Le groupe Panhard, spécialisé dans l’immobilier, a annoncé, ce 13 novembre, le renforcement son pôle investissement avec l’arrivée de Michael Vidamant en qualité de directeur d’investissement. Michael Vidamant, 34 ans, est chargé de développer l’activité d’Investissement et d’Asset Management pour compte propre et pour compte de tiers du Groupe Panhard. Il aura pour missions principales de rechercher tout type d’opportunités d’investissement immobilier, de développer de nouveaux partenariats avec des investisseurs institutionnels ainsi que d’assurer la bonne gestion des actifs pour le compte d’institutionnels et de familly office établis. Titulaire d’un master d’Ingénierie Immobilière de l’Université de Paris X (2009) et d’un Master de Financements Structurés aux Ponts et Chaussées (2010), Michael Vidamant a commencé sa carrière immobilière chez Cushman & Wakefield Investors en tant qu’Investment Manager (20102014), puis chez Stam Europe en tant que Responsable Acquisitions (2014-2017). Il a participé à de nombreuses acquisitions, principalement en bureau, retail et logistique pour le compte de fonds étrangers tels que M&G Real Estate, Tristan Capital Partners, York Capital Management ou encore Aimco avec des profils de risques diversifiés allant du Core à l’opportuniste.

Pierre Capitale, première SCPI gérée par Swiss Life Reim (France) et lancée en février 2017, a pu servir un premier dividende de 30 euros/part en jouissance en octobre et envisage de distribuer un dernier acompte prévisionnel de 12,5 euros/part en janvier prochain. Au total, Pierre Capitale devrait proposer 42,5 euros de dividendes dès l’année de son lancement, soit un taux de distribution de 4,25% par part en pleine jouissance.C’est une montée en régime rapide qui a permis une telle distribution. Au 30 septembre 2017, Pierre Capitale atteint 48 millions d’euros de capitalisation. Pierre Capitale a d’ores et déjà constitué son allocation française à travers plusieurs actifs exclusivement parisiens, majoritairement de bureaux. Deux investissements dans le secteur des services à la personne sont en cours de réalisation en Allemagne, portant le total des engagements à 75 millions d’euros. Le patrimoine bénéficie de baux longs et d’un taux d’occupation de près de 100%.

Deutsche Bank Wealth Management vient de recruter Juan Fuente Carral en qualité de gérant de portefeuille senior au sein de sa division de gestion discrétionnaire, dirigée depuis septembre par Alvaro Soldevilla, rapporte le site spécialisé Funds People. La nouvelle recrue arrive en provenance de Bankinter Gestion de Activos où il a travaillé au cours des 12 dernières années comme gérant de portefeuille senior.

Une nouvelle tendance est apparue dans le « smart beta », mais pour une fois, BlackRock ne mène pas la danse, rapporte Bloomberg. La principale société de gestion au monde estime que la nouvelle version de ces stratégies, connues sous le nom de « multifacteurs dynamiques » est « trop précoce ». En revanche, Pimco et OppenheimerFunds misent sur cette nouvelle tendance. Oppenheimer a lancé deux fonds multifacteurs dynamiques qui appliquent des filtres comme la qualité et la taille aux actions américaines. Pimco a lancé trois de ces fonds en septembre.

Candriam Investors Group, société de gestion dont les actifs s’élèvent à 111 milliards d’euros et qui est détenue par New York Life Investment Management, va annoncer ce matin le lancement de Candriam SRI Bond Global High Yield. Ce fonds associe une approche « long only » sur le marché mondial des obligations à haut rendement avec l’approche investissement socialement responsable de Candriam.La stratégie offre un accès à la classe d’actifs du haut rendement tout en limitant l’exposition aux émetteurs présentant des modèles de croissance non durables, peu respectueux de l’environnement et des valeurs sociales. « Nous pensons qu’une analyse exhaustive des critères ESG et des risques liés aux émetteurs est indispensable pour prendre des décisions d’investissement éclairées en matière de placements obligataires et notamment de titres de créances d’entreprise. En combinant nos analyses ESG avec notre analyse fondamentale, nous cherchons à réduire et à diversifier les risques dans notre stratégie d’investissement », commente Wim Van Hyfte, Ph.D., responsable des Investissements et de la Recherche ISR. Le fonds SRI Bond Global High Yield de Candriam est actuellement enregistré au Luxembourg, en Allemagne, en France, en Espagne, en Italie, en Suisse, aux Pays-Bas et au Royaume-Uni. Aujourd’hui, l’ISR représente plus de 25 % du total des encours sous gestion de Candriam. La société de gestion possède également une expérience de plus de 20 ans en matière de haut rendement, gérant aujourd’hui plus de 8 milliards d’euros.

Le gestionnaire d’actifs américain PGIM Investments a nommé Sheri Taylor Gilchrist au poste de responsable mondial du marketing, rapporte Reuters. L’intéressée arrive en provenance de Bank of New York Mellon où elle était « managing director » et responsable mondial des services de marketing. Avant cela, elle a été responsable mondiale du marketing et des relations clients chez Eaton Vance, selon son profil LinkedIn.

Allianz Global Investors (AllianzGI) a annoncé, hier, le renforcement de son équipe dédiée de la gestion obligataire aux Etats-Unis avec un double recrutement. Carl W. Pappo rejoint ainsi la société de gestion en qualité de directeur des investissements en charge des obligations américaines tandis que Frank Salem est nommé gérant de portefeuille senior. Ce double recrutement doit permettre à AllianzGI de lancer de nouvelles stratégies axées sur les obligations américaines afin « de combler un vide critique sur le marché américain » pour la société de gestion, indique AllianzGI dans un communiqué.Carl W. Pappo, qui compte plus de 25 ans d’expérience dans la gestion obligataire, arrive en provenance de Columbia Threadneedle Investments où il était gérant de portefeuille principal et responsable de l’obligataire « core ». A ce titre, il assurait la gestion d’actifs pour différents portefeuilles institutionnels et fonds communs de placement.Pour sa part, Frank Salem arrive également en provenance de Columbia Threadneedle Investments où il travaillait depuis 1998 sur des solutions de gestions actifs/passifs (LDI) sur-mesure afin de répondre aux besoins d’allocation des clients. « Carl Pappo et Frank Salem ont travaillé de manière très étroite au cours des 10 dernières années », souligne AllianzGI.

Le marché français de la gestion d’actifs s’enrichit d’un nouvel acteur. Philip Hall, fondateur d’Axiom Alternative Investments (Axiom AI) en 2006, et François-Xavier Delorme, ancien responsable du développement commercial pour la gestion alternative chez Oddo Asset Management, viennent en effet de donner naissance à Correl Invest. La société de gestion a officiellement obtenu l’agrément de l’AMF le 20 octobre 2017. « J’ai en effet été à l’origine d’Axiom AI avant d’être rejoint par cinq autres associés pour orienter le développement de la société vers la gestion de la dette hybride bancaire et assurantielle, explique à NewsManagers Philip Hall. Mais en parallèle, j’ai toujours eu envie de développer un fonds multi-stratégies, combinant de la gestion crédit, des stratégies long-short equity et des stratégies obligataires. C’est ainsi que le fonds Premium Multi Stratégies a été modifié en mai 2016. Mais cette offre ne s’imbriquait pas totalement dans l’offre d’Axiom AI. J’ai donc décidé de prendre mon indépendance. »En septembre 2017, Philip Hall a donc quitté Axiom AI pour lancer Correl Invest en compagnie de François-Xavier Delorme, responsable du développement commercial de la toute jeune société de gestion, et Rémi Dhoyer, gérant quantitatif, dont la mission est de développer des modèles systématiques sur le long-short equity. « François-Xavier Delorme souhaitait lui aussi développer ses talents commerciaux et nous avons donc décidé de créer Correl Invest ensemble », a précisé Philip Hall.La création de cette société s’est accompagnée du transfert du fonds Premium Multi Stratégies. « Ce fonds, qui totalise 18 millions d’euros d’actifs sous gestion, a vocation à générer de l’alpha grâce à une allocation multi-stratégies, précise Philip Hall. Mais c’est aussi un fonds patrimonial. Nous voulons donc nous développer auprès des conseillers en gestion de patrimoine, des gérants de fortune, des family offices et de la clientèle privée au sens large. » A ce stade, Philip Hall et François-Xavier Delorme entendent concentrer leurs efforts afin « d’installer la société et développer le fonds », indique Philip Hall. « Nous avons d’autres projets mais ce n’est pas encore d’actualité », a conclu le dirigeant.

Axa a annoncé hier soir le dépôt du prospectus nécessaire à l’introduction en Bourse d’Axa Equitable Holdings, sa filiale américaine, auprès de la Securities and Exchange Commission. L’opération, qui portera sur une participation minoritaire d’Axa Equitable Holdings, devrait intervenir au second trimestre 2018.Axa avait dévoilé en mai son intention de coter ses activités américaines.

BNY Mellon Investment Management (BNY Mellon IM) a annoncé, ce 13 novembre, son intention de rapprocher ses boutiques américaines Mellon Capital Management, Standish Mellon Asset Management et The Boston Company Asset Management en 2018 afin de créer un gestionnaire spécialisé dans la gestion multiclasses d’actifs. Cette nouvelle structure offrira « aux clients institutionnels et aux intermédiaires des stratégies d’investissement multiclasses d’actifs dans des solutions actives et passives », explique le groupe américain dans un communiqué. Cette nouvelle activité représentera plus de 560 milliards de dollars d’actifs sous gestion, sur la base de chiffres à fin septembre 2017, et se classera dans le Top 10 des gestionnaires d’actifs institutionnels américains et parmi les 50 plus grandes sociétés de gestion à l’échelle mondiale. La nouvelle structure emploiera plus de 300 professionnels de l’investissement et disposera de bureaux à Boston, à San Francisco et à Pittsburgh. Elle pourra également s’appuyer sur des équipes localisées dans des filiales à Londres, Singapour et Hong Kong.Chacune des trois boutiques, spécialisées sur la clientèle institutionnelle, apportera ses propres compétences et expertises. Mellon Capital Managemnent utilise un processus d’investissement systématique afin d’offrir des stratégies smart beta et factorielles et des stratégies indicielles sur les actions et les obligations, ainsi que des solutions « multi-asset ». Pour sa part, Standish est une société de gestion fondamentale, axée sur la recherche obligataire, possédant une expertise sur les obligations internationales, les obligations municipales américaines et les obligations américaines à courte duration. Enfin, The Boston Company est gérant actif spécialisé sur les actions, disposant d’une expertise sur le terrain du « value » et du « growth » ainsi que de stratégies long/short sur les actions. « Les équipes d’investissement de chaque société, les processus et les philosophies d’investissement de leurs principales stratégies, resteront en grande partie les mêmes, indique BNY Mellon IM dans un communiqué. Au fur et à mesure que les équipes collaboreront plus étroitement ensemble, ces processus d’investissement et ces philosophies seront améliorées grâce à une infrastructure opérationnelle optimisée et l’apport de nouveaux outils analytiques et de nouvelles expertises de recherche. »Les équipes de Mellon Capital Management, Standish et The Boston Company Asset Management piloteront l’intégration de leurs activités. En outre, Des directeurs des investissements seront nommés pour chaque activité « afin de maintenir une continuité des processus d’investissement à travers toutes les stratégies », souligne BNY Mellon. Il s’agit de Jeff Zhang pour Mellon Capital Management qui sera en charge du « multi-asset », des indices et du « smart beta » ; Dave Leduc de Standish en charge de l’obligataire ; et enfin, Dave Daglio de The Boston Company Asset Management en charge des actions.Cette nouvelle structure aura son siège social à Boston. Elle sera dirigée par Des Mac Intyre en qualité de président (« chairman ») et directeur général (« CEO »). L’intéressé est actuellement directeur général pour la gestion d’actifs aux Etats-Unis chez BNY Mellon IM.Le rapprochement de ces trois boutiques devrait être finalisé d’ici les 12 prochains mois, indique BNY Mellon IM. « Pendant cette période de transition, Mellon Capital Management, Standish et The Boston Company Asset Management conserveront leurs produits et leurs marques jusqu’au lancement d’une nouvelle marque unifiée en 2018 », conclut BNY Mellon IM.

Apollo Global Management prépare la succession de son management. La société de capital-investissement a annoncé, ce 13 novembre, la promotion de Scott Kleinman (44 ans) et James Zelter (55 ans) au poste de co-président à partir du 1er janvier 2018. Ils dirigent à l’heure actuelle respectivement l’activité de private equity et de crédit au sein d’Apollo. Leon Black, 66 ans, reste pour le moment PDG. Les deux autres co-fondateurs, Josh Harris (52 ans) et Mark Rowan (55 ans), plus jeunes, conservent également leurs fonctions opérationnelles.

Columbia Threadneedle Investments has hired Lorenzo Garcia as head of EMEA client investment solutions. Lorenzo is based in London, reporting to Jeff Knight, global head of investment solutions and Mark Burgess, deputy global chief investment officer. Lorenzo Garcia brings 17 years’ investment experience, including a 12-year career with Blackrock Investment Managers where his most recent role was head of EMEA institutional and retail portfolio management, ETF and index investments, overseeing in excess of GBP370bn within 170 portfolios. At Columbia Threadneedle Lorenzo Garcia will be working with the global investment team to deliver investment solutions to clients in EMEA.

The Japanese asset management firm Nikko Asset Management (Nikko AM) on 13 November announced the appointment of John Howland-Jackson, currently chairman of Nikko Asset Management Europe Limited, as CEO for Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA). Howland-Jackson, who will officially begin in the position on 1 January 2018, will combine the two roles, the asset management firm says. Howland-Jackson will be based in London, and will be responsible for all activities of the company throughout the EMEA region. Howland-Jackson takes on the role of CEO for EMEA previously held by Udo von Werme. Von Werme has decided to leave the firm. However, he will retain the position of CEO until the end of December 2017. Meanwhile, Nikko AM has appointed Ian Lewis, current head of consultant relationships, as head of sales for the EMEA region and global head of consultant relationships. Lewis will also be based in London, and will begin in the position from 1 December 2017.

M&G Investments announces the launch of a fund focusing on the global high yield market that will incorporate environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors. ESG considerations are fully integrated in the investment process through a 3 - stage screen. The first stage excludes companies in breach of the United Nations Global Compact principles. The second layer filters out companies that derive their revenue from specific sectors: tobacco, alcohol, adult entertainment, gambling, thermal coal, defence and weapons. The third stage filters companies according to their ESG credentials based on ratings provided by MSCI.Due to a comprehensive assessment of a range of ESG factors, the fund will exclude any companies that are classified as industry laggards displaying poor ESG credentials compared to its industry peers. This stage involves a sophisticated analysis of a wide range of complex issues, which might cover everything from energy efficiency and pollution to working conditions and product safety. The strategy will be co - managed by James Tomlins and Stefan Isaacs, who account for over 28 years of experience of investing in high yield, and will be supported by M&G’s extensive capabilities in the credit space. The fund will invest at least 80% of its assets in global high yield bonds to form a flexible and highly diversified portfolio in terms of issuers, geographies and sectors.

BNY Mellon Investment Management (BNY Mellon IM) announced that it will launch a specialist multi-asset investment manager in 2018. The new business will combine BNY Mellon’s three largest U.S. investment managers — Mellon Capital Management (MCM), Standish Mellon Asset Management (Standish), and The Boston Company Asset Management (TBCAM) — to offer institutional and intermediary clients high quality single and multi-asset investment strategies in both active and passive solutions.With over USD560 billion in AUM, the combined business will rank as a top 10 U.S. institutional asset manager and a top 50 manager globally. It will employ more than 300 investment professionals, with U.S. offices in Boston, San Francisco and Pittsburgh, and investment staff through affiliates in London, Singapore and Hong Kong."Clients are increasingly looking for specialist managers with differentiated investment strategies and competitive pricing. This requires scale in risk management, technology and operations to deliver upon these needs,» said Mitchell Harris, CEO of BNY Mellon Investment Management. «This combined U.S. business will give clients unified access to our intellectual capital in multi-asset strategies, alongside a strengthened investment process and an optimized platform with increased resources to deliver innovative and competitively-priced solutions. Today’s investment environment is evolving rapidly, and BNY Mellon’s multi-boutique model is well positioned to offer specialist active and passive solutions from our bench of leading investment managers."The existing businesses — each global in focus and largely institutional in nature — bring together unique investment solutions and skills: MCM uses a systematic process to deliver advanced equity and fixed income indexation and factor-based smart beta strategies, as well as multi-asset products. Standish is a fundamental, active fixed income manager with expertise in global and opportunistic fixed income (in both developed and emerging markets), U.S. municipal bonds and U.S. short duration bonds. TBCAM is a research-driven active equity manager with expertise in value, growth and core styles as well as opportunistic and long/short alternative equity strategies.The individual companies’ investment teams, processes and philosophies for their core strategies will remain substantially the same, ensuring they maintain their focus on delivering customized investment outcomes for clients. As the teams collaborate more closely together over time, these investment processes and philosophies will be enhanced via an optimized operational infrastructure and the addition of new analytical tools and research capabilities.The management teams at MCM, Standish, and TBCAM, with the support of BNY Mellon IM, will be leading the integration of the businesses. Chief Investment Officers will be appointed from each business to maintain continuity of the investment process across all strategies. They include: Jeff Zhang from MCM for Multi-Asset, Index and Smart Beta Dave Leduc from Standish for Active Fixed Income Dave Daglio from TBCAM for Active EquityThe new business will be headquartered in Boston and led by Chairman and CEO Des Mac Intyre, currently CEO of U.S. Asset Management at BNY Mellon IM. Des most recently served as Head of Investment Process Oversight at Bridgewater Associates. Previously, he served as the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Standish. His investment management experience spans more than three decades and includes roles as Chief Operating Officer at Pareto Partners and Head of Risk and Treasurer for GM Asset Management."Each business already has in-depth investment expertise in their respective areas. By combining them we will be able to increase our investment in their collective capabilities and add new investment solutions for the benefit of clients,» said Des Mac Intyre.The combination of the three businesses is expected to be completed within 12 months. During this transition period, MCM, Standish and TBCAM will maintain their existing product brands until the launch of a unified brand later in 2018.

Axa Investment Managers appears to be one of the strategic assets of the Axa group. At a presentation of a simplification of its organisation on 13 November, the Axa group announced that “key transversal entities will be managed alongside the five geographical regions, particularly Axa Investment Managers, the strategic 100% owned asset maangement activity, and Axa Corporate Solutions, the insurance entity for large international risks.” These two companies will report directly to the CEO of Axa, Thomas Buberl. A few weeks ago, when rumours of a sale of Axa IM were swirling, Andrea Rossi, global CEO of Axa IM, announced in an internal memo that the CEO of Axa had confirmed that “the group continues to view Axa IM as a strategic asset.” However, Paul Evans, CEO of Axa Global Life, Savings & Health, who had also been responsible for asset management on the board of directors at the group, will be leaving Axa.As part of the simplification of its organisation, the group has decided to operate in five geographical regions (France, Europe, United States, Asia, and International), and a single, simplified Corporate Center (down from the previous three: headquarters, professions, and regions). This plan was presented to employees on 17 October and consultations with employee representatives have been initiated at the entities affected. The new organisational model will be operational from first quarter 2018. “My objective is to let our teams concentrate their energy on growth in our activities and the quality of service in their respective markets. I am convinced that giving more power to the operational entities is essential to the long-term success of Axa since it will allow us to complete our transformation to be as close to clients as possible. To get there, this simplification of our organisation is an absolute pre-requisite, and the starting point for a major effort to make Axa simpler for all participants,” says Buberl. To steer the new operational model, a new board of directors has been appointed, which, alongside Buberl, includes the following members: Gérald Harlin, CFO, appointed deputy CEO, in addition to his current responsibilities; George Stansfield, secretary general, appointed as deputy CEO, in addition to his current responsibilities; Benoît Claveranne, appointed as CEO for international and new markets; Mark Pearson, CEO of Axa US; and Jacques de Peretti, chairman and CEO of Axa France. Four new members join the board of directors: Alban de Mailly Nesle, director of risk, who additionally takes on responsibility for the new group insurance department; Antimo Perretta, appointed as CEO for Europe; Astrid Stange, appointed as chief operating officer; Gordon Watson, who joins the board of directors on 1 January 2018, and will become CEO for Asia. The new appointments to the board of directors will otherwise take effect from 1 December.

The French asset management market is gaining a new player. Philip Hall, founder of Axiom Alternative Investments (Axiom AI) in 2006, and François-Xavier Delorme, former head of commercial development for alternative management at Oddo Asset Management, have created Correl Invest. The asset management firm officially obtained a license from the AMF on 20 October 2017. “I created Axiom AI before being joined by five other partners to orient the development of the company toward management of hybrid bank and insurance debt,” Hall explains to NewsManagers. “But meanwhile, I always wanted to develop a multi-strategy fund, combining credit management, long/short equity strategies, and bond strategies. That is why the Premium Multi Stratégies fund was modified in May 2016. But this offering did not fully integrate with the range from Axiom AI, so I decided to go independent.” In September 2017, Hall therefore quit Axiom AI to launch Correl Invest in partnership with Delorme, head of commercial development for the startup asset management firm, and Rémi Dhoyer, quantitative manager, whose mission is to develop systematic models for long/short equity. “Delorme also wanted to develop his sales talent and so we decided to create Correl Invest together,” says Hall. The creation of the company is accompanied by the transfer of the Premium Multi Stratégies fund. “This fund, which has a total of EUR18m in assets under management, aims to generate alpha through multi-strategy allocation,” says Hall. “But it is also a wealth management fund. So we want to develop to serve independent financial advisers, wealth managers, family offices and private clients in the broader sense.” At this stage, Hall and Delorme are planning to focus their efforts to “get the company in place and develop the fund,” says Hall. “We have other plans, but those are not yet current,” the director concludes.

Apollo Global Management announced the expansion of its executive leadership team with the elevation of Scott Kleinman and James Zelter to serve as Co-Presidents. In connection with these appointments, the current roles of Leon Black, Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and Founder, Josh Harris, Senior Managing Director and Co-Founder, and Marc Rowan, Senior Managing Director and Co-Founder, will continue with respect to Apollo’s strategic leadership and investment committee decision-making.The appointments of Mr. Kleinman and Mr. Zelter to the newly created positions of Co-President will be effective as of January 1, 2018, and they will report to Mr. Harris.In their new capacities, Mr. Kleinman and Mr. Zelter will have full responsibility for all of Apollo’s revenue-generating and investing businesses. Mr. Kleinman will focus on Apollo’s equity and opportunistic businesses, and Mr. Zelter will focus on Apollo’s credit and yield businesses. They both will continue to serve on the investment committees in their respective areas of focus. Scott Kleinman, 44, is the Lead Partner for Private Equity and a member of Apollo’s Management Committee. Mr. Kleinman joined Apollo in 1996, and in 2009 he was named Lead Partner for Private Equity. Prior to joining Apollo, Mr. Kleinman was a member of the Investment Banking division at Smith Barney Inc. Mr. Kleinman serves on the board of directors of Constellis Holdings, CH2M Hill Companies, Ltd., Hexion Holdings, LLC, Momentive Performance Materials Holdings, Inc., and Vectra Co. In 2014, Mr. Kleinman founded the Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the University of Pennsylvania. He is a member of the Board of Overseers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Design. Mr. Kleinman received a BA and BS from the University of Pennsylvania and the Wharton School of Business, respectively, graduating magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa.James Zelter, 55, is the Managing Director of Apollo’s Credit business, a member of Apollo’s Management Committee, and Chief Executive Officer and director of Apollo Investment Corporation. Prior to joining Apollo in 2006, Mr. Zelter was with Citigroup Inc. and its predecessor companies from 1994 to 2006. From 2003 to 2005, Mr. Zelter was Chief Investment Officer of Citigroup Alternative Investments, and prior to that he was responsible for the firm’s Global High Yield franchise. Prior to joining Citigroup in 1994, Mr. Zelter was a High Yield Trader at Goldman Sachs & Co.Mr. Zelter is a board member of DUMAC, the investment management company that oversees the Duke University Endowment and Duke University Foundation. Mr. Zelter has a degree in Economics from Duke University.

Axa announced the filing by Axa Equitable Holdings (AEH), Inc., AXA’s wholly - owned U.S. holding company, of a registration statement on Form S - 1 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission relating to the proposed initial public offering (IPO) and U.S. listing of AEH common stock. The offering is expected to consist of a minority stake in AEH’s common stock, to be sold by AXA as selling stockholder. AXA anticipates that the IPO will occur in the second quarter of 2018. There can be no assurance that the IPO will be completed on the expected timeline or at all, said the press release. The shares will be offered by a group of underwriters led by Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC and J.P. Morgan. The number of shares to be offered and the price range for th e proposed offering have not yet been determined.

AXA Investment Managers - Real Assets announces the final close of Logistics Development Club, a fund seeking to invest in logistics development projects in key locations across Europe. With EUR240 million of equity commitments raised from four international institutional investors, Logistics Development Club aims to develop c. 1 million sqm of Grade A logistics space, providing occupiers with efficient, flexible and sustainable buildings. The fund will directly benefit from the development expertise of Baytree Logistics Properties, a pan-European logistics and industrial platform set up in partnership with AXA IM - Real Assets in 2015, which brings complementary skills to a strong pan-European real estate investment network. Logistics Development Club was launched in July 2016 and has already secured four sites to be developed in France, Germany and the UK which, once complete, will deliver a total of c. 250,000 sqm of modern logistics space in attractive locations.The Fund forms part of the AXA IM - Real Assets’ wider logistics real estate strategy which includes an existing pan-European logistics portfolio currently valued at EUR1.7 billion and comprising c. 2.5 million sqm of space.

The Spanish asset management firm Cobas Asset Management (Cobas AM), founded and led by Francisco Garcia Paramés, yesterday announced the acquisition of a minority stake in the capital of Equam Capital. The operation, which has yet to obtain approval from the CNMV, the Spanish regulator, will be carried out through a capital increase led by Santa Comba Gestion, the parent company of Cobas AM, the asset management firm says, without offering more details. The initiative, announced by Garcia Paramés at the firm’s annual conference in June 2017, aims to “promote less well-known ‘value’ managers, and to bring investors alternatives for diversification of their savings,” Cobas AM says in a statement. The Equam Capital company, founded by Alejandro Muñoz and José Antonio Larraz, manages the Equam Global Value fund, domiciled in Luxembourg, which has about EUR50m in assets.

Patrizia Immobilien AG announces that it has acquired Triuva Kapitalverwaltungsgesellschaft mbH, significantly expanding its business in Germany and Europe. Both parties agreed to not disclose the purchase price.“This acquisition is a perfect fit for our growth strategy. It will strengthen our European network, expand our market presence and broaden the range of products and services for our clients. We will also consolidate our position as the leading independent real estate investment manager in Europe,” explains Wolfgang Egger, CEO of Patrizia Immobilien AG.Triuva is one of the leading providers of real estate investments in Europe. The company manages around 40 funds, partners with more than 80 institutional investors and consists of around 200 employees across its 15 European locations. The Frankfurt-based company focuses on commercial real estate in the office, retail and logistics sectors as well as infrastructure. Currently, Triuva manages real estate assets of around EUR 9.8 billion.The acquisition increases Patrizia’s assets under management by around 50 per cent to more than EUR 30 billion, placing the company firmly amongst the top 10 European real estate investment managers. Furthermore, this will broaden Patrizia’s product range, enabling institutional and private investors to access new markets, asset classes and risk profiles with their investments.

The California Public Employees’ Retirement System, the largest U.S. pension fund, is considering more than doubling its bond allocation to reduce risk and volatility as the stock bull market approaches nine years, says Bloomberg. Calpers is looking at a menu of options for its fixed-income target ranging from the current 19 percent to as much as 44 percent, according to a presentation for a board workshop in Sacramento coming up Monday. Equities could be cut to as little as 34 percent from 50 percent. Stocks were the best-performing asset class in fiscal 2017, returning almost 20 percent.“The markets have had a pretty good run and it’s possible Calpers staff is thinking this might be a good time to lock in some of the gains,” Keith Brainard, research director for the National Association of State Retirement Administrators, said in a phone interview.

ETF Securities Limited (ETF Securities) has agreed to sell its European exchange-traded commodity, currency and short-and-leveraged business to WisdomTree Investments, Inc. (WisdomTree), the Nasdaq-listed and New York headquartered global exchange-traded product provider. The business being sold comprises all the European operations excluding the ETF platform. The business being sold to WisdomTree has USD17.6billion of AUM spread across 307 products, including the flagship gold products PHAU and GBS. The business has a comprehensive range of commodity, currency and short-and-leveraged products and more than 50 dedicated staff. WisdomTree and ETF Securities will work to ensure that integration is seamless and expect no change to the current high standards of service and operations experienced by our customers and partners. The sale is subject to regulatory approval and is currently anticipated to close in late Q1 2018. Graham Tuckwell, Founder and Chairman of ETF Securities, comments: “We are pleased to be selling our European exchange-traded commodity, currency and short-and-leverage business to WisdomTree and to become the largest shareholder in the company. I believe this combination creates a uniquely positioned firm which will flourish in the years ahead, continuing to deliver huge value for customers and stakeholders. ETF Securities has a strong cultural fit with WisdomTree as both firms have been built from scratch by teams who have worked closely together for many years and who show an entrepreneurial spirit in seeking to deliver innovative and market leading products for their customers.” Mark Weeks, the UK CEO of ETF Securities says: “This transaction creates a leading independent global ETP provider which is well positioned to compete in the rapidly growing European ETP market. We have complementary expertise, product ranges and customer networks. We both continue to challenge the status quo to provide customers with a range of differentiated products. In this industry customers want and value firms like ours, which provide broader choice.”

The Italian asset management firm Azimut, via its Australian affiliate AZ Next Generation Advisory, will acquire all shares in Dunsford Financial Planning, an Australian fiancial advising firm, for EUR4.1m.Dunsford Financial Planning, founded in 1983 by Mark Dunsford, offers advising and financial planning, social and integrative retirement planning, insurance, real estate planning and business consulting. It is located in Mornington, Victoria.The agreement, for 49% of capital, specifies an exchange of Dunsford Financial Planning shares for AZ NGA shares, and a gradual repurchase of these shares over the next 10 years. The remaining 51% will be acquired in cash from the founders over two years.Currently, the Azimut group, which has already acquired 10 companies in Australia, has EUR4.1bn in assets under management on the continent via its affiliate AZ NGA.

La banque privée VP Bank, basée au Liechtenstein, a annoncé ce 13 novembre la nomination d’Urs Monstein en qualité de responsable des opérations (COO, chief operating officer), en charge de la digitalisation de la société. Urs Monstein, qui prendra ses fonctions le 1er juin 2018 «au plus tard», rejoindra le comité exécutif de VP Bank. Entre-temps, Alfred Moeckli, directeur général, et Siegbert Naescher, directeur financier, continueront de superviser l’informatique et les opérations.Urs Monstein travaillait précédemment chez Julius Baer où il était responsable mondial IT et «chief information officer».

Candriam Investors Group, an asset management firm with assets totalling EUR111bn, controlled by New York Life Investment Management, will this morning announce the launch of Candriam SRI Bond Global High Yield. This fund pairs a long-only approach to the global high yield bond market with the socially repsonsible investment approach of Candriam. The strategy offers access to the high yield asset class, while limiting exposure to issuers who have non-sustainable growth models, or which do not respect the environment and social values. “We think that an exhaustive analysis of ESG criteria and risks related to issuers is indispensable for taking clear investment decisions concerning bond investments, and especially corporate securities. Combining our ESG analyses without fundamental analyses, we seek to reduce and diversify the risks in our investment strategy,” says Wim Van Hyfte, Ph.D., head of investments and SRI research. The SRI Bond Global High Yield fund from Candriam is currently registered in Luxembourg, Germany, France, Spain, Italy, Switzerland, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom. SRI currently represents over 25% of total assets under management at Candriam. The asset management firm also has over 20 years of experience in high yield, in which it now manages over EUR8bn.

Le gestionnaire d’actifs espagnol Cobas Asset Management (Cobas AM), fondée et dirigée par Francisco Garcia Paramés, a annoncé, hier, l’acquisition d’une participation minoritaire au capital de la société Equam Capital. L’opération, qui doit encore obtenir le feu vert de la CNMV, le régulateur espagnol, sera réalisée via une augmentation de capital menée par Santa Comba Gestion, maison-mère de Cobas AM, indique la société de gestion sans plus de détails. Cette initiative, annoncée par Francisco Garcia Paramés lors de sa conférence annuelle en juin 2017, a pour objectif de « promouvoir des gérants ‘value’ moins connus et apporter des alternatives aux investisseurs dans la diversification de leur épargne », souligne Cobas AM dans un communiqué.Fondée par Alejandro Muñoz et José Antonio Larraz, la société Equam Capital gère le fonds Equam Global Value, domicilié au Luxembourg, qui affiche environ 50 millions d’euros d’encours.

Le plus grand fonds de pension américain, Calpers (California Public Employees ‘Retirement System), envisage de plus que doubler son allocation aux actifs obligataires afin de réduire le risque et la volatilité alors que le marché actions est en hausse depuis bientôt neuf ans, rapporte Bloomberg. L’agence de presse a pu lire un document de travail du conseil d’administration ayant eu lieu lundi. Calpers envisage différentes options dont celle d’augmenter la part dévolue au fixed income, aujourd’hui de 19%, pour aller jusqu'à 44%. En parallèle, l’allocation actions serait réduite de 50% à 34% dans l’hypothèse la plus prudente. Pour CalPers, qui gère 343 milliards de dollars, les actions ont été la catégorie d’actifs la plus performante en 2017, avec un rendement de près de 20%.

Un partenariat entre Amundi et la filiale de Crédit Agricole en Italie va permettre aux institutionnels d’investir dans un fonds de dette adossé à des stocks de jambon italien (Parme et San Daniele) et de parmesan, rapporte très sérieusement le quotidien Les Echos. Le fonds financera les stocks pendant la durée de l’affinage des produits - typiquement de 12 à 24 mois. Amundi envisage de lever environ 150 millions d’euros pour ce fonds dont le rendement pourrait atteindre entre 4 et 6 %.