5 questions to… Matthieu Bille, CIO of NextGen

At 41, Matthieu Bille has accumulated more than 18 years of expertise in the wealth management sector. With a world tour under his belt, and more than 22 countries covered, the Frenchman, now Swiss, has found the perfect compromise in Geneva. Both an ideal proximity to the mountains and the lake, inviting him to cultivate his appetite for mountain activities and swimming, and a strategic financial centre allowing him to sharpen his analytical skills and act for the next generation. Embarked on the NextGen adventure through Onyx in 2021, Matthieu wanted to be a sports journalist in his younger years! Today, he cultivates his team spirit within a team committed to its clients and to a more responsible finance.

1 – What events in your career led you to NextGen?

I am a passionate skier. When I was studying finance in Paris, I loved going to my aunt’s house in the mountains. She has a flat in Flaine… And I used to get the blues when I came back to Paris on the train with my skis! (laughs). So, originally, I turned to Geneva for its surroundings! At the time, the city was certainly an important financial centre, but people around me questioned my choice: for a financier, why not London? Or Paris? Or Hong Kong? But it was in Geneva that I decided to settle down, first with an opportunity at BNP Paribas in 2004 – in investment strategy – and then with HSBC in 2008 to manage an asset allocation programme. In 2010, with my wife, we decided to travel around the world for a year! 22 countries visited… Before coming back to Geneva in 2011, a year known to be quite complicated for financial markets. In 2012, I joined Onyx and at the same time discovered the world of independent asset managers. The merger with NextGen, of which I was appointed CIO, marked a turning point towards more sustainable finance. This allows us to go beyond simple financial analysis and take into account extra-financial parameters by looking at their impact on several societal and environmental sectors. It is stimulating!

2 – What do you like most about your job?

What I like most is analysing and projecting. On a daily basis, I have to define market perspectives from a macro-economic point of view, taking into account the major global trends. Anticipating and analysing current data and their dynamics to anticipate the future! What I also like is that nothing in finance is set in stone. We seek to limit risk in an uncertain world where everything can change from one day to the next. I like this volatility, it gives me the opportunity to look at the probability of market scenarios to push the analysis, to make comparisons, to anticipate what is at stake in the light of historical cases. For example, there is now an 8% inflation rate in the United States: this has not been seen in 40 years! I love wearing this analyst’s hat to look for answers in History: what was the impact on the world economy back then? What did governments do? What measures did they put in place? How would they act today? It’s no coincidence that a few years ago I wanted to be a journalist. Well, actually I wanted to be a sports journalist (laughs) but what I like about this job is the analysis – how is society doing? Where is it heading? And why? I find these questions in my job, with the understanding of global and multi-actor markets!

3 – How important do you think sustainable finance is for the next generation?

It’s true that it always surprises me to see the differences between the next generation and my own. I knew the happy go lucky generation and its “You have to enjoy life, no matter what” attitude. I experienced the democratization of travel, with low-cost flights… When, in 2010, my wife and I took our trip, we didn’t ask ourselves any questions about our environmental impact, frankly. Fortunately, in recent years, I have seen an increased sensitivity among younger people to all these issues. This new generation wants to invest with a socially conscious approach… And they often use a principle of exclusion so that in their portfolio they don’t find big oil companies, tobacco companies or companies that use forced labour or whose managers have been convicted of harassment or whatever… They want to make a profit, but not at any price. And our mission is to advise them on how to live up to their commitments!

4 – “Reducing the impact of human activity on the environment” is a cause that is close to your heart: how does sustainable finance contribute to serving it?

I like skiing very much, as I told you earlier. And this year, in the mountains, we had rain at 2500 meters! I realised that at the rate global warming is going, one day we won’t have any snow! I also love diving and I have noticed how fast the corals are disappearing… Will our children be the last to ski? The last to see real corals? With the advancement of our society, we will not be able to catch up with some of the impacts of global warming and we know that within 30 years, there are things that are going to disappear irrevocably. But I think everyone is starting to realise this, especially the next generation. Technological innovation and social networks allow us to convey both solutions and information to enable greater collective awareness. I believe in the impact of each consumer citizen and the importance of their personal contribution to the society in which they live. This does not come without a cost and despite the fact that other generations, those of our parents for example, may find this liberticidal, I believe this is the key.

5 – What hopes do you have for the next generation? And what are you doing today at NextGen to achieve them?

I would like the next generation to have the opportunity to rely on the community to realise their individual consciousness. They are more militant than we are, they want to move the lines and are looking for partners who will help them participate, via their investments, in their long-term objectives of a fairer society. Even if today, we are still in the infancy of sustainable finance and we are constantly analysing how to offer the best products, it must be able to find in us a partner who will help it to fulfil its commitments. I am convinced that if everyone participates at their own level, the collective strength will allow sustainable finance to have a greater impact. At NextGen, our mission is to advise and guide this enlightened generation. We will not only advise them on the products that might be suitable for them but also, for the same criteria, guide them towards more virtuous investments. In this way, we are contributing to a long-term gain in value. A bet on the future.

5 questions to… Matthieu Bille, CIO of NextGen

1 – What events in your career led you to NextGen?

2 – What do you like most about your job?

3 – How important do you think sustainable finance is for the next generation?

4 – “Reducing the impact of human activity on the environment” is a cause that is close to your heart: how does sustainable finance contribute to serving it?

5 – What hopes do you have for the next generation? And what are you doing today at NextGen to achieve them?

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