[ S U R V E Y | A G E N T B A N K S I N M A J O R M A R K E T S ]
Asia
Asia ’ s prominence as a region in focus can be seen in the sheer amount of coverage the continent has received from Global Custodian this year . This can be typified in our article earlier this year which discussed a “ golden age for asset servicers in the region ” over the past 12 months . Taking a look at Global Custodian ’ s latest data in the Agent Banks in Major Markets survey , the scores certainly reflect the increasingly positive sentiment in the region . With an average overall score of 5.81 , sitting 26 basis points above the global average ( 5.55 ), the Asian market has seen a notable improvement from last year ’ s score . Relationship Management ( 6.36 ), Client Service ( 6.08 ) and Account Management ( 6.07 ) are the three highest scoring categories – all in the Very Good range ( 6.00 – 6.99 ). This is particularly noteworthy , given that Client Services and Account Management were considered the most important categories by our Asia-based respondents . Across the board there has been an upward shift in ratings for every category this year . Most impressive is once again Relationship Management and Client Service , increasing by 54 and 42 basis
1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th 9th 10th 11th 12th 13th
Respondent Priorities Client Service Relationship Management Account Management Pricing Asset Servicing Asset Safety and Risk Management Cash Management and FX Regulation and Compliance Technology Liquidity Management Data Services Service Innovation Securities Lending
points , respectively . Also interesting to note , is that - while usually it is Pricing which receives the lowest score – this year it is Securities Lending ( 5.49 ) which ranks lowest . However , this category is still sitting firmly in the Good ( 5.00 – 5.99 ) range . Perhaps the fact that this category also scored lowest in the list of priorities may also have an implication on this rating . Worth highlighting this year is Technology ( 5.69 ), rated ninth in the list of priorities , this category sits comfortably at Good and has seen a notable improvement on last year ’ s score . However , with the recent focus on technology by the Asian market , the category actually has the third lowest market score , suggesting that perhaps clients are still looking for further advancements in the space . This may soon be answered however , with Hong Kong and Singapore regulators pushing innovation with sandbox initiatives covering AI , tokenisation and other new types of technologies through a number of pilots and collaborations with market participants . It will be exciting to see how these new developments reflect in next year ’ s scores . The hot topic for much of the sub-custody sector has been the subject of the shift to T + 1 in the US , which has been hard to miss . The operational challenges became a bigger issue for investors the farther away they were situated , with regards to time zones . Incidentally , in a recent roundtable discussion hosted by Global Custodian , experts from Asia Pacific commented how surprisingly a few issues and none of the concerns pre-T + 1 launch , materi-
Asia |
2024 |
2023 |
Global Average |
Difference to Global |
Account Management |
6.07 |
5.69 |
5.83 |
0.24 |
Asset Safety and risk management |
5.91 |
5.74 |
5.73 |
0.18 |
Asset Servicing |
5.81 |
5.57 |
5.59 |
0.22 |
Cash Management and FX |
5.72 |
5.40 |
5.46 |
0.26 |
Client Service |
6.08 |
5.66 |
5.84 |
0.24 |
Data Services |
5.71 |
5.45 |
5.44 |
0.27 |
Service Innovation |
5.73 |
5.39 |
5.43 |
0.29 |
Liquidity Management |
5.71 |
5.34 |
5.41 |
0.29 |
Pricing |
5.51 |
5.16 |
5.20 |
0.31 |
Regulation and Compliance |
5.80 |
5.56 |
5.57 |
0.23 |
Relationship Management |
6.36 |
5.81 |
6.15 |
0.20 |
Securities Lending |
5.49 |
5.13 |
5.17 |
0.32 |
Technology |
5.69 |
5.35 |
5.33 |
0.36 |
Average |
5.81 |
5.48 |
5.55 |
0.26 |
68 Global Custodian Fall 2024