive as a result. The
the individual hurdles we all face at firm
next personal challenge is a half Ironman
level.
in July which I am really looking forward
to as it’s great to have something to aim
for to keep fit. Speaking of balance, I
counter the good done by exercise with
a passion for good food and travel which
are my favourite ways to relax with the
family.
Has MiFID II been positive or negative
for the buy-side fixed income trading
role?
“ Martin enjoying life away from the trading desk”
Do you have any interests outside
work that help counteract the
potential challenges of the trading
environment?
I have quite diverse interests outside of
the office, be it exercise to switch off after
work or spending time with family when
I get the opportunity. Generally, I can be
found out riding a bike or doing some
kind of water sport which is a benefit of
growing up by the sea in Bournemouth.
The Liontrust team has a healthy level
32
of competition which keeps things
interesting. We recently competed in
The Royal Parks half marathon which
was my first event since becoming a
dad two years ago, so it was nice to
have something to train for. Other
office challenges have included 5km
runs, 5000m row, a timed high-intensity
interval training (HIIT) workout and most
memorably the plank challenge. Trust
me, as competitive as I am I’m not going
to try to beat the boss’ plank time three
weeks before bonus time! On a serious
note, it’s a good environment to work
in, the hard work is balanced with an
opportunity to unwind; a run at lunch
www.buysideintel.com
Although there are always unintended
consequences with any new
regulation, on the whole I would say
that the evolution of the market under
MiFID II has been a good thing for
the end investor. It has presented the
opportunity to demonstrate how you
add value as a trading desk and to
differentiate yourself as a business.
A key area at Liontrust is the
transparency we provide to the
end client. Being a specialist asset
manager it enables us to be more
nimble and to provide a more
bespoke offering to both clients and
consultants to really give them a feel
for where we add value as a trading
desk.
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