Success is attractive. In recent years, Switzerland has emerged as the third-largest wealth management hub in Europe, behind the United Kingdom and France (market share 11,2 percent). This has led to an increase in the number of foreign asset managers establishing a presence in the country.

The latest example is Liontrust: the asset manager has been represented in Zurich since late autumn 2025. The British firm intends to position itself in Switzerland with a deliberately differentiated investment approach.

«In an environment characterized by high market concentration, geopolitical uncertainty and structural upheaval, we are convinced that our approach resonates with professional Swiss investors seeking robust, repeatable sources of return,» says Oscar Andreu, Head of Distribution Switzerland at Liontrust.

No Classic «House View»

The British asset manager positions itself as a purely active investment manager. Its business model is clearly focused: Liontrust relies on conviction-based, benchmark-agnostic investment management with a long-term investment horizon. In doing so, the company clearly distinguishes itself from global universal managers with significant passive or ETF offerings.

From left: Donald Philipps und Oscar Andreu. (Images: zVg)

At the core of the model are eight autonomous investment teams, each following a clearly defined and repeatable investment process. Liontrust is therefore organized around teams rather than products. There is no unified «house view,» but rather deliberately distinct and separate philosophies across equity, fixed income and multi-asset strategies. This structure is designed to enable alpha generation and reduce dependence on centralized investment decisions.

Opportunity for Risk-Tolerant Investors

This becomes evident in the high-conviction approach. Portfolios are constructed without primary regard to index weightings. The objective is to create value across market cycles — not to optimize tracking error in the short term.

While credit spreads in bonds have remained tight, current yields are in the range of around 6,5 to 7 percent.

Increasing Dispersion, Attractive High-Yield Bonds

Donald Phillips, Head of Credit (bonds) in the multi-asset team, expects credit spreads to remain at current levels. «This means that income, rather than a further narrowing of spreads, is likely to be the dominant driver of returns,» he says. In this environment, active management remains crucial to navigate increasing dispersion. «Over the longer term, for example over a five-year horizon, we believe that high-yield bonds can deliver equity-like returns, while the drawdown risk is only a fraction,» he adds.

For Swiss market participants, Liontrust is therefore primarily relevant as a specialized active manager — not as a volume provider. The company is particularly suited to investors who deliberately seek active risk and value clear, transparent investment philosophies. At the same time, the model is more cyclical than that of passively oriented providers: during periods of weak relative performance or sustained inflows into index products, Liontrust faces greater pressure.