• Assets under management of ERSTE-SPARINVEST, the biggest subsidiary of Erste AM, increased by 7.9% to EUR 34bn last year
• Assets under management held by sustainable funds exceeded EUR 5bn for the first time
• As of 31 December 2017, Erste Asset Management (Erste AM) holds assets under management of EUR 63.3bn (+7.4%)

For the fifth time in a row, ERSTE-SPARINVEST, the biggest subsidiary of Erste Asset Management, came in first among the Austrian investment companies last year in terms of assets under management, as reported by VÖIG (Vereinigung österreichischer Investmentgesellschaften), the Association of Austria Investment Companies in its latest market update. Assets under management of ERSTE-SPARINVEST increased to EUR 34bn, i.e. +7.9% or EUR 2.5bn.

Total assets under management, held by the group in investment funds in Austria, i.e. Erste Asset Management (Erste AM) together with ERSTE-SPARINVEST, increased to EUR 39.6bn. “In 2017, our assets under management held in Austria increased by about EUR 2.8bn. At a growth rate of 7.7%, we outperformed the average growth rate of the overall fund market,” as Heinz Bednar, CEO of Erste Asset Management, sums it up.

Assets under management held in sustainable funds increase above EUR 5bn

Slightly more than a third (34.5%) of the assets invested in funds via Erste AM is held directly by retail investors, while 65.5% of the assets are managed on behalf of institutional investors. As of the end of 2017, sustainable equity funds account for 20.3% of total assets under management held by year end.

Sustainable funds: allocation by asset class - as of 31 December 2017:

73% fixed income funds

20.3% equity funds

6.7% mixed funds and special funds

Source: Erste Asset Management

Sustainable equity funds have become increasingly popular with Austrians. As Heinz Bednar says, “In 2011 assets under management held by sustainable funds amounted to EUR 2.4bn. This number has doubled in the meantime, which shows the momentum with which this segment is developing among retail and institutional investors.” With more than 15 years of experience in sustainable investments, Erste Asset Management is one of the pioneers in Austria in this field.

Erste Asset Management group increases assets under management to EUR 63.3bn

Erste Asset Management group has had a very good year 2017. Erste AM coordinates and is responsible for the asset management activities (asset management with investment funds and portfolio solutions) within Erste Group Bank AG. At its locations in Austria and Germany, Croatia, Romania, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, and Hungary, it holds assets under management of EUR 63.3bn (as of 31 December 2017). We were particularly pleased with the development in Austria, the Czech Republic, and Slovakia, where the investment company recorded significant increases. Mixed funds and equity funds were particularly popular.

Assets under management - as of 31 December 2017:                    

Source: Erste Asset Management; includes investment funds and portfolio solutions

* thereof ERSTE-SPARINVEST: EUR 34bn

** After effects from consolidation of EUR -0.8bn including Erste Immobilien KAG (EUR 1.7bn)