PA Adviser spends a week in the life of Fabiana Fedeli, CIO equities, multi asset and sustainability at M&G Investments. Week commencing 16 September.
Monday
I wake up around 05:30 every morning. Out of habit of many years as a portfolio manager on Asian markets I start my day checking market levels and financial news. My first meeting is at 08:00, a check in with my chief operating officer, equities and multi asset to discuss ongoing projects – ensuring that we continue to provide an efficient ‘day-to-day’ operating environment for our investment desks.
At 08:30, I attend a weekly meeting with my Asia Pacific and emerging markets equities teams, joined by colleagues in Tokyo, Singapore, Hong Kong and Mumbai. This is a very fruitful exchange on current macro and sector observations, along with interesting local market insights and investment ideas the teams are discussing.
The rest of the morning, I have 1:1 catch ups with a number of my portfolio managers and our Solutions team, ahead of a client meeting to discuss how we can tailor our equities and multi-asset capabilities to best suit our client’s needs.
At 15:00, I’m delighted to join an Inclusion Panel discussion, alongside my colleagues from across the asset management business. We have an open and frank discussion about our personal experiences, where we are doing well as a business, and can be proud of our achievements in creating an inclusive workplace environment, but also where we could do better.
Tuesday
After an 08:00 catch up with our head of sustainability (for M&G Asset Management), our global technology analyst hosted a session on GenAI Monetisation. A timely discussion after the summer sell off we saw in technology stocks, as investors worried about the lack of monetisation (or return on investment) from companies that have been building out AI infrastructure (e.g. AI data centres). For us, we see the growth in AI, not as optional, but in many ways existential. There will, however, be winners and losers so you won’t be surprised to hear that we’d recommend an active approach for investors considering how best to access the potential opportunities this enormous growth in AI offers.
At 10:00 I join the macro meeting with my multi-asset team. We discuss different asset classes across the globe, investor behaviour and the opportunities we see arising from short-term reactions that may not have fundamental support. Market participants ever-increasing propensity to extrapolate long-term conclusions from short-term data, is offering greater opportunities for active investors such as ourselves to take advantage of the ensuing volatility.
See also: Meet the asset allocators: Fabiana Fedeli
After a light lunch, I join our investment risk team for the quarterly portfolio risk oversight meeting of one of the funds managed by my team.
At 15:00, I attend an IA investment meeting, in my capacity as a member of the Investment Committee of The Investment Association.
I join a broker research meeting at 16:30 that we are hosting in our London offices to discuss our views on markets and the macroeconomic landscape.
In the evening, I make my way across to south-west London for a CIO dinner with a number of my esteemed colleagues in the asset management industry. The event provided a welcome opportunity to exchange opinions not only on markets and macroeconomics, but also on asset management industry trends.
Wednesday
Up and out early today. The taxi arrives at 06:40 to whisk me off to Bloomberg.TV to discuss our current market views and thoughts on interest rates, central bank decisions, and where we are finding attractive opportunities. I always enjoy taking part in these discussions.
The rest of the morning is dedicated to a three-hour executive committee meeting, running from 10:30 to 13:30.
At 14:00 I’m pleased to have the opportunity for a more informal coffee with one of my younger team members. It is extremely important to me to be accessible to my investments teams and that they have a number of touch points, both formal and informal, to discuss professional growth, topics of interest or raise any concerns.
At 15:00, I host a weekly meeting with my equities desk. This provides a regular forum for desk heads to highlight any issues they’ve encountered that may require my attention, but also exchange thoughts on markets, insights on team developments, and interesting observations or conversations pertinent to their area of coverage.
After a 17:00 meeting with my equity impact team, the head of sustainability and the director of investments to discuss new FCA labelling for a number of our funds, I join my investment colleagues for a discussion with the investor relations team at a British multinational consumer healthcare company on “What makes a good investor-corporate meeting?”. A wonderful opportunity for both seasoned and less experienced investment professionals to gain some valuable insight into how the company executives themselves view these interactions, and what questions or approaches can be more or less advantageous when trying to determine a company’s motivations, growth drivers and future prospects.
At 17:45, I take a taxi to Regent’s Park. This evening I’m honoured to join a dinner at Winfield House, the residence of the US Ambassador to the UK, hosted by the Honourable Ambassador Jane D. Hartley. A truly inspiring conversation to end the day.
Thursday
At 08:00 I have a morning briefing call with Sky Italia ahead of a live interview. These media appearances always lead to interesting and lively discussions and provide an opportunity for M&G to share our macroeconomic views and current thoughts on markets.
After the show, I catch up with members of my innovation team. This is a team that comprises colleagues from different investment teams, as well as data scientists, and is spearheading a number of initiatives. This includes the application of our AI investment engine (launched five years ago, and the driver of our systematic equities offering) to all of our fundamental investment strategies, as an additional tool to support our very human investment teams, highlight opportunities and point out risks. Our internally-developed AI engine analyses five billion data points at any given time. We are glad to have it as part of our team!
See also: Sector in review: IA North America
13:30 I join the other members of the investment committee of our crossover strategy, which provides capital to private companies, needed to fund growth and innovation, enabling their eventual crossover from private to public markets. By working with companies in the UK, Europe, the US and beyond before they reach the public markets, we are able to support exciting, innovative companies while capturing value for our clients.
It’s then off to Berkshire to join my heads of equity for the remainder of the day at a desk heads offsite, and prepare for a full day of problem solving and brainstorming tomorrow.
Friday
At 06:30 after checking in on markets, I go for a run. I opt for the hotel gym’s treadmill, as it is pouring outside. At 08:00, it’s down to business. A productive offsite ends up being a soggier affair than we’d hoped for, as our team building outdoor activity is caught in a downpour, but good sense and a competitive spirit prevailed to make for an enjoyable and beneficial end to the week.
Saturday
Saturday morning starts with a barrecore class, a regular feature of my weekends if I am not travelling. I need to keep my skier legs in shape for the winter! In the afternoon, one of my closest friends from Beijing is coming to stay. Having lived in Europe, North America and Asia, and being married to an Australian, means that our house is a hub for our friends and family from all over the world.
Sunday
Early wake up to listen to the recording of my favourite financial markets programme, followed by barrecore and my most cherished Sunday activity: sitting on the sofa and sifting through market reports, articles on geopolitics, and reams of interesting data.
I end the weekend with a glass of wine and a chat with my lovely husband. As busy and intense as my life is, he is the one force that keeps me grounded. Ready for the week ahead!
