• This article explains how Chile is going through a stage of transformation in its asset management industry, according to the insights of expert Jorge Meyer, Chief Investment Officer at Inversiones Security, in the III Annual Report of the Asset Securitization Sector.
• The information is aimed at asset managers and investors seeking to understand how one of Latin America’s most important economies is evolving.
• FlexFunds offers a securitization program to set up cost-efficient investment vehicles that help optimize asset management and distribution. For more information, please feel free to contact our experts.

The asset management industry in Chile, one of the most important economies in Latin America, is undergoing a structural transformation, driven by a more challenging environment and a significantly more sophisticated client base.

Both retail and institutional investors have raised their standards, demanding more diversified, cost-efficient, and sustainability-aligned solutions.

What is the Chilean investor like?

According to Jorge Meyer, today’s Chilean investor stands out for having greater financial knowledge and a deeper understanding of the economic environment, which has led to a significant shift in portfolio composition.

“On the retail side, investors have moved away from highly concentrated allocations to traditional instruments—particularly local fixed income—towards more diversified strategies across asset classes, geographies, and risk factors.

High-net-worth investors, meanwhile, have increased their exposure to semi liquid funds, which provide access to private or alternative assets, primarily in private equity and private debt strategies. Unlike traditional open-ended funds, which offer daily redemptions, semi-liquid funds operate with specific liquidity windows—quarterly or semi-annual, for example—often with certain availability limits,” he added in the report.

At the same time, Meyer’s analysis highlights that closed-end funds have gained traction as vehicles that allow packaging sophisticated strategies—once reserved for large institutions—into more accessible formats for high-net-worth clients.

“While these are illiquid structures, they provide exposure to returns uncorrelated with public markets and are seen as key tools for achieving a more favorable risk-return profile,” he clarified.

Asset management strategies in times of change

In a global context marked by greater uncertainty, more volatile interest rates, and lower expected returns from traditional assets, financial market players in Chile have increased allocations to alternative assets, mainly through closed-end or illiquid funds.

For Meyer, geopolitical risks have taken on greater relevance in investment decision-making. The growing fragmentation of the global order, conflicts in strategic regions such as Eastern Europe and the Middle East, and the resurgence of trade tensions between major powers have generated higher volatility in financial markets.

“These factors have reinforced the need to build resilient portfolios with greater global diversification and exposure to alternative assets that can serve as buffers against systemic risk events. Active management of geopolitical risk— now more than ever—is emerging as a critical competency for asset managers,” he noted.

In this context, private equity, private debt, and real estate strategies have gained traction within portfolios.

The importance of sustainable investments

At the same time, interest in integrating ESG (environmental, social, and governance) criteria has strengthened.

And Chile, as a regional leader in renewable energy, is well positioned to capitalize on the growing pressure from regulators, civil society, and institutional clients to incorporate sustainability as a central pillar in investment processes.

Although ESG adoption in Chile is still heterogeneous, interest in products with positive social or environmental impact continues to grow.

“Institutional investors are leading this transition, recognizing that sustainability not only enhances reputation but can also deliver competitive risk-adjusted returns over the long term,” Meyer explained.

“In parallel, more managers and advisors are incorporating ESG evaluation frameworks, impact reporting, and sustainability metrics into their decision-making processes. While products labeled as “green” or “social” still represent a small fraction of total assets under management, their growth has been significant, laying a strong foundation for this trend to deepen,” he added.

In summary, the specialist emphasized that, as a whole, Chile’s asset management market reflects an ecosystem in the process of maturing.

Client sophistication, the pursuit of real diversification, and the progressive integration of alternative assets and sustainability criteria are redefining the rules of the game for managers, distributors, and wealth advisors.

“The combination of an increasingly deep financial market, a sophisticated investor base, and a growing commitment to sustainability positions the country as a regional benchmark in financial innovation,” he concluded.

To learn more about the asset management industry in Latin America, you can download the III Annual Report of the Asset Securitization Sector 2025–2026, prepared by FlexFunds in collaboration with Funds Society, which provides statistics on asset management industry trends.