UK investment companies are much more focused than other global investors on data and analytics as they fear pressures from competition and regulation in the coming years, according to a survey by State Street.
Almost half (48 percent) of senior executives at UK investment firms say data and analytics are their company’s top strategic issue, compared with the global average of 34 percent, according to the survey, which focuses on data use and management by global investment firms.
The top two drivers for change in the way UK respondents manage investment data are increased demands from regulators and rising pressure from competitors – each cited by a third of survey respondents. On a global scale, only 24 percent of investors cite regulators and 27 percent point to competitors as a driver of data policy changes.
While UK investors place a greater emphasis on future data, they are behind the global average in terms of current data sophistication, the study shows. Only 23 percent of the UK investors surveyed are classified by State Street as ‘data innovators’, or firms with advanced data governance, expertise and infrastructure. The global average among the executives surveyed is 37 percent.
Instead, the UK has more ‘data movers’, or firms that are actively shifting toward better data capability, with 48 percent classified as such, compared with the world average of 36 percent. Finally, 30 percent of UK firms are classified as ‘data starters’ and are at an early stage in a shift toward greater data sophistication, compared with the world average of 27 percent.
‘UK respondents place a bigger emphasis on data infrastructure and analytics than their global counterparts, and the impact of regulation is a clear factor behind this,’ says JR Lowry, head of State Street Global Exchange for Europe, Middle East and Africa. ‘On both a UK and global basis, however, our research shows many organizations have only just started on their journey to developing strong systems for managing their data effectively. Increasingly, success for both asset owners and managers will depend on how strong they are in this area.’
