Asset themes

As the year winds down, investors must balance optimism with caution, positioning portfolios for both festive cheer and potential lumps of coal.

The superannuation fund is joining forces with Macquarie Asset Management on a private equity strategy focused on businesses servicing infrastructure.

Despite securing formal trade agreements with the US, Malaysia and other ASEAN nations still face significant policy uncertainties, forcing investors to treat geopolitical risk as a core portfolio input rather than background noise.

Global asset managers say distribution, once a supporting function, is now the industry’s core strategic battleground.

Singapore-based Two Trees Capital sees renewed IPO momentum and growing institutional interest reshaping late-stage tech valuations.

Samruk-Kazyna is establishing sharia-compliant investment vehicles and sukuk programmes to capture flows from Gulf investors, while positioning Kazakhstan as Central Asia's Islamic finance gateway.

Asset owners in APAC reported a 100 basis point drop in target allocations to real estate in 2025, marking the steepest decline among their global peers.

From data centres to hybrid lodging assets, institutional and family office investors are testing exposure to South Korea’s real estate.

Institutional investors are reallocating billions toward commodities that power the energy transition and serve as modern safe havens.

The allocation gap between institutional and retail investors in private markets will persist despite expected growth in individual participation, says JP Morgan Asset Management's global CEO, who predicts increased transparency in alternatives while warning of supply constraints in private credit.

Institutional investors are now deploying a full spectrum of impact strategies, from catalytic capital to measurable "happiness return" frameworks.

Stablecoins are moving from crypto exchanges into Asia’s trade networks — reshaping payments, regulation, and the region’s financial infrastructure.