Northern Trust has been named Best Administrator for UCITS funds at HFMWeek magazine’s European Hedge Fund Services Awards, for the second consecutive year.
The 2012 Awards, which took place in London in March, recognised companies that outperformed their peer group in 2011. The annual awards are judged quantitatively and qualitatively to assess financial progress, growth and genuine innovation.
Northern Trust was also ‘highly commended’ in the category for best administrator with over US$30billion in assets under administration, for funds of hedge funds.
Northern Trust was selected from a short list by a panel of judges comprising senior level industry professionals, who said, “Northern Trust was a worthy and clear winner that stood out for its quality of service and strong UCITS expertise.”
“We are delighted to win this award for the second year in a row, as it shows that not only our clients, but also independent industry professionals, recognise Northern Trust’s leadership in supporting UCITS hedge funds, and our continued commitment to this specialist sector of the market,” said Peter Sanchez, chief executive officer, Northern Trust Hedge Fund Services.
“Investor demand for UCITS-compliant hedge funds continues to rise and fund managers want a provider that can deliver world class, innovative fund administration and custody services,” Sanchez said. “We continue to invest in our service offering and are enhancing our front, middle and back office services to clients. In the last 12 months, Northern Trust has continued to automate processes that, typically, remain manual in the industry as a whole. For example, we’ve launched a fully-integrated, leading compliance-monitoring system that can handle both UCITS IV restrictions and prospectus rules, and we’ve brought together expertise from across our broader organisation to create a tax-efficient solution for the new UCITS IV master/feeder structure — an important provision in the UCITS IV Directive.”
Northern Trust’s hedge fund administration capabilities were enhanced in 2011 with the acquisition of Omnium LLC, a specialist, global hedge fund administrator. Northern Trust’s existing hedge fund administration activities and Omnium LLC have been brought together under Northern Trust Hedge Fund Services. Key milestones in the integration of the two businesses have been reached and Northern Trust continues to win new clients.
Northern Trust provides fund administration and global custody services to clients investing in a range of alternative asset classes — including hedge funds, funds of funds, real estate and private equity — as well as traditional and exchange-traded funds. Northern Trust provides a comprehensive range of UCITS hedge fund services from its specialist servicing centres in Ireland and Luxembourg, supported by its wider network and teams in North America, Asia Pacific and the Middle East. Services include: fund launch project management; fund administration; custody; banking; trustee; corporate reporting; value at risk (VaR) calculation and oversight; and compliance analytics to support risk management requirements.
As of 31 December 2011, Northern Trust had more than US $170 billion in assets under administration for hedge funds and funds of hedge funds.
About Northern Trust
Northern Trust Corporationis a leading provider of investment management, asset and fund administration, banking solutions and fiduciary services for corporations, institutions and affluent individuals worldwide. Northern Trust, a financial holding company based in Chicago, has offices in 18 U.S. states and 16 international locations in North America, Europe, the Middle East and the Asia-Pacific region. As of March 31, 2012, Northern Trust had assets under custody of US$4.6 trillion, and assets under investment management of US$716.5 billion. For more than 120 years, Northern Trust has earned distinction as an industry leader in combining exceptional service and expertise with innovative products and technology. For more information, visit www.northerntrust.com or follow us on Twitter @NorthernTrust.
