STEPHEN CRANSTON: Old Mutual’s financial muscle
Old Mutual sometimes seems like a sovereign state; it is so large it has more financial heft than many African countries
I respect many people in the Old Mutual Investment Group (OMIG). I think the group is well led by Hywel George. After half an hour with this Welsh wizard, anybody would drink the Kool-Aid. But does the group stand out among the large managers? Not yet. And George has a lot of hard work ahead if he plans to change that, especially now that he reports into the Wealth cluster, which is all about distribution — not necessarily of products created in-house by OMIG. The competing demands of product pushing and investment excellence will clash: is it in the business of quality restaurant food or cheap and cheerful canteen food? Old Mutual Alternative Investments is another story. Boss Paul Boynton doesn’t have George’s silver-tongued talents; he’s more the meat and potatoes type. But Old Mutual’s scale, which has a number of disadvantages in the listed investment space, is an advantage in alternatives. Ideas that don’t bring immediate returns can be incubated by the life office, as it has ...
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