Considering Capital Management as a Career?

Also known as investment and asset management, capital management involves investing the assets of individuals and companies with a view to maximizing return while minimizing risk. The class of investment, ranging from high to low risk, is ascertained on a client-by-client basis and depends entirely on the level of risk aversion. It is your task, as a capital manager, to use your expertise to liaise with the client and put together an investment portfolio comprising a mix of high and low risk products in order to arrive at a package that meets their requirements.

The total amount of money invested by fund management companies on behalf of their clients amounts to many billions of dollars. It is therefore not surprising that if you are hoping to become a manager, you must be educated to at least degree level in a relevant subject and have spent many years gaining practical experience before being trusted to handle significant amounts on behalf of high-worth clients.

Qualifications
If you are aiming to forge a career for yourself in capital management, in addition to holding a degree you should be thinking in terms of gaining practical experience by taking roles in marketing, sales or trading in an asset managing company. Your next step is to take an MBA or CFA (Chartered Financial Analyst) course. Alternatively, spending a couple of years in the investment banking sector, where employment opportunities are quite plentiful, will stand you in good stead when it comes to securing the type of job you are really looking for.

Bear in mind that an MBA will be of more use if you are hoping to become an asset manager, while the CFA is a better option if portfolio management is your ultimate goal.

Career progression
To begin with, you are likely to be appointed to the position of co-manager, working closely with and being monitored and mentored by a senior manager. You should be aware that the number and level of qualifications you have achieved counts for very little in the world of capital management. How far and how rapidly you progress is almost entirely dependent on the amount of money you are able to make for your clients as well as your ability to maintain that level of success over the long term. If you have such skills, the financial rewards you receive are sure to be generous.

International job opportunities
As ever more emerging nations become industrialized and begin to flex their economic muscles for the first time, so too does the demand for capital managers increase. Many of these countries are home to rapidly growing investment banks and capital management firms that are eager to recruit young, highly educated and motivated individuals from developed nations such as the US and the UK who are prepared to move overseas in order to fast-track their careers.

Opportunities exist in enterprises such as the Seychelles based Capital Management Group, which is owned by investment professional Mukesh Valabhji. Other organizations such as the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), the US government’s development finance institution, exist to assist private US companies to establish themselves in emerging markets by providing guaranteed funding. OPIC currently operates in some 150 countries and to date has contributed over $75 billion worth of exports. Given the number of countries involved, you have the opportunity to work in various parts of the world. Other US based firms such as the African Capital Group, which specializes in investing in the rapidly developing nations of sub-Saharan Africa, may also be of interest if you are feeling particularly adventurous.

No matter what area of the sector you are considering, if you have the skills, a little luck, and are looking for a challenging but rewarding career, capital management may be just the job for you.

Photo by Andrey Popov | Shutterstock