Dear readers, We are actually hesitant to use terms like "new era" or "new epoch". But at the beginning of 2022, it seems appropriate to us - because in the future, the conditions for investors will change fundamentally. The last decade was marked by a boom in all asset classes. Real estate prices doubled. The MSCI World, which aggregates the shares of companies from industrialised countries, climbed by 250 per cent, and the Nasdaq 100 by as much as 580 per cent. A long period of interest rate cuts into negative territory led to a flood of investment capital flowing out of interest rate investments and into stocks and real estate. And because the price of living rose less than 15 percent from mid-2011 to mid-2021, the purchasing power...

Thanks to clever marketing of ten-penny baking powder sachets and early diversification, August Oetker's pharmacy became one of Germany's largest companies in 130 years. After the Oetker Group was split up in the summer of 2021, its future is open. The year 1891 promises to be a good one. On January 1, 29-year-old pharmacist Dr. August Oetker takes over the "Aschoff'sche Apotheke" at Niedernstrasse 3 in Bielefeld, having borrowed the money from his mother-in-law and the bank. His wife, Karoline, supported the natural scientist and son of a master baker and took care of their two-year-old son Rudolf. August Oetker promised "to serve everyone who honors my bakery with his trust to the best of his ability. His first own formulations were...

Lerbacher Runde. Once a year, bankers, asset managers and family officers meet at Schloss Bensberg to provide wealthy investors with inspiration and guidance. While the autumn of 2020 was still dominated by the pandemic and economic recovery, new questions are now being asked: What is happening with inflation? Are we witnessing the turnaround in interest rates? What would that mean for the price of real assets, which have experienced an unprecedented boom thanks to zero interest rates? And how should investors deal with climate change? The experts know the answer. "We are living in exciting times," says Kai Röhrl, Head of Wholesale, Robeco Germany, opening the twelfth Lerbach Roundtable: "The economy and capital markets have barely come...

Private Real Estate Loans. Banks are pulling back from lending on commercial real estate projects. Private investors can fill this gap. The incentive: attractive returns, regardless of developments on the capital markets. "Because there are projects with different risk profiles, the market offers a broad field for every type of investor," says Peter Begler, Alternatives Director at Schroders. "It's actually a curious situation," Peter Begler reflects: "We have a real estate boom all over Europe. But banks are increasingly pulling out of the real estate lending business." And that, says the director of alternative products at asset manager Schroders, has nothing to do with the fact that there are no longer any lucrative investments in...

Dividend Strategy Asia. High-yielding assets are desperately sought at the moment. George Gosden, portfolio manager at Columbia Threadneedle, advises investors to look to Asia. Not only is the long-term economic environment right there, but there are also attractive dividend yields from high-growth companies. "Those who pursue a dividend strategy in Europe," explains George Gosden, "usually end up with companies with a solid business model but no growth prospects. On the other hand, those that are growing strongly often don't pay dividends. That doesn't satisfy me, though." The head of Asia ex-Japan equities and fund manager of the Asian Income fund at Columbia Threadneedle looks for high-growth companies that also offer attractive dividend...

Currency management. For globally invested assets, exchange rates have a massive impact on portfolio returns. "But because the currency markets have been quiet in recent months, many investors have lost sight of this aspect," recalls Johannes Mayr, chief economist at asset manager Eyb & Wallwitz, predicting, "In 2022, this will change. Investors should prepare themselves." "Currency management is perhaps the most underestimated aspect of investing," Johannes Mayr reflects, "because exchange rates have tremendous leverage due to the high percentage changes in a very short time. With one swipe, investment results can be pushed up or painstakingly earned returns can be wiped out." During the past few years, however, this aspect has taken...