Barclays Global Investors, State Street Global Advisors, AXA Group, Capital Group and JPMorgan Chase & Co. each reported gains in assets under management of more than 20% among the top 10 managers in the Pensions & Investments/Watson Wyatt Worldwide World 500 rankings.
Total assets of all 500 managers in the rankings rose 12.6%, reaching a record high of $48.824 trillion for the year ended Dec. 31.
Zurich-based UBS AG and Munich-based Allianz Group AG remained Nos. 1 and 2 among the world's largest asset managers. UBS' assets under management rose 11% to $1.975 trillion, while Allianz assets increased 10% to $1.459 trillion.
Assets of the 20 largest money managers increased 11.9% to a record high of $18.2 trillion at the end of 2004, from $16.2 trillion a year earlier.
JPMorgan's assets soared 42% to $791.56 billion at the end of 2004, the greatest increase among the top 10. The surge moved the firm into 10th position from 15th the previous year. The increase was driven in large part by the company's acquisition of Chicago-based Bank One Corp., which became official in July 2004. At the end of 2003, Bank One had $190.9 billion in assets under management.
Eve Guernsey, chief executive officer of JPMorgan Asset Management in the Americas, New York, said JPMorgan also benefited from more diverse offerings in a "multiprocess" strategy adopted after the asset management unit merged with Fleming Asset Management in August 2000. The Bank One acquisition added fixed income, quantitative and real estate investment trust strategies that were offered by Banc One Investment Advisors.
The firm saw net new asset growth in 10 different products last year, led by international equity, hedge funds of funds, real estate and fixed income, she said.