Wednesday 06 May 2020 by Jonathan Sheridan CX  Wire At FIIG

The FIIG client experience

When investing, focus is typically placed on the particular security or portfolio and the associated risk and return, but equally as important is the total client experience. Here, we outline the many other unseen benefits that are afforded to FIIG clients.

Highlighted below are a number of functions or services that FIIG clients receive as a standard part of their ongoing relationship with us:

1. Client Services

Our Client Services team offers a seamless experience during the account opening process and throughout a client’s investment journey. When opening an account (which can be completed via our 5 minute online application process), our Client Services team can guide clients through the process and answer any questions. The team ensures that all documentation is in order so that accounts are opened quickly and efficiently so clients are ready to start investing.

Once the account is open, the Client Services team continues to work as a support team. They are responsible for ensuring that account details remain up-to-date and assist with client queries or requests for information/documentation.

Download the Deloitte Corporate Bond Report

When contacting the Client Services team, clients speak directly with a staff member - that means no long holds or waiting times for calls. No detail is too small, and the team puts the customer at the centre of everything we do.

2. Dedicated Relationship Manager

From their first contact with FIIG, clients have a dedicated Relationship Manager and are supported by a broader team of other Relationship Managers and a Dealer Assistant. Through constant reviews of available investment options and client portfolio holdings, our Relationship Managers’ expert knowledge and experience helps guide our clients throughout their investment journey with FIIG, enabling them to make informed investment decisions.

3. Investment Strategy Group

The FIIG Investment Strategy Group (ISG) is dedicated to providing clients with executable trade ideas by incorporating both fundamental credit analysis and market pricing and insights.

The ISG team focusses on trade ideas, investment strategy and portfolio construction, and provides regular portfolio risk reviews. Their views are communicated to clients via our regular publications (including Smart Income, FIIG Insights and The Wire), as well as through in-person seminars and online webinars.

With strong investment backgrounds and over 45 years of combined investment experience, the members of the ISG team are extremely highly regarded in the industry. The team regularly appear on Australian and international television and conduct media interviews to share market updates, discuss topical issues, trends and performance in the Australian and global bond markets, and provide views and insights on the outlook for investment markets. The team is also regularly approached for commentary in media articles.

4. Dedicated Credit Research

Our Credit Research team comprises analysts with experience in a wide variety of sectors and this is supplemented by a number of credit research third party services. The team is focused on providing a wide range of publications directly to our clients, ranging from broad assessment of economic and market conditions all the way to highly focused reports on a specific event affecting a single issuer. In addition to written reports and contribution to FIIG’s periodic newsletters, the Credit Research team holds events throughout the year that are primarily targeted to our clients and will also provide insights and views directly to individual clients.

While the Credit Research team's flagship publication is its Credit Outlook series, now in its fourth edition, that is released around Christmas each year, the team will also spend a considerable amount of time assessing any new opportunities before we make any bonds available to clients. The team works throughout the typical lifecycle of the bond conducting comprehensive reviews, credit analysis and assessments. Documentation is prepared and the Credit Research team monitors the performance of the company, providing relevant updates directly to bond holders.

5. Extensive educational resources

FIIG clients are kept in regular contact, not only through their Relationship Manager but also via regular email updates.

Our weekly Smart Income and FIIG Insights email newsletters (provided by the Investment Strategy Group and Credit Research teams) include current and topical information on financial markets such as a trading wrap, a video on recent market developments, top traded bonds by FIIG clients, trade suggestions, credit updates, and more recently, the COVID-19 Company Tracker which looks at near term prospects of a growing number of companies.

Over the last 21 years FIIG has prided itself on lifting the awareness of the fixed income asset class more broadly across Australian investors.

Existing and potential clients have access to a large amount of information, much of which can be found on our website. Our clients also have access to a dedicated online account portal that provides regular news, updates and analysis on many of the bonds on offer.

As a sample, some of the collateral we publish can be found at the following links:
Welcome to FIIG
Benefits of Corporate bonds e-book
• How to build a balanced bond portfolio e-book

6. Investing tools

FIIG clients have access to many tools and services helping investors to make decisions about which bonds to buy or sell, such as relative value analysis and commentary at a market or individual bond level.

We publish mid-market prices daily here so that investors have the ability to make a comparison between the prices they are being offered and the indicative market level.

The FIIG High Yield Index which we recently launched, is the first index to exclusively cover high yield and non-rated bonds in Australia. Its first-of-its-kind design provides individual and corporate investors and financial advisers a unique assessment of the high yield AUD market.  
 
The index has generated an annual return of >5% p.a. since its inception on 31 December 2012.

These are just some of the benefits that FIIG clients have access to in addition to the actual bonds and investment opportunities that are available, but no less important in considering the overall service we provide.

If you would like further information on these, or any other of the services we provide, please do not hesitate to get in touch.