Posted: 16/07/2012
Leading corporate stockbroking and advisory firm, Oriel Securities, presented market update briefings to over 160 non-executive directors (NEDs) in Jersey and Guernsey on 9 and 10 July, respectively.
The briefings, jointly-hosted with offshore law firm Carey Olsen, provided attendees with an update on the real estate market, economic trends in the current climate and the viewpoint and appetite for risk of investors.
Neil Winward, partner in Oriel's corporate sales team, said: “Investor focus has increasingly been turning to products that offer income and high yield which are qualities provided by the global growth and income sector.
“Investors want inflation protection, interest rate protection and, going forward, low volatility with non-UK exposure. This means investing in infrastructure, agriculture and real assets like ships and planes.”
Presenting on the real estate sector, Oriel partners Mark Young and Roger Clarke touched on the key themes that have emerged in 2012.
Roger Clarke said: “The bank lending environment is becoming even tougher with the sector facing numerous refinancings across the board.” He added that: “Alternatives to bank lending will be crucial to the success of the sector with current investor appetite waning due to this uncertainty in the market.”
Darren Winder, Oriel's Head of Economics, rounded up the briefings with an overview of the current economic outlook: “The UK economy will see growth, albeit slow, only if the squeeze on household incomes starts to moderate and consumption rises. Less inflation is needed to secure more growth.”
The panel also presented an overview of Oriel's latest Directors' Survey which revealed some interesting statistics.
Joe Winkley, partner in Oriel's corporate finance team, covered themes such as board composition, management fees and board remuneration.
“The survey results, unsurprisingly, revealed that the essential areas for expertise to have on a board were knowledge of the relevant asset class, fund management experience and accounting experience.”
He said that Channel Islands boards had only 7% female directors which, he explained, “was comparable to wider FTSE 250 statistics”.
Investment funds and private equity partner in Jersey, James Mulholland, who chaired the Jersey event, said: “It is rare for an investment bank of such calibre, and insight into the funds and the real estate markets such as Oriel Securities, to dedicate their time to the Channel Islands.
“Given our shared client base, we were delighted to share the platform with the Oriel team and assist them in raising their local profile.”
Advocate Ben Morgan, corporate partner at Carey Olsen, chaired the Guernsey briefing. He said: “This has been an enlightening briefing on UK trends, one which we were happy to host.
“Guernsey and Jersey continue to lead the offshore market for listings on the London Stock Exchange. It is imperative that we continue to retain our competitive advantage by being at the cutting edge of current market practices in the UK-listed sector.”
Pictured (l-r): Darren Winder, Neil Winward, James Mulholland, Joe Winkley, Roger Clarke, Mark Young