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Schroders Capital, the Schroders Group’s private markets division worth about $94bn, has launched the commencement of an unique tokenisation project aimed at improving the way insurance-linked securities (ILS) assets are invested and managed.

A relationship with Hannover Re, a multinational reinsurance company, served as proof of concept.

The pilot project builds on Schroders Group’s approach to digital asset innovation and leadership, which began last year with its participation in the Monetary Authority of Singapore’s Project Guardian and the European Investment Bank‘s inaugural GBP Digital Bond issue.

The effort with Hannover Re, which Schroders tested internally exclusively, effectively permitted reinsurance contracts to be tokenised and transacted on a public blockchain platform using smart contracts. Each token signifies a share in a portfolio of reinsurance contracts, showcasing how ILS funds could invest in the future through a digital eco-system.

REYL Intesa Sanpaolo has appointed François Reyl as a new member of its board of directors and chairman of the strategic committee and Pasha Bakhtiar, who is currently a partner and member of the executive committee, is set to serve as the bank’s next CEO and chairman of the executive committee. 

Following a 13-year run as an investment banker and M&A lawyer, Reyl began his career with the bank in 2002 as head of development and rose to the position of CEO in 2008. 

As part of its targeted regional expansion, UK-based firm LGT Wealth Management has appointed three new hires to its Manchester office. 

Simon Reeks, Fahim Amdani, and Michael Waddington are the three new members of LGT Wealth Management’s team. The team has been actively searching for chances for strategic growth since the establishment of its Manchester office in March. 

According to data conducted by Avaloq, wealth management clients globally face considerable wait times during the onboarding process. Only 13% of wealth management experts say it takes them up to one week to onboard ultra-high net worth (UHNW) clients, while 29% of them state it takes them three months or longer. The survey’s findings indicate that the onboarding process usually takes longer for new clients who are more affluent. However, even among the wealthy, one-third (33%) of wealth management experts claim that the onboarding process might take up to a month. 

Morgan Stanley Expansion Capital has led the $43m Series B funding round for Octagos Health, a provider of AI-driven cardiac device monitoring solutions. 

The Series B funding round was led by funds managed by Morgan Stanley Expansion Capital, with continued participation from Mucker Capital and other strategic investors. It will help Octagos use AI to evolve cardiac care and provide patient monitoring services.