Natalie Kenway: It has been a blast
A fond farewell
"Have you been writing about Woodward?", a relative asked me at a family gathering last week.
They, of course, meant Neil Woodford and went on to describe their take as someone who I am sure would not mind being described as an amateur investor.
"The fund manager who has gone to pot and won't let investors access their money," they said, while also noting they held investments in Hargreaves Lansdown and acknowledging the platform had also been involved in some very negative headlines.
The national tabloids' coverage of the Woodford fallout has been scathing. Titles have moved from calling the fund manager a "guru" or "star" to a "philanderer" and "fat cat fund boss", with straplines such as "he made millions… now investors can't get their money".
I can only share the sentiment echoed across the industry - this is such a shame for fund management.
It is right the national press has shone a light on the Woodford saga, but this use of language is so damaging for the wider fund management industry, where the vast majority are working hard to protect and increase consumers' savings.
The old idiom of tarring everyone with the same brush comes to mind and, on that note, I move on to the trade press.
Across social media, there has been much criticism of the press coverage of recent events and if we were just considering the tabloid headlines mentioned above I would have to agree.
But, like fund managers, we are not all the same.
I have been a journalist for 14 years, having started my career at Investment Week in 2005. As I reflect on the editors and journalists I have worked with over the years, I am so honoured and proud to have worked with them all and am still in awe of the many talented reporters we have in our industry.
I am leaving Investment Week for pastures new, but can assure readers they will continue to receive well-balanced, thought-provoking breaking news and analysis that has been instilled in the editorial team from the beginning.
I would also like to take this opportunity to personally thank readers for their support, loyalty, feedback and contribution to the articles over the years.
With you, I will look forward to Investment Week celebrating its 25th anniversary in 2020, giving us another chance to reflect on the changes of the past few decades, while looking to the future of our industry.
Thank you all, it has been a blast.
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