Real Estate. The demands on players in the real estate industry are changing rapidly. "More than ever before, investors have to view each property as an independent corporate commitment and, above all, keep an eye on ESG aspects," analyse Thomas Wiegelmann, Managing Director at Schroder Real Estate, and Jan Linsin, Head of Research at CBRE in Germany.

Sustainable investment. In future, more and more capital will only be made available to companies that behave in an exemplary manner in terms of ESG - environmental, social and corporate governance. Or make a positive contribution to our society through their business model, products and services. A megatrend has gained momentum and will continue to accelerate in the future.

Impact Investment. Investments in innovative companies with a positive impact on the environment and society are increasingly becoming the focus of investors. But putting this idea into practice is not entirely straightforward. "Measuring and controlling the actual impact is just as big a challenge as building an optimized portfolio from the many exciting companies. We have developed a special approach for this," explains Huub van der Riet, long-standing manager of the NN (L) Global Equity Impact Opportunities Fund.

Alternative Investments. In view of highly valued stock markets, the risks in portfolios are increasing. And because interest-bearing securities - unlike in the past - no longer offer much in the way of returns or protection in the event of turbulence, investors are looking for new underlying investments that generate returns regardless of market trends. "The GAIA Helix fund does just that," says Ulrich Heuberger, head of sales at Schroder Investment Management.

Shuffling possible. For a long time, investors have achieved adequate returns by dividing their assets between 60 percent equities and 40 percent government bonds. In view of rising inflation rates and persistently low interest rates, this is now becoming increasingly difficult in real terms, i.e. adjusted for purchasing power. "It is high time to readjust this successful strategy," says Kristina Bambach, who is responsible for the Phaidros Funds Balanced mixed fund at asset manager Eyb & Wallwitz together with Georg von Wallwitz and Ernst Konrad.