Hedge fund managers are often castigated for their high fees, while even traditional fund managers do not seem to think there is any advantage to offering lower-priced products than their neighbours. Although overcharging is never to be condoned, however, it may be in some cases that the consumer is simply not paying attention to what they are paying for their services.
This week I met some representatives from French independent asset manager Financiére de l’Echiquier, who conveyed a sense of their company as one that ticks all sorts of boxes as consistent, stable, responsible and a good employer.
This disarmed me slightly as I had planned to go in all guns blazing to attack them for what I thought were unconscionably high fund fees of 2.392 per cent a year. That’s fees alone – for comparison, in the UK, the average total expense ratio (fees plus expenses) is 1.7 per cent.
When I finally challenged them, instead of whipping off their friendly masks to reveal the evilly grinning features of Mammon-worshippers grinding the faces of the poor, they looked a bit surprised.
“But those fees are pretty much in line with the average,” was the response, followed by a thoughtful pause. “Do you know, that is the very first time anyone has ever asked about our fees.”
That is after all how capitalism works. You charge as high a price as the market will bear and the European fund market will still bear very high prices.
