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Assets under management

The return on investments was positive, reaching 10.4% in 2021 compared to 6.6% in 2020. That corresponds to €61 billion. The growth in assets managed in 2021 was mainly caused by high returns on the financial markets. Western economies grew faster than expected in 2021, partly because of fiscal stimulus packages in the US and in Europe. Large companies flourished as a result and saw their profits rise sharply. Private and listed stocks, real estate and commodities also posted high returns. Interest rates rose throughout the year, which resulted in losses for government bonds. Other fixed-income investments did contribute towards a positive return on investments.

It is important for our clients to have reliable exposure to the financial markets, especially when those markets offer the high returns witnessed in 2021. Benchmark returns represent the bulk of the investment returns we achieve for our clients assuming everything goes to plan. We then look at the excess return that we have achieved with our asset management in addition to this exposure.

Our performance levels as a long-term investor are best assessed over a longer period of time. The table below shows the annual returns and any additional (excess) returns of our investment strategies for 2021 and for the previous five years. External management costs and costs of performance-related premiums have been deducted from the figures below. 

RETURN ON ASSETS UNDER MANAGEMENT Investment style Net Asset Value 2021 (1 year) 2021 (1 year) 5 years 5 years  
    in millions Return (in %) Excess Return (in bps) Return (in %) Excess Return (in bps) IRR since inception4
STRATEGY              
               
Fixed income              
Treasury Global Cap Pres1 46,567 -3.6 -1 1.3 -22  
Long Duration Treasury Global Cap Pres 76,486 -7.0 4 3.5 -1  
Long Duration Treasury Euro Active2 3,061 -10.0 -8 4.9 2  
Credits Developed Markets Active Active 78,915 3.4 72 2.7 73  
Alternative Credits Active 9,394 21.3 970      
Investment Grade Corporate Credits Active 4,613 2.4 -33      
Mortgages Active 3,112 2.7 537 3.1 277  
China Fixed Income Active 87 16.3 1      
Emerging Market Debt Active Active 17,146 1.2 39 1.8 -19  
Emerging Market Debt Index Index3 17,055 0.7 -17      
Alternative Inflation Active 640 5.6 57 1.5 18  
Index Linked Bond Cap Pres 123 5.2 -12 2.7 -38  
               
Equities              
Developed Markets Equity Active 144,170 29.5 -179 13.8 -27  
Focus Equities Active 24,936 21.8 -419 14.5 237  
Fundamental Strategies Active 62,011 28.2 -284 14.7 55  
Quantitative Strategies Active 55,398 33.4 112 13.0 -102  
Equity Minimum Volatility Index 20,062 23.1 18 8.5 -124  
Developed Equities RI Index Index 1,304 8.4 25      
Emerging Markets Equity Active 44,563 4.4 -30 9.5 114  
               
Alternative investments              
Strategic Real Estate Active 42,163 22.1 460 6.6 8  
Tactical Real Estate Active 12,234 24.0 -180 7.3 55  
Liquid Commodities5 Active 30,448 38.4 -95 4.6 93  
Illiquid Commodities 5 Active 3,004 7.8 -936 3.9 -118  
Hedge Funds5, 6 Active 23,005 8.4 829 5.4 412  
Thematic Investments Active 561 25.7 -695 -4.4 -1,666  
Private Equity Combined Pools Active 46,454 40.0 768 22.5 637 22.0%
Infrastructure Combined Pools Active 20,051 16.2 797 10.1 513 11.5%
 
The returns are presented after deduction of external management fees and performance fees.
 
1 Cap Pres, Capital preservation: in this investment style, the main objective is to preserve the principal sum by avoiding credit losses. This type of mandate relates to investments in fixed-interest products.
2 Active: in this investment style, we aim for excess return over and above the benchmark.
3 Index: in this investment style, we aim for the benchmark return.
4 IRR SI, Internal rate of return since inception: indicates the annual return since the inception of an investment.
5 Liquid, Illiquid Commodities en Hedge Funds are 100 percent invested in USD. The return figures are therefore based on the return in USD instead of EUR.
6 The Hedge Funds benchmark has been adjusted to JP Morgan 1 month cash (without any mark-up) to provide better insight into the effect of active management.

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The total assets managed in the table do not match the assets being managed, which equal €636 billion. The table does not show all of the strategies and does not show any overlay. These have a negative balance value, which means that the amounts in the table add up to a higher total.

Read the full Annual Report