Case Studies
Example I - Benchmarking Services
A fund manager who used our benchmarking service found that interest rates on its currency deposits were not market leading. The fund manager decided not to take the deposits away from the custodian, but agreed instead to increase the size of the deposit in return for an increase in the interest rate to market level. This was a "win/win" solution for the fund manager and custodian. The client then used our benchmarking service to monitor ongoing performance versus the market place.
Example II - Health Check
The trustees of a pension fund were concerned that the service levels provided by their custodian had slipped. It had been five years since their last custodian selection exercise, so they asked MJ Hudson and a number of other consultancies how they could help them with a custodian selection assignment. We convinced the trustees to use our "Health Check" to compare their custodian experience to those of their peers. The results showed that their service was good, in all but one area, which was successfully remedied. The "Health Check" meant a costly custodian selection exercise was avoided, along with the problems often associated with a change in custodian. The trustees now use our benchmarking service to monitor performance, on an ongoing basis.
Example III - Custodian Monitoring Services
A fund manager that had outsourced many functions to a custodian was concerned that service levels and performance were poor, compared to the market place. However, the fund manager had no way to verify this to either senior management or its custodian. MJ Hudson was asked to compare the service experience to the fund manager’s peers. Problem areas were identified, which were caused by both the custodian and the fund manager. Jointly, they were then able to focus on these areas and take corrective action.