Two objectives of the 15th edition: to help understand and clarify

Green light for the 15th edition of the Salone del Risparmio, the annual event organised by Assogestioni that is now a consolidated meeting point for Italian and foreign sector operators, investors and small savers. It will be a three-day marathon that starts on Tuesday 15 and ends on Thursday 17 April and will be inaugurated by Assogestioni's new president, Maria Luisa Gota, who will lead the association for the next three years. This year's show comes at a particular moment in history, when market volatility is at its highest and uncertainties, both geopolitical and related to the issue of duties, are not about to let up.

"After ten years of steadily growing markets," says Fabio Galli, General Manager of Assogestioni, "we are facing an unprecedented structural change, in which people have, as perhaps never before, a real need to understand. This is why I am convinced that this year's edition of the Show will be particularly well attended: we are living through an exceptional moment that, as such, requires exceptional attention. And we will try to give as many answers as possible with over 100 different conferences where experts, academics, political personalities and managers will discuss a wide range of topics'. Lots of opinions, therefore, to try to understand what is happening and how best to deal with it.

The title chosen for this year's event is 'Patient Capital, Progress and Longevity' and aims to combine three key concepts investment from a long-term perspective, which sees institutional investors (such as pension funds) at the forefront, but which also involves the public of savers in thinking in a long-term logic; innovation, which with increasing incisiveness is entering all market and asset allcation contexts through digitalisation and artificial intelligence; and finally, projections on the lengthening of human life spans, which now make it essential to rethink the structure of portfolios and pension models, but also financial planning linked to investment choices suited to an increasingly long-lived population. Choices that must be made in good time if they are to be effective. And it is precisely for this reason that the fundamental issue of financial education will be addressed on several occasions during the exhibition, a topic that must be introduced from an early age to prepare the new generations for future scenarios in a context of continuous economic and social changes that are difficult to predict.

Once again this year, the show offers seven thematic tracks: asset allocation and investment strategies where topics such as deglobalisation, geopolitical tensions, central banks in an increasingly complex and volatile context between risks and opportunities will be addressed; private markets and the real economy whose role will be increasingly central in investment diversification strategies through instruments such as ordinary, alternative and Eltif PIRs; distribution and consultancy at a time when distribution networks and financial advisors are also called upon to rethink their role in order to better cope with an increasingly uncertain scenario; sustainability and human capital linked to the urgency of combating climate change, resolving social issues and geopolitical tensions and facing up to the new political winds coming from the United States that are forcing a step backwards in the ESG paradigm; supplementary pensions, in light of the lengthening of average life expectancy and new demographic dynamics education and training, where the need to focus on financial education is emphasised; innovation and digitalisation of financial services, with the growing adoption of artificial intelligence systems and regulatory developments that incorporate and anticipate innovation trends. At the moment, 18,000 people have already registered for the 15th edition of the exhibition.