Overview
The Asia Region Funds Passport (ARFP) is a region-wide initiative led by Australia, New Zealand, Republic of Korea and Singapore that was formalized with their Statement of Intent on 20 September 2013. It aims to provide a multilaterally agreed framework to facilitate the cross border marketing of managed funds across participating economies in the Asia region.
Volguard has prepared a study for Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) that sets out a statistically defensible business rationale for the introduction of the ARFP into Asia.
Chief among the projected benefits of the ARFP is the overwhelming idea of positioning Asia as a linchpin of the global funds industry, as a boon to participating Asian economies. Other key aims include liquidity enhancement, investment diversification, cost reduction using economies of scale and the ease of access to a wider choice of products.
Relevance of Volguard’s Study
The outstanding success of the UCITS in Europe has already arguably supported some of these opinions. Nevertheless, decision makers still need to evaluate the merits of the ARFP scheme in a quantifiable manner to grasp better, its impact on their respective economies- a crucial consideration that is illuminated by Volguard’s statistically defensible arguments.
While studies done by numerous financial sector participants have tended to be qualitative, Volguard’s team approaches this study with a combination of qualitative and quantitative angles to potential gains versus risks, to derive indicators and criterion that are relevant for decision makers.
The study is developed based on constructive discussions and analysis by Volguard’s team leveraging on Volguard Analytics to shape the framework that is aligned with real-world constraints and academic research, hence bridging the gap between theory and practice.
To learn more about the study and its findings, you can check the report published by APEC Policy Support Unit in July 2014: Asia Region Funds Passport - A Study of Potential Economic Benefits and Costs