SocGen partners up for equity research 02 December 2016Hong Kong Reporter: Barney Dixon
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Societe Generale has partnered with Smartkarma to provide clients easier access to equity research, and to aid compliance with unbundling rules under the second Market in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID II).
Under MiFID II, European asset managers will be required to prove they only pay for research they use, avoiding cross-subsidisation. They will also have to inform asset owners of their portion of the research budget in advance.
Focusing on the Asian market, Smartkarma uses a predictive search engine to match research with investor mandates quickly. It is intended to allow Societe Generale clients to create a stronger correlation between research demand and supply, to amalgamate information and stay on top of the evolving financial environment.
According to Societe Generale, the deal marks the first time a global investment bank has made an equity research agreement with an emerging fintech company.
Stephane Loiseau, head of cash equities and global execution services for the Asia Pacific region at Societe Generale, said: “Societe Generale is excited to offer institutional investors an innovative solution to access high quality, independent equity research on Asian stocks with insightful investment ideas.”
He added: "With this fast growing ecosystem, we are providing clients with a new way to access research content that is compliant with the increased unbundling and transparent pricing requirements of research and trading services.”
Smartkarma provides access to over 100 investment insight firms, with nearly 400 analysts who have written on over 1600 companies across 15 Asian markets.
Raghav Kapoor, CEO and co-founder of Smarkarma, said: “In a short span, Smartkarma has emerged as the industry-leading model for research creation, distribution and monetisation.”
“We are committed to bringing unbeatable efficiency and unprecedented transparency to the market while promoting revolutionary economics and seamless access.”
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