Pictet has topped the tables as the best overall investor services provider, according to R&M’s latest survey results.
The R&M Investor Services survey asked asset managers and other financial services clients to score their service providers out of 7, quizzing them on performance in categories such as corporate actions, reporting, settlement and safekeeping, and client service and account management.
Overall, Swiss asset manager Pictet scored the highest, with an average score of 6.24, followed by the Royal Bank of Canada which achieved an average score of 6.06.
While these are the same front-runners as in 2016’s results, both saw a dip in their scores. They tied in first place last year, scoring 6.29 apiece.
Northern Trust retained its third-place position in 2017, with an average score of 5.66, and BNY Mellon and J.P. Morgan came in fourth and fifth place with 5.53 and 5.51, respectively.
BNP Paribas came in sixth place with a score of 5.38, and State Street was last with 5.12.
Notably, every bank that qualified for an overall score in the survey saw a decline in its score, with Pictet seeing a marginal decrease of 0.05 points and BNP Paribas recording the biggest decline of 0.26. Despite its second-place position, RBC also saw a significant drop in score compared to last year, falling 0.23 points.
For the first time, the 2017 survey asked respondents to select the three service elements that were most important to them.
Settlement and safekeeping services emerged as the most important element, with 25.99 percent of the vote. This was followed by client and relationship management, selected by 18.26 percent, while client reporting and monthly accounting and valuation reports tied in third place, receiving 11.92 percent of the votes each.
The elements that received the fewest votes were proxy voting services, considered important by 1.23 percent, ancillary services, selected by 0.49 percent, and securities lending, considered as an important service by just 0.16 percent.
A more detailed breakdown and analysis of the R&M Investor Services Survey 2017 will be published in Asset Servicing Times on 5 April.
