Meet the Manager - Q&A with Charles Fianko

24 June 2024 (3 min read)

Please tell us about yourself. What are your education and career experiences to date?

I’m currently a Portfolio Manager within the London based Fixed Income Solutions team. I primarily look after Buy & Maintain and low turnover mandates with a global focus, for a range of institutional investors. Although on paper my career path may seem like the typical linear route into finance - an undergrad in Economics and professional designations such as Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) - for me finance was actually the solution to my personal conundrum of satisfying my inclination towards creative pursuits, with my fascination in both corporate and sovereign enterprise. Economics and a career in finance revealed itself as offering a space where analytical rigor and creative problem-solving act in concert.

In finance, I found that creativity plays a critical role in interpreting market dynamics and crafting effective investment strategies. This process involves rigorous analysis coupled with innovative problem-solving, while also quantifying the deep human biases which cause inefficiencies in the market.

Post graduation, my initial real-world experience in financial markets and fixed income specifically, came in 2013 when I joined the High Yield desk at the then Foreign & Colonial (F&C) Asset Management. There, as a Fund Manager’s Assistant, I supported the managers’ investing endeavours by producing relative value analysis, monitoring performance & risk, and managing currency hedging across funds.

What is interesting about your role here at AXA IM and what motivates you to do well?

I’m driven by genuine curiosity and the challenge of continually honing my expertise in the ever-changing landscape of fixed-income markets. This is a vocation which provides clear and unvarnished feedback on your decisions, with the market serving as an objective scorecard, keeping us sharp and accountable. While there are many factors beyond our control, our input is crucial for institutional clients such as pension funds and insurance companies; whose goals include long-term stability and reliable income. By carefully analysing market trends and making well-informed investment choices, we support their objectives of financial security and sustainable growth. This means helping mature workers retire with dignity, funding future initiatives for endowments, ensuring insurance companies can meet their obligations and delivering attractive returns for our investors generally. The impact of our work on the financial well-being of many people keeps me deeply engaged and passionate about excelling in this evolving field.

How do you complement the team skills and add value

I’d say practically everyone within the team is a bit of a Swiss army knife, so in terms of skill set we do really have all bases covered. There can be biases of preference, where out of interest, one person leans into one area more than another. For example, one team member may enjoy presentations more than another, or another may enjoy the tech side of things. That greatly benefits the team as you then get subject matter experts, but they’re created organically. For me, I really enjoy being a participant in financial markets. If it trades, I’ll likely have an opinion on it; so I’ll often be looking at very niche corners of the market. Over time, every corner will at some point have its day in the spotlight, and will then be important for everyone so it helps to know a bit about everything. Additionally, clients will often ask about new ideas and assets classes that might complement their existing holdings.

Since joining the team what surprised you the most?

I think I’ve been surprised by how, despite a vast global footprint in terms of business functions and where personnel are located; working relationships with international colleagues still feel very familiar and integrated. In previous companies I’ve been used to having regional international offices, however, they have felt very separate and almost like standalone companies. At AXA IM and within Core investments, we speak very regularly in addition to having many collaborative team meetings and investment review processes. For me it’s been really helpful to be able to leverage local on-the-ground knowledge.

Tell us something interesting about yourself?

For a while I’ve been a bit of a hobbiest writer/ blogger. A previous blog I had some years ago led me to make a brief cameo in a hit viral Netflix documentary. Find me if you can!

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