Agefi Luxembourg - juillet août 2026

AGEFI Luxembourg 24 Juillet / Août 2026 Fonds &Marchés A fter years of cautious uptake, Europe’s ELTIFmarket hit a turning point in 2025. Regula­ tory reform, record inflows andbroa­ der distribution are reshaping a product once seen as ambitious but impractical. Formost of its first decade, the Eu­ ropean LongTerm Investment Fund (ELTIF) was better de­ scribedas a regulatory ambition than amarket reality. Launched in2015withthegoalofchannel­ ing private capital into long­ term European assets, the vehiclespentyearsaccumulating cautiousinterest,modestinflows,anda reputationforbeingstructurallysoundbutpractically cumbersome. That reputation is nowbeing revised. By the end of 2025, the ELTIF market had reached EUR34billion inassets undermanagement (AuM), a 55% increase on the previous year. A record 113 new products were authorized over the course of the year, issued by 80 asset managers, 56 of whom were entering the ELTIF market for the first time. These numbers reflect that ELTIF is no longer a niche instrument finding its feet. (1) The immediate catalystwas regulatory. The revised ELTIF framework, known as ELTIF 2.0, which en­ tered into force in January 2024, resolved the practi­ cal obstacles which had long constrained distribution. The removal of the EUR 10,000 mini­ muminvestment threshold, the simplificationof the suitability assessment, and the clarification of the treatment of semiliquid structures gave assetman­ agers the tools to build products that mainstream distribution channels couldactuallyworkwith. The market responded accordingly. Behind themomentum The scale of 2025 growth is best understoodnot just through theheadlineAuMfigure, but throughwhat sits beneath it. Of the EUR 34 billion recorded at yearend, EUR10.5 billionwas newly raisedduring 2025 alone, compared toEUR5.4billion in2024. The number of active products open to investors stood at 134, spread across all major privatemarkets asset classes. Private debt led in volume terms with a 33.7%shareof totalAuM, followedby infrastructure at 27.7% and private equity at 22.5%. (2) Geographically, French investors remain the largest source of capital, accounting for 41.4%of total mar­ ket volume or EUR 14.1 billion, driven by a combi­ nation of institutional demand and a wellestab­ lished insurance wrapper framework. Germany ranked secondwith EUR 4.4 billion, representing a 57%yearonyear increase. ItalyheldEUR4.0billion Individual Savings Plans compliant tax incentive structure for retail investors. (3) Luxembourg’s role in this expansion is structural rather than incidental.According to theESMAELTIF register, 149 of the 260 ELTIFs authorized up to end­ 2025 were domiciled in Luxembourg, representing over57%ofallproducts.TheCSSFauthorized57new ELTIFs in 2025 alone, with 24 managers using Lux­ embourg as their ELTIF domicile for the first time. MoretellingisthecrossborderreachofLuxembourg­ domiciledvehicles: 54 of themaremarketed in tenor more EUMember States, and 73.8%are accessible to retailinvestors. (4) ForassetmanagersseekingpanEu­ ropean distribution, Luxembourg remains the juris­ diction of choice, not by default but because the infrastructure, the legal frameworks, and the market familiarity are already there. France’sAMFauthorized73ELTIFsoverthesamepe­ riod,buttheprofiledifferssignificantly.Frenchdomi­ ciledproductsareoverwhelminglydistributedwithin France itself, withonly 17marketedoutside France. (5) Thetwomodelsarecomplementaryratherthancom­ peting:Franceservesitsdomesticmarketwithlocally structuredproducts,whileLuxembourgprovidesthe passport formanagers targeting a broader European investor base. Who is investing and throughwhat channels? One of the more significant shifts in 2025 was not in the volume of capital raised but inwho raised it and how. In previous years, ELTIF growth was heavily concentrated around a handful of established providers. In 2025, that concentration loosened. In Germany, for example, five asset managers each raised more than EUR 100 million through a single ELTIF. Thedistribution landscape is alsobroadening. Major banks havemoved from cautious observation to active integration, investing in the backoffice processes to make ELTIFs a standard part of their productshelf.Neobrokersarealsointroducinganew dynamic into the distributionprocesses. The insurance channel, particularly welldevel­ oped in France, adds another dimension. ELTIFs qualifyingasunitlinked life insuranceproducts offer retail investorsmeaningful tax advantages when held for at least eight years, and the struc­ turehasprovenhighlyeffectiveatmobilizingretail capital intoprivatemarkets.At least 13ELTIFs inFrancenowqualifyforthistreatment, and themodel isbeingstudiedclosely by policymakers elsewhere. (6) Growing Pains the Market Cannot Ignore The record growth of 2025 was not without friction, and a credible assess­ ment of the market requires acknowl­ edgingwhere the risks are accumulating. Market participants are raising concerns about the potential reputational risk to the product stemming from inexperienced providers. As private markets attract new entrants, the potential for poor portfolio decisions, inadequate liquidity management, or in­ sufficiently transparent communication grows. While the market is still building trust, individual misstepsmaygenerateindustrywideconsequences. The tensionbetween liquiditypromises and illiquid underlying assets remains structurallyunresolved. In December 2025, an ELTIF, which invests in gro­ cery retail property, temporarily suspended re­ demptions after requests exceeded the contractual threshold in the thirdquarter. Thiswas the first gat­ ing of an ELTIF and prompted pointed questions from investors and the press. The fund in question was a converted product, and a certain portion of its redemption requests could have come from in­ vestors who had subscribed before the ELTIF re­ structuring, but the episode illustrated that maturity mismatch is not a theoretical concern. Semiopen structures that offer quarterly or monthly redemption windows while holding as­ sets that cannot be sold quickly are inherently ex­ posedwhen investor sentiment shifts. Misselling is a related concern that distributionnet­ works take seriously. Even with improved advisor training, the risk that investors insemiliquidELTIFs underestimate the conditionsunderwhichredemp­ tions can be restricted remains real. The complexity of redemption mechanisms varies considerably across providers, adding additional burden. In parallel, regulators are beginning to take a more explicit position on these structural tensions. BaFin, theGermanfinancial supervisor, has recently raised concerns regarding the rapid expansion of ELTIFs andprivatemarket products into the retail segment. It emphasized that illiquid strategies such as private credit, private equity or real assets are increasingly beingmarketed to nonprofessional investors, chal­ lenging suitability aspects and investor protection. In particular, BaFin questionedwhether the current European risk classification framework is failing to properly capture key dimensions such as illiquidity, valuation uncertainty, complexity and fees, which may lead to underestimation of risks by investors. The regulator has called for greater caution indistri­ bution practices and for a rethinking of risk indica­ tors tobetter reflect the truenatureof theseproducts. What to expect The trajectory from EUR 34 billion to a genuinely scaledmarket isplausiblebut not automatic. Scope’s own analysis points to a 4050% increase in ELTIF AuM by end2026, taking the market toward EUR 50 billion, with EUR7080 billion appearing achiev­ able by end2028 under favorable conditions. The conditions that matter most are performance, regulation, and distribution depth. On perform­ ance, the market is still early. Most of the products that drove 2025 growth have not yet returned cap­ ital to investors, and the returnpremiums promised over listedmarketswill onlybe validatedover time. Assetmanagers are aware that the next two to three years of performance datawill be decisive for long­ term investor confidence. On the regulatory front, there isunfinishedbusiness. National goldplating practices continue to compli­ cate crossborder distribution, and the restrictions in several Member States requiring locallydomiciled ELTIFsforinclusioninpensionorinsuranceschemes limit the reach of the European passport. ESMAhas publicly called for the relaxation of these require­ ments, andprogressherewouldhaveamaterial im­ pact on market depth. The potential inclusion of ELTIFs inGermany’splannedretirement savings ac­ count would be particularly significant given the scaleof thatmarket and the structural alignment be­ tweenlongtermpensionsavingsandilliquidprivate market investments. TheELTIF isno longer anexperiment. It is aproduct categoryfinding its form. The challenge for 2026and beyondisensuringthatthespeedofgrowthdoesnot outpace thequalityof distribution, the robustness of liquiditymanagement, and ultimately the perform­ ance delivered to investors who have committed capital for the long term. Laurent CAPOLAGHI, EYLuxembourg, Managed Services and Private Equity Leader Andrei SENCHUK, EYLuxembourg, SeniorManager, Assurance 1)ScopeReport 2)ScopeReport 3)ScopeReport 4)ESMARegister 5)ESMARegister 6)ESMARegister Europe’s ELTIFMarket Comes of Age: Record Growth in 2025 andWhat Comes Next L ors de lʹassemblée générale annuelle des actionnaires tenue le 25 juin 2026, la Bourse de Luxembourg (LuxSE) a publié ses résultats financiers pour lʹexercice clos le 31 décembre 2025. Dans un contexte mondial marqué par les tensions géopolitiques, lʹincertitude économique et la volatilité desmarchés, lʹinstitution a enregistré une perfor­ mance historique en 2025, avec plus de 18 600 nouveaux titres financiers admis à la cote, unniveau jamais atteint depuis sa création, tout en affichant des résul­ tats financiers en nette progression. Les revenus opérationnels de LuxSE se sont élevés à 47,6 millions dʹeuros en 2025, soit une hausse de 5%par rapport à lʹexercice précédent. Cette progression a été principalement soutenue par une activité soutenue de cotation. Le béné­ fice net a atteint 11,4 millions contre 8,1 millions dʹeuros en 2024, soit une aug­ mentation de 41 % sur un an. « Malgré un environnement de marché difficile et des incertitudes géopolitiques persistantes, la Bourse de Luxembourg a obtenu de solides résultats financiers en 2025. Nous avons non seulement battu un nouveau record en matière de cotations, mais nous avons également observé une progressiondes activités de négociation et des services de données, en particulier dans le domaine des obli­ gations durables », adéclaré JulieBecker, directrice générale de LuxSE. Une présence renforcée sur les marchés internationaux Lʹannée 2025 a été marquée par une forte activité dʹémission, notamment de la part des États souverains. Au total, des titres représentant une valeur de 1 650 milliards dʹeuros ont été admis à la cote des marchés de LuxSE en 2025, soit une hausse de 14 % par rapport à 2024. Cette dynamique per­ met à la Place luxembourgeoise de détenir 32 % du marché des nouvelles obligations internationales cotées. La Bourse a également développé EM3S, une nouvelle solutionde cotation destinée aux instruments financiers sophistiqués. À la fin de lʹannée 2025, LuxSE comptait 49 994 titres admis sur ses marchés et sur la Liste officielle des valeurs mobilières, dont plus de 47 000 instruments de dette, en progression de 12 %par rapport à 2024. PourAlainKinsch, président du conseil dʹadministration de LuxSE, ces résul­ tats témoignent du succès du plan stra­ tégique 2026 de lʹinstitution. « Grâce à son agilité, son approche innovante et son rayonnement international, LuxSE joue un rôle essentiel au sein de la place financière luxembourgeoise », atil souligné. La finance durable résiste malgré un ralentissement mondial Pionnière dans le domaine de la finance durable avec la créationduLuxembourg Green Exchange (LGX) en 2016, LuxSE continue dʹoccuper une position domi­ nante sur ce segment. Selon les données duLGXDataHub, les émissions mondiales de dette durable ont atteint 812milliards dʹeuros en 2025, soit un recul de 8 %par rapport à 2024. Malgré cette tendance, LGX a accueilli plus de 600 nouvelles obligations vertes, sociales, durables et liées au développe­ ment durable. Ces nouvelles obligations ont permis de mobiliser 233 milliards dʹeuros pour financer des projets envi­ ronnementaux, sociaux et durables. LuxSE conserve ainsi une part de mar­ ché mondiale de 41 % sur les nouvelles obligations internationales durables cotées en 2025. À la fin de lʹannée, LGX regroupait 2 352 obligations durables, en hausse de 7 % sur un an. Accélérer le financement de la transition LuxSE a également renforcé son enga­ gement en faveur de la transition cli­ matique. En juillet 2025, elle a lancé le portail « Transition Finance Gateway », qui rassemble des données de quatre fournisseurs internationaux et couvre plus de 500 entreprises. En novembre, la Bourse a également intégré sur la pla­ teforme LGX une nouvelle fenêtre dédiée aux émetteurs alignés sur la taxonomie européenne. Parallèlement à la publication de ses résultats financiers, LuxSE a dévoilé son rapport de durabilité 2025, mettant en avant les progrès réalisés autour de trois axes prioritaires : la transition cli­ matique, lʹéducation et lʹégalité entre les femmes et les hommes. Avec ces résultats, la Bourse de Luxembourg confirme son statut depre­ mier centremondial pour les obligations internationales et la finance durable. LuxSE signe une année record en 2025 Deg.àdr.:JeffreyDentzer,membreduconseildʹadministrationdeLuxSE,FrançoiseThoma,viceprésidente du conseil dʹadministration de LuxSE, Alain Kinsch, président du conseil dʹadministration de LuxSE, Julie Becker, PDGde LuxSE et Pierre Schoonbroodt, directeur général adjoint et directeur financier de LuxSE ©LuxSE