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The future of investment research
After 40 years without significant change, investment research is on the cusp of a revolution. How data is accessed and intelligence extracted will be transformed – and the industry needs to be ready.
Our take on future of investment research in 60 seconds
The speed of change has never been faster. To keep up, both buy-side and sell-side firms must be ready to take action. But where should you focus your efforts? Together with world-leading investment professionals, we’ve identified three themes that will shape the future of investment research.
- Alternative data: The scale and uptake of alternative data is rapidly increasing. Now it’s time to start extracting real value.
- Artificial intelligence (AI): With huge datasets from an increasing number of sources, investment professionals will need a more efficient, and inevitably automated, investigation process. AI will play a significant role.
- Changing relationships: MiFID II, the growing adoption of alternative data, and the use of AI are all pressuring the buy-side and sell-side relationship to evolve.
The environment has already changed with ETFs and algo-trading. To be ahead of it, you have to be creative to find things to use to your advantage.
Key takeaways
Here are the essentials
70% of investment professionals in our study are currently using alternative data or plan to in the next 12 months.
56% of investors expect to use more AI. Meaning quicker analysis of vast datasets and uncovering of relationships.
77% of investors expect to rely less on the sell-side for research services. The sell-side must show value to stay competitive.
Expert opinion
The view from our experts
To remain competitive, active managers will need to embrace new, alternative data sources, new technologies such as machine learning, and upgrade their skill sets to apply them effectively.
Product focus
How our data management solutions can enhance your investment research
Artificial intelligence
Refinitiv offers tools and intelligent analytics to help firms identify new sources of Alpha. Our Intelligent Tagging solution enables firms to take the huge volumes of proprietary and third-party data, normalize it, and apply computer-driven rules to derive new insights. Equally, our desktop solutions allow buy-side firms to test and implement AI driven strategies.
Investment research is on the cusp of some major transformational shifts
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