Boutique asset manager Unigestion is to pay for all investment research on behalf of its clients, in line with the upcoming Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID) II.

MiFID II, which comes into effect on 3 January 2018 for all asset managers operating in the European Union, brings about important changes to the regulation of investment research. The Directive’s rules essentially lay out three options for how firms can account for the payment of investment research, ranging from paying for it from their own Profit and Loss (P&L) to charging clients directly through a Research Payment Account (RPA).
 
Unigestion has opted to pay for all investment research from its own P&L, a move it believes will ensure the clear and transparent costs and charges delivery of its products across all asset classes.
  
This decision will not result in any change in management fees and Unigestion remains fully committed to continue delivering value for money to all of its clients.
 
Fiona Frick (pictured), CEO of Unigestion, says: “Our clients are at the heart of everything that we do and the reasons behind our decision to pay for all research ourselves go beyond regulation. It is quite simply the right thing to do to ensure that we continue to give our clients the clearest picture of how and why they are being charged for our products, alongside safeguarding them from any potential conflicts of interest in providing best execution. Both our bespoke in-house research and the research provided through external providers are integral to our investment process. We will continue to use them both in tandem to deliver the best possible investment solutions and returns to our clients globally.”