“Without the stock market, Lupus alpha might not have existed.”

Ralf Lochmüller, founding partner and CEO of Lupus alpha, opened the anniversary event with a special thank you to Deutsche Börse. He stressed: “You may be surprised why we have Dr. Leithner as our guest today, but without Deutsche Börse there might not be Lupus alpha”. The wave of founding in the late 1990s and close cooperation with the stock exchange would have paved the way for the company and shaped the link with the Frankfurt financial centre.

Looking at the beginnings, Lochmüller described: “‘Back then, we travelled around the country with great enthusiasm to promote our services to potential customers.” The first customers came, but shortly afterwards the Neuer Markt collapsed, putting Lupus alpha's business model to the test. But, despite numerous other crises in the following years – from the financial crisis to the euro crisis to the coronavirus crisis – Lupus alpha remained faithful to its clear focus and convictions. Lupus alpha, then and now, was a passionate active manager and deliberately focused on non-mainstream strategies where active management can add real value. Lochmüller stressed that the company is now firmly anchored in the German fund industry: The team has grown from 19 colleagues and no assets to 100 employees and €16 billion in assets under management.

“Of course, all this has only become possible because you, our customers, have placed your trust in us,” Lochmüller said. He thanked the long-standing partners for their interest in investment strategies outside the mainstream and for standing by Lupus alpha even in difficult times. Lochmüller sees the independence of the company as the basis for success: “We’re a medium-sized company run in partnership and only our independence enables us to tailor ourselves to the needs of our customers.”